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Towards the end of the last ice age, Washington was scoured by a series of cataclysmic floods of unimaginable scale. Glacial runoff accumulated in lakes 80 or more miles long, constrained by ice dams which would eventually break under the pressure, releasing flows of water that are estimated to have exceeded nine cubic miles an hour and speeds of 50 or 60 mph. The floods stripped the original topsoil and left behind a clayey loam on top of a basaltic substratum, ideal for growing wine grapes. One of the areas affected by these floods is the Willamette Valley. Another is Horse Heaven Hills: Beckstone is grown on land just south of the Wallula Gap, a mile-and-a-half-wide break in those hills carved by those massive floods. This wine opens with a vivid nose, all blackberry with some blueberry, vanilla, a bit of cocoa, hazelnut, and violet, along with a touch of cloves and bacon. It is medium-bodied, but still has some tannic heft. This is a fruit-forward Cabernet that would work well with aromatic dishes like a well-spiced pork cassoulet or properly-made steak au poivre.
