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Tasting Notes
A Tone and Backbone wine with sweet, dark black currant and red cherry fruit, tobacco, leather, spicy minerality, and an attractive dark chocolate note on the finish.
Body is the impression of a wines weight, density, or its ‘mouth-feel’. Some wines feel weighty, or full bodied, while others feel light bodied. Wine runs the gamut from light to full, with most falling somewhere in between.
TANNIN
Low
Subtle
Balanced
Pronounced
High
Tannin can range greatly in wine, but it is necessary to some degree, and a necessary constituent for red wines to age well. In high amounts, it can cause a drying affect, which is sensed mostly on the gums and tongue. Tannin is a natural preservative extracted from grape skins, otherwise known as polyphenols that are micronutrients and antioxidants with potential health benefits.
ACIDITY
Soft
Subtle
Balanced
Pronounced
High
Acidity is a foundational component in wine. In fact, low acidity, or ‘flabby’ wine (as the term suggests) is a negative. You can sense acidity mainly on the sides of your tongue. Acidity generally ranges from balanced to high. Crisp acidity adds freshness, making your mouth water. Acidity is a necessary element and helps to balance other components.
SWEETNESS
Dry
Off Dry
Medium Dry
Medium Sweet
Very Sweet
Most wines are characterized as dry to off-dry, but there are some grape varietals, like Riesling, that run the gamut from dry to sweet. The tip of the tongue mainly detects sweetness, which is why it is often the primary characteristic detected. Sweetness is derived from residual sugar that did not ferment into alcohol.
ALCOHOL
13.5%
Alcohol is the by-product of fermentation. Differing grape varieties have differing potential alcohol levels, but regardless warmer areas result in riper grapes resulting in higher alcohol. Alcohol level is an objective number, but its affect on its palate impression is largely determined with how well integrated and balanced it is with other components.
Deftly balances flavor and restraint, not always the case with Cabernet Sauvignon
GRAPE VARIETAL(S)
Cabernet Sauvignon
100%Ca-ber-NAY So-vee-NYON
Cabernet Sauvignon origins are from the Gironde in southwest France, but is now planted across the world in climates that accommodate this late ripening grape. It is the dominant grape in wines made in Bordeaux’s Médoc and Graves regions. This small, thick-skinned grape, produces darkly colored wine, high in tannin and relatively high in acidity with hallmark aromas of blackcurrant and can stylistically change from austere in its youth to lush depending on the region, and winemaking style.
In 1989, Chris Camarda started the Andrew Will Winery in a tiny, makeshift 600-square foot facility. The winery has grown into a boutique winery making 4500 cases per year of some of Washington’s finest wines.
Mr. Camarda carefully sources grapes from the best vineyards across Washington, focusing on an old-school approach with the terroir as guiding light. He then blends his wines from different sites, with a focus on creating a wine where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
When Mr. Camarda started the winery, he named it after his son Andrew and nephew Will who recently took over the primary winemaking duties, continuing a legacy of making compelling and age-worthy merlot and cabernet.
Black Cherry
Tobacco
Dark Chocolate
