Semillon is likely not your very first choice of a white grape, but perhaps it should be! Washington State stalwart L’Ecole 41 is now a third-generation winery and has an image of the old schoolhouse in which they started production on their label. This Semillon is sourced from multiple vineyards around the Columbia Valley. The grapes were whole cluster pressed, the juice settled overnight to clarify, and then fermented in neutral oak barrels. The oak is not apparent in the aromatics of this wine, which are composed of musk melon, dusty farm road, juicy fruit gum and a touch of honeycomb. The mouth feel is where this wine really shines, with wonderful tension between mouthwatering acidity and oily richness.
L’Ecole 41, Columbia Valley (Washington) Semillon 2022
By Andrew Holod