We're excited to introduce our Columbia Valley AVA Illustrator Series Red Wine Blend 2019 vintage, which will be shipping in all of our Washington Wine & Cherry Gifts. My husband and I, pictured above, gleefully opened both bottles to share some tasting notes with you.

First, let's talk weather in the Columbia Valley. Compared to an early growing season punctuated by summer heat waves in 2018, the 2019 growing season was unique. Late winter weather contributed to great soil moisture and a delayed bloom. Overall, temperatures across the Columbia Valley Washington wine region were slightly above 20-year averages but were nowhere near as warm as the years that preceded it. Fall weather brought frosts with cooler temperatures, which contributed to lower sugars and higher acidities, which many Washington winemakers welcomed.

What does this mean for you as a wine drinker? Our 2018 Red Wine Blend is jammy with ripe, dark fruit characteristics. Our 2019 Red Wine Blend has soft tannins and great fruit purity and better cellaring potential.

Let's look at our 2018 (left) and 2019 (right) Red Blends next to each other in the glass. Straight away you can see that the 2018 is darker and more opaque while the 2019 has more rose tones. On a base level, the visual consistency of the wines is reflected in its flavor.

As wine and cherry lovers ourselves, our aim is to share what we’ve known all along: there’s no better pairing than Chukar Cherries and Washington wine. Supported by the same soil and weather in the Columbia Valley, both the grape and cherry fruits grown here share elemental characteristics that make them exceptional.

We hope that you do not hesitate to gift - or, better yet, enjoy for yourself - our limited edition Red Wine Blends, whose quality we back with the same fervor with which we back our chocolate covered cherries.