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Founded in 1934, Chateau Ste. Michelle
is Washington state's oldest winery. Its history dates back to just after the repeal
of prohibition when the state's bountiful fruit and berry harvests were vinified to
produce the Northwest's first wines.
During the1950s the company began
planting classic vinifera grapes in the Columbia Valley and made its first varietal wines
under the Ste. Michelle label in 1967. Its pioneering efforts awakened America to a
new wine region. Today, Chateau Ste. Michelle continues to be a leader in
viticultural research and enjoys international acclaim for its world-class Chardonnays,
Merlots and Cabernet Sauvignons.
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Visiting the Winery
- Chateau Ste. Michelle is located 15
miles northeast of downtown Seattle in Woodinville. Situated on 87 wooded acres, the
country French-styled chateau is located
on the grounds that were once home to Seattle lumber baron Frederick Stimson.
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Picnics on the winery grounds are
popular year-round, and during the summer, the winery offers an outdoor-concert series
that has featured such artists as Tony Bennett, Jackson Browne and the Gipsy Kings, to
name just a few. Cooking classes, special dinners and wine education programs are also
offered throughout the year.
- Winemaking
All
of Chateau Ste. Michelle's vineyards are located east of the Cascade Mountains in
Washington's Columbia Valley and Horse Heaven Hills appellations. Chateau Ste. Michelle is one of the
few premium wineries in the world with two state-of-the-art winemaking
operations, one devoted to whites and another to reds. Bob
Bertheau leads the white winemaking team at Ste. Michelle's Woodinville winery,
located 15 miles northeast of Seattle, and leads the red winemaking team
at our Canoe Ridge Estate winery on the Columbia river in eastern
Washington's Horse Heaven Hills appellation.
Choose from several
Vintage Reserve Clubs options.
Get your favorite, hard-to-find
Chateau Ste. Michelle
direct from the
winery. |
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Featured Wines from
Chateau Ste. Michelle's "Family of Wines"
Chateau Ste.
Michelle's diverse collection of premium Washington wines includes
Columbia Valley wines styled to bring out the varietal character of
the region; Single Vineyard wines to epitomize the terroir of our
best vineyards; and our Artist Series meritage, a special
Bordeaux-style blend, crafted for power and longevity.
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Ethos
Wines represents the pinnacle tier of Chateau Ste.
Michelle produced in extremely limited quantities - no more than
1% of a vintage;
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Artist Series
Meritage, a special Bordeaux-style blend, crafted for power and
longevity; celebrates the inspired
collaboration between artisan winemaking and fine art;
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Single Vineyards
Distinctive wines that emphasize the single site terroir
driven characteristics of the estate vineyards from which they
emerge;
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Indian Wells wines are made
in the luscious, opulent New World style;
Columbia Valley Wines
styled to bring out the varietal character of the region;
Eroica Truly
an intermingling of philosophy, technique and mentality, Old
World and New;
Limited Release
Small lots. Limited releases. Exclusively for the
Vintage Reserve Clubs.
As part of the winery's ongoing pursuit
of quality, Chateau Ste. Michelle enjoys winemaking partnerships
with two of the world's most distinguished vintners; Col Solare
is an alliance with Tuscany's Piero Antinori; and Eroica Riesling is a partnership with the Mosel's Ernst Loosen.
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Ethos Wines
- The pinnacle tier of Chateau Ste. Michelle.
The Ethos Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet
Sauvignon and Syrah reflect the winemaker’s vision of old world
complexity and elegance with concentrated Washington fruit. These wines
are the ultimate winemaker expression and made from the finest fruit of
the vintage. Produced in extremely limited quantities representing no
more than 1% of a vintage, our Ethos wines are crafted to represent the
best of a variety from our best vineyards
2007
Ethos Chardonnay
100% Chardonnay
Columbia Valley
94 pts
Wine Enthusiast
$30.00 [Order
Online]
Almost half of the fruit for this wine was sourced
from Cold Creek Vineyard. Planted in 1973, the south-facing Cold Creek Vineyard
enjoys one of the longest and warmest growing seasons in Washington
state’s Columbia Valley. These low yielding old vines produce small
clusters and small berries, resulting in intense varietal flavors.
Fruit was also sourced from our vineyard at Canoe Ridge Estate,
contributing a refined elegance to the wine. 76% of the blend
underwent natural fermentation for more interesting nuances and
complexity. Individual lots were managed separately, allowing
the winemaker to identify the best lots for Ethos.
"My goal for the Ethos Chardonnay is Old World "Burgundian"
complexity and elegance with concentrated Washington fruit. Nearly
half of the fruit came from our Cold Creek Vineyard and shows the
rich deep intensity of Cold Creek’s 30-year-old vines. The mostly
natural fermentation contributes to the complexity of the wine. This
is a Chardonnay to cellar and will age beautifully."
- Bob Bertheau, Head
Winemaker
2006 Ethos Reserve Merlot
Columbia Valley
91 pts Wine Advocate
Blend: 83% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Syrah, 2%
Malbec
$40.00 [Order
Online]
Cold Creek Vineyard, one of the oldest and warmest
sites in Washington, contributed over half of the fruit for the
blend (54%). Planted in 1973, the low yielding old vines of Cold
Creek produce small clusters and small berries, resulting in intense
varietal flavors and deep color. Our vineyard at Canoe Ridge Estate
also contributed to the blend (20%) and lies on a steep south-facing
slope on the bank of the Columbia River. The site’s proximity to the
river protects it from temperature extremes, allowing uniform
ripening and excellent color development. Fruit from the Wahluke
Slope (26%) rounded out the blend for an enhanced sweet fruit
character.
“My goal with the Ethos Merlot is to aim for an “Old
world” style, while showing off the power of Washington fruit. This
2006 Merlot is even a more powerful, fruit-driven style than
previous vintages. The wine delivers sweet raspberry and bright
black cherry fruit character with elegant, dusty tannins. More than
half of the fruit came from our Cold Creek Vineyard, which
contributes power and concentration, while fruit from our vineyard
at Canoe Ridge Estate adds spice and complexity.”
- Bob Bertheau, Head Winemaker
Artist Series Meritage... A special
Bordeaux-style blend, crafted for power and longevity
2006 Artist Series Meritage
57% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit
Verdot, 3% Malbec
92 pts
Wine
Advocate
$55.00 [Order
Online]
Chateau Ste. Michelle’s Artist Series Meritage red wine
celebrates the inspired collaboration between artisan winemaking and
fine art. This 14th vintage of Artist Series Meritage showcases the
work of Eva Isaksen, who draws inspiration from organic forms and
two disparate landscapes–the land where she grew up North of the
Artic Circle in Norway and her current home in the Pacific
Northwest. A lover of nature, she seeks overall simplicity by
creating collages with complex, layered surfaces. Being both artist
and print maker, everything used in her collages Isaksen has printed
herself. For more information about the artist, visit
fosterwhite.com.
“This is the ultimate sculpted wine,
showcasing the power and elegance of Washington fruit. The 2006
Artist Series Meritage is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon,
Merlot and Malbec and a touch of Petit Verdot from our best
vineyards in the Horse Heaven Hills, Columbia Valley and Wahluke
Slop of Washington State. Each variety
contributes a special attribute to the blend, resulting in a complex
wine with seamless tannins. 2006 was a "classic Washington” vintage
and produced elegant soft wines. -Bob
Bertheau, Head Winemaker
The Vineyards:
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Fruit from our vineyard at Canoe
Ridge Estate in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA made up
44% of the blend, contributing elegant fruit and silky
tannins.
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30% of the fruit was sourced from
our Cold Creek Vineyard, one of the oldest and
warmest sites in Washington. The low-yielding old vines of
produce small clusters and
small berries, resulting in intense varietal flavors and deep
color.
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The balance of the fruit came from
vineyards in the Wahluke Slope, a warm region
known for ripe, concentrated reds.
Indian Wells
Vineyard
 2007
Indian Wells Cabernet Sauvignon
Columbia Valley
81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Syrah, 1% Malbec
$17.99
[Order
Online]
This Cabernet predominately is sourced from vineyards in Washington's
Wahluke Slope AVA, including Indian Wells Vineyard. Bordered on
both the west and the south by the Columbia River, Indian Wells vineyard
is a very warm site with a long growing season.
Aged for 18-20 months in predominately new American and French oak to
enhance the sweet mid-palate of the Wahluke Slope fruit. Syrah from the
Wahluke Slope contributed an enhanced jammy fruit character to the wine.
Up front, dark
fruit aromas and flavors with hints of vanilla.
“The Indian Wells Cabernet is our warm climate ripe,
jammy New World style of Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine really typifies
the Wahluke Slope region with up front, dark fruit aromas and flavors
with hints of vanilla. Vineyards in the area are more than a decade old
now and showing character and complexity.” - Bob Bertheau, Winemaker
Single Vineyard Wines -
Epitomize the terroir of our best vineyards.
 2008 Cold Creek Riesling
Cold Creek Vineyard
$19.99
Top 10 Rieslings in the U.S. -
Canberra International Riesling Challenge (2007 Vintage)
Planted in the early 1970s, Cold Creek Vineyard
is one of Washington’s oldest and most acclaimed vineyards. It
enjoys one of the longest and warmest growing seasons in the Columbia
Valley. The vineyard is located 38 miles east of Yakima, Washington,
south of the Columbia River and Wahluke Slope. A cool fermentation
was used to preserve varietal character.
Riesling grapes were picked over a four week
period. This resulted in varying sweetness levels in the Riesling fruit
that came into the cellar, giving the winemaker more blending options to
work with. A cool
fermentation was used to preserve varietal character.
Offers deep fruit-driven aromas and flavors of ripe peach and pineapple,
while maintaining a refined elegance and a fresh, clean, refreshing
finish.
“Cold Creek Vineyard is known for producing a
rich, soft style of Riesling because of the area’s warm temperatures.
This 2008 bottling offers aromas of ripe peach and grapefruit with a
refined elegance and a refreshing finish. The wine’s concentration is
attributed to the older vines at Cold Creek. This Riesling would be a
great match with a spicy Thai chicken salad.” -Bob Bertheau, Winemaker
Columbia Valley Wines
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Styled to bring out the varietal character of the region.
 2008
Columbia Valley Pinot Gris
Columbia Valley
93% Pinot Gris, 7% Viognier
$14.99 [Order
Online]
Pinot Gris grapes were picked under cool nighttime skies
to preserve the variety’s bright, juicy style. A cool three-week
fermentation in stainless steel tanks enhanced the floral and citrus
characters. After fermentation, the wine was quickly prepared for
bottling to preserve the freshness of this delicate varietal.
“Our Pinot Gris style falls between the lighter Italian
Pinot Grigio and the richer, rounder Pinot Gris from Alsace. The Chateau
Ste. Michelle Pinot Gris offers fresh aromas of melon, apple and a hint
of spice with a crisp finish. A touch of Viognier contributes texture
and an attractive floral character. This wine is a perfect match with
scallops or halibut.” - Bob Bertheau, Winemaker
Online Wine
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