Snoqualmie Whistle Stop Red-2006

Since we're spending the summer in the Northwest at Olympic National Park, I've decided to concentrated on local Washington wines. The local Safeway has a large selection of Northwest wines at good prices. Everything else in the store was higher priced, reflecting the isolation of our location. So the answer is to buy what's on sale and drink more wine.

Snoqualmie Whistle Stop Red is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 30% Merlot. When I sample different red blends, I find the ones with higher percentage of Cabernet have deeper flavors and more character. The predominately Merlot blends tend to be too soft and not distinctive. The grapes come from Eastern Washington in the Columbia Valley. The wine is named for the railroad tracks that run next to the vineyards. Maybe the vibration of the trains cause the grapes to ripen uniquely.

The wine opened up nicely in the glass with black cherry and oak in the nose. The tannin level was soft and supple. It has some complexity, and complimented the steak we had with it. It was smooth enough to stand on it's own before dinner with some tapas.

The best news was that it was on sale for $7.99. It's a great value, and really shows how great a blended wine can be.