During my last trip to Walla Walla a few weeks back I had the chance to visit the beautiful tasting room at Saviah. First started in 2000, Saviah began by producing just 300 cases of wine. The winery has grown significantly since that time and was even named one of the top 100 wineries in the United States by Wine and Spirits Magazine in 2009. Winemaker Richard Funk has gained a sterling reputation for his wines, particularly his Syrah wines, in the past few years. Funk sources from many Walla Walla sites including the McClellan Vineyard and has estate vineyards in the Walla Walla Rocks region, aptly named ‘The Funk Vinyard.’
I was very impressed with the new great lineup of wines made by Funk. His 2015 Rose (WWB, 90) was a fantastic effort showing a ton of bright fruit and lovely minerality. Funk also has an impossible to resist new release Cabernet (WWB, 92) from the warm 2013 vintage that showed gorgeous dark fruit flavors. A great winemaker makes great wine even in highly challenging vintages, which is what Funk did with his 2011 Petite Verdot (WWB, 92), an absolutely fantastic wine that shows wonderful range, structure and richness despite the lack of heat that vintage. Learn more about these fantastic wines at http://www.saviahcellars.com Here are the great new release wines by Saviah.
2015 Saviah 'Star Meadows' White Wine- A blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, the wine has aromatics of nectarine, Meyer lemon and Pazzaz Apple. There are flavors of bettered toast, Gravenstein apple and hints of marzipan that sits on vibrant minerality. Drink 2016-2020- 90
2015 Saviah Rose- An exceedingly good Rose wine, Saviah has chosen to blend Sangiovese and Barbara. This wine begins with aromas of red cherry, red raspberry, pink bubblegum and guava. The wine has flavors of red cherry, red raspberry and orange rind and finishes with a bright minerality. Drink 2016-2020- 90
2013 Saviah Pinot Noir- Sourced from the Couse Creek vineyard which sits at 1900 feet in the Blue Mountains in the Walla Walla Valley, This wine has aromas of red cherry, red raspberry and thyme. There are flavors of red cherry, red raspberry and teaberry. Drink 2016-2022- 90
2013 Saviah Cabernet- This wine has 16% Merlot and 2% Malbec blended in. The wine opens with anise, cassis, black olive and red raspberry. The wine has flavors of red cherry, anise, cassis and milk chocolate. This is literally impossible to resist Cabernet wine. Drink 2016-2024- 92
2012 Saviah 'The Stones Speak' Syrah- The wine is sourced from the Funk Estate vineyard and was aged 17 months in French oak prior to bottling. The wine begins with aromatics of smoke, red cherry, red bell pepper and sagebrush. There are flavors of red cherry, dill, crushed wet rock and anise. There is a lovely texture and weight to this delicious wine. Drink 2016-2024- 92
2011 Saviah Petit Verdot- Sourced from this cold vintage, the wine has green olive, black pepper and blackberry pie aromas. There are flavors of black cherry, black olive, mocha and hints of blackberry pie. This is exceedingly deep, delicious and well-balanced wine, considering the lack of heat in the vintage. Drink 2016-2025- 92