It was a warm fall day and I was visiting one of the more beautiful tasting rooms you will find in the Pacific Northwest. Located right as you enter the downtown area of Walla Walla, Corliss is an ultra-premium producer of red and white wines founded by Michael and Lori Corliss, in 1999. Corliss has been met with some serious critical acclaim since their first release in 2008. I have been blown away with how some of these wines have aged, trying several of their older bottlings over the past year.
Aussie winemaker Andrew Trio has a storied history in wine previously working throughout Australia, as well as New Zealand, California and Europe. He also has eminent winemaking consultant Philippe Melka by his side, a man who needs no introduction. The team crafts some stunning wines that are big, bold and well-balanced. For those who are not impressed by rich Washington red wines, look elsewhere. The textural elements to these red wines are just gorgeous. The wines that I reviewed are future release wines that are simply gorgeous across the board. The 2015 Corliss Estates Red Wine (OB, 95) is massive and becomes even more complex and layered after several hours of air. This is a gorgeous wine that wonderfully captures the art of blending as I think this is one of the great wines made this vintage. I adored the the 2015 Corliss Estates Cabernet Sauvignon (OB, 94) which is dense, hedonistic and a highly impressive effort from what was a hard vintage for many people with the tremendous heat spikes of the vintage. Learn more about these great wines at http://corlissestates.com Here are the outstanding new release wines from Corliss Estates.
2015 Corliss Red Wine- The 2015 Corliss Red Wine is a beautiful melange of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Aged for 28 months in French oak, the wine takes on heady kirsch cordial, smoke, baking spices and creme de cassis tones that all take shape in the glass. The palate is deep, seductive and highly gratifying. Layers of toasty oak wrap around espresso bean, blueberry pie, sagebrush and cassis flavors on the palate. The amalgamation of verve, weight and length is really outstanding. This becomes even more silky and complex following several hours of air. If enjoying in its youth, be sure to give this at least two hours in the decanter to fully show its potential. Drink 2020-2038- 95
2015 Corliss Cabernet Sauvignon- One of the great wines made in this somewhat challenging vintage, the 2015 Corliss Cabernet Sauvignon is absolutely singing on its high octave. Once on the nose, layers of toasty oak wrap around the core of dark currants, scorched earth, chocolate covered black cherry and mocha tones. The hedonistic bouquet brings you back to the glass for more enjoyment. The palate is wonderfully fresh despite the heat spikes of the vintage. Deep dark fruits collide with Turkish coffee, creme de cassis, anise and sagebrush undertones. With a great veil of tension and weight, this beautiful wine will enjoy another fifteen plus years ahead of it. Drink 2020-2038- 94