“This is the finest edition of this wine that I have tasted…” – Owen Bargreen

Our third-ever Long Shadows offer has landed, and fair warning - we already called in backup because we have PRECIOUS LITTLE to spare.

So, plié, relevé, or grand jete your way through the checkout like the nimble, well-coordinated Operative you are. Or, for the less agile among us, just stumble, trip, and smash those keys one at a time to get it done.

Whatever you must do to lock down this 98-point Melka-made Cab blend, speedy quick!

This is, after all, a Long Shadows wine. And Pirouette, like all of their wines, delivers a star performance. With a near-perfect 98 points from Owen Bargreen, who called the aromatics “simply stunning” and 96+ from Dunnuck, who similarly praised its “stunning finish,” there’s so much to love here.

Another stunner? The price!

$75 isn’t bad for a release price, if we’re being honest. But $49 drives a hard bargain.

This blends 55% Cab, 36% Merlot, 7% Petite Verdot and 2% Malbec, with grapes sourced from both the Red Mountain and Wahluke Slope AVAs. Combined they form a monumental blend that goes mano-e-mano with the very best from Napa and Bordeaux.

Mind-bending complexity on display here, for real. The power and bold fruit from Cabernet and Merlot, with the cassis and backbone from PV and the bright, spicy Malbec. Combined, this fellowship of varietals forges deep into your subcortical regions to trigger your reward circuit. With an impenetrable inky black color, it flexes black plum, fig and elderberry with fresh tar, smoked meat, and something reminiscent of a well-worn leather smoking chair.

If you don’t know about Long Shadows, let us briefly regale you with the lowdown. The clock is ticking after all.

They’re one of the best producers in Washington state. They do it like nobody else. For starters, they don’t rely on any one winemaker. Instead, they recruit top talent from all over, with a star-studded roster that includes celebrities like Philippe Melka and Randy Dunn (the creator of Pedestal) plus foreign invaders like Michel Rolland and Armin Diel. Each works directly with resident winemaker Gilles Nicault to leave their mark on a particular wine. The legendary Phillipe Melka originally created this one.

Per Vinous “The point of this venture is for its multiple bottlings to offer accurate reflections of the individual participating winemakers, and under the direction of estate manager/winemaker Gilles Nicault they have always been remarkably different from each other every year, not to mention consistently excellent.”

Most excellent, indeed! Wish there were tons, alas…

98 Points – Owen Bargreen “The otherworldly 2021 Long Shadows Pirouette is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon with 36% Merlot and the remainder Malbec and Petit Verdot. Very dark in the glass, this offers alluring black florals on the nose with tar, tobacco leaf, mocha, anise and shades of dark chocolate shavings. The stunning aromatics are simply head-turning. The palate is ultra-refined offering a seamless drinking experience. This is the finest edition of this wine that I have tasted since its inception back in 2003. Drink 2025-2045.”

96+ Points – Jeb Dunnuck “The 2021 Pirouette is Philippe Melka’s take on Washington State Bordeaux varieties, and it’s based on 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot, and 2% Malbec. Ripe black and blue fruits, leafy herbs, violets, tobacco, and a kiss of some chocolaty oak all emerge from this beauty, and it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a broad, layered mouthfeel, velvety tannins, and a stunning finish. It certainly makes the most of the vintage, and it’s up with the crème de la crème of this vintage.”