Matthews Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley 2019

Why would one of the most established teams in the country leave the top Washington winery and one of the nation’s best? That’s what the wine world was desperately trying to figure out.

Superstar winemakers, Jesse Schmidt, Hal Iverson and Alex Stewart wanted creative freedom to push the boundaries even further in terms of quality out of the region, if you can even imagine.

As Stewart mentioned to Wine Spectator, once they picked up the story, “It’s not a reset, but just an opportunity to show Matthews fans what we can do with the fruit. Let’s strip away that ego and bring the best you can to the vines.”

And that’s exactly what they’ve done in their inaugural Cabernet release. Just like a 1973 Stag’s Leap Wine Cellar, this is one of those bottles you’ll wish you had bought more of – just for the historical significance. I mean that especially because it’s sooo delicious, it’s unlikely you’ll keep your hands off it like you should.

Double 93s from James Suckling and Wine Enthusiast, who added an Editor’s Choice badge onto it. The review is particularly apt: “Sometimes it’s about the velvet glove and sometimes it’s just the enjoyment of the hammer.”

This is the hammer – a wine of massive proportions and just beginning to come out of its shell. The first Columbia Valley Cabernet bottling by the wunderteam, but I’m guessing this is not the last we’ll hear from them.