Kiona '99

[Becky Lock]

I am very new to wines and recently had a bottle of Kiona '99 cab/metlot blend and enjoyed it very much. I was wondering if you could tell me a little about the wine i.e., price, availability, etc. It was the first time I saw a cab/merlot blend.

[Drew]

Becky, welcome and welcome to the world of blends, the French have been doing it for centuries. Kiona is a Washington State winery that produces above average to excellent wines and has won quite a few medals since opening in 1975. You can find the Cab/merlot blend in the $10 to $15 range.

Kiona Vineyards and Winery
44612 N. Sunset NE, Benton City, WA 99320
Phone: (509) 588-6716
Hours: daily noon-5pm
Tasting: yes
Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, White Riesling, Merlot, Lemberger

Somer other Cab/merlot and blends to track down and try are:

Greg Norman Cab/merlot (Australia)
Rosemount Shiraz/Cab (Australia)
Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz/Cab (Australia)
Hedges "Three vineyards" Cab/merlot (Washington State)
Kendall Jackson "Collage" (Calif)

Drew

[This message has been edited by Drew (edited 11-25-2001).]

[Innkeeper]

Glad to hear your '99 cabernet/merlot blend drank well. We have two '97 Kiona Cabernets in the rack that we planned to hold till '03. Maybe we can move that schedule up.

[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 11-25-2001).]

[Drew]

IK, here's a little more on their wines.

http://www.winepressnw.com/woehler/1999/040799.html

Drew

[Innkeeper]

OK, maybe I won't adjust the schedule. For our novice pals, this is an abject lesson that the aging game is an endless learning process.

[zenda2]

I really enjoyed my visit to the Kiona winery, very nice folks. And their wines were the best 'bargain' of that NW trip IMHO, I only wish their wines were available here in Kansas/Missouri (no local distribution). The winery/vinyard location on Red Mountain gives them access to some amazing grapes, if you don't already understand 'terroir'...visit Red Mountain. I expect Red Mountain wines to soon be THE wines to search for from Washington State.
(if you can find their Lemberger, give it a try, a delicious 'best buy')

Another good red blend to try is the Hedges lower priced Columbia Valley Red ($12), made with Cab, Merlot, Cab Franc and Syrah. The additional Cab Franc and Syrah brings a lot more complexity into this bottle than the usual 'cab/merlot blend'. Hedges vinyard is just across the road and uphill a few blocks from Kiona and at least 1/3 of the grapes going into their inexpensive wine are coming from these 'premium' vinyards. You can taste that in this juice.
A great buy IMNSHO.

[winoweenie]

The Hedges Red Mtn Reserve has already made waves here in the desert. WW

[Innkeeper]

Popped one of the '97s last night as a welcome home treat with a couple of Angus KC strip steaks. It was great. Nice nose of cassis (the blackcurrent liqueur) and other fruit. In other words, it had the quintessential cabernet nose. This was followed by much the same upfront; and then a lovely blend of fruit, acid, tannin, and oak across the palate, all wrapped in splendid complexity. The finish was delightful. Matched perfectly with the grillpanned steak. The wine was almost wide open. A couple more hours in the carafe would have done the complete job. For the second bottle, will do that, or wait a couple of more years.

[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 02-21-2002).]

[chittychattykathy]

Glad to see that you enjoyed the Kiona!

[jon2465]

has anyone tried the rh phillips toastedhead merlot cab franc blend

[Innkeeper]

Well we did wait two more years, and had the second '97 Kiona with grillpanned porterhouse steak, garlic baguette, and salad. It was well worth waiting for.