A few quick thoughts on the 2014 Kerloo Cellars Grenache from Upland Vineyard on Snipes Mountain.
The Geekery
Kerloo Cellars was founded in 2007 by Ryan Crane, a protege of Forgeron Cellars’ Marie-Eve Gilla and Justin Wylie of Va Piano. The winery’s name is a play on “Curlew”–a genus of long, slender birds with down-curved bills that are distantly related to cranes.
Located on Snipes Mountain, Upland Vineyard is owned by the Newhouse family who have been farming wine grapes since 1968. The vineyard includes blocks that were originally planted by W.B. Bridgman in 1917 with Paul Gregutt speculating, in Washington Wine, that the 1917 Muscat of Alexandria at Upland may be the oldest vinifera vines in Washington.
Kerloo is one of over 20 wineries that sources fruit from Upland–joining a list that includes Betz, DeLille, Pomum and K Vintners.
The 2014 vintage was Kerloo’s 4th release of Grenache from Upland Vineyard. 100% varietal, the wine was aged in neutral French oak barrels for around 9 months before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. Around 240 cases were produced.
The Wine
Medium-plus intensity nose–an interesting mix of black fruit and toasty cinnamon spice. This wine smells like Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal.
This wine smells and tastes like a less sweeten bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal.
On the palate, the black fruits carry through and become more defined as blackberries and black cherries. Medium acidity gives the wine some lift and freshness but not quite enough to be mouthwatering. The Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal action also carries through but it adds character rather than sweetness. Medium tannins are very silky and balances well the medium-plus body of the fruit. Moderate length finish brings some pepper spice to the party.
The Verdict
At around $40, this is a well made and pleasurable wine. But you are certainly paying a bit of a premium for it being a single vineyard wine and a relatively unique varietal.
It’s a good change of pace but would be a far more exciting wine in the $25-30 price range.