A look at the 2014 vintage in the Columbia Valley

The 2014 vintage in Washington State marked the beginning of evident warming trends in the region and beyond. It was a growing season that would break records for heat, but those records would be surpassed just a year later in the record-shattering 2015 vintage.

For those who cellared wines from the 2014 vintage in the Columbia Valley, now is the time to open them. In the words of Kenny Rogers, knowing when to hold them and when to fold them is key when it comes to cellaring wines.

While some 2014 bottles show exceptionally well, others definitely show their age. I don’t anticipate waiting will improve these wines.

Given the growing season and owing to the low natural acidity and the hot conditions, the longevity of these wines is likely limited to the next few years, with a couple of exceptions from the wines I tasted.

Scroll down for Clive’s scores and notes on 2014 wines from the Columbia Valley

The early reporting from Washington and Oregon in 2014 was an abundance of satisfaction, with winemakers quoted as citing ‘perfect chemistry’ and ‘even ripeness’ across varieties in the immediate aftermath of harvest.

There were also cautious voices concerned about the high temperatures and what that might mean for the future.

Pepper Bridge winemaker, Swiss-born Jean-François Pellet, found the heat concerning.

‘2014 was a challenging year,’ Pellet recalled. ‘It was so hot in August that we were sure we’d have to harvest early. However, it got so hot that the vineyard actually shut down. It was the hottest late August that I’ve ever seen here in Walla Walla.’

The heat is on

While spring was cool and dry, things heated up quickly in May, with high temperatures tracking at 15-20° above normal for much of the month. Compared to the prior vintage, things tracked similarly until it got very hot in June and July when ripening and veraison started happening well ahead of average.

According to Washington Wine Commission’s 2014 vintage overview: ‘July in Prosser (in the Yakima Valley) was the warmest on record, according to Washington State University (WSU).

‘For the season, WSU’s Prosser weather station recorded 3,092 Growing Degree Days (GDD)—a measure of heat accumulation—compared to a historical average of 2,627. Most Eastern Washington WSU weather stations also reported heat accumulation in excess of 3,000 GDD, quite warm for the state.

‘Meanwhile, Red Mountain, typically Washington’s warmest area, recorded a whopping 3,599 GDD, numbers more often associated with some areas of the Napa Valley,’ the report concluded.

‘2014 was definitely a warm year,’ says Ben Smith of Red Mountain’s Cadence. ‘It was also the first year for our new vineyard manager. He was caught out a little by how much water the vineyard required, so our canopies were pretty sparse.

‘It meant we had to dial back yields to match. We didn’t have to worry about berry size and could pour water on fairly regularly during August and early September, giving the vines a nice cool break and preventing any heat stress.’

A memorable year

Speaking to Adam Tolliver, winemaker at Corliss, it was indeed a memorable year. ‘The consistent above-average temperatures throughout all four seasons stuck with me,’ he recalls.

‘We experienced a dry, warmer-than-average winter followed by a gorgeous spring, both of which caused the vines to wake up and experience an early bud break.’

He continues: ‘The warmth continued, resulting in an even earlier bloom and veraison than we typically see. The temperatures spiked in July and August, and with prolonged temperatures above 95 degrees (35°C), vines began to shut down to conserve energy and protect themselves.

‘This slowed down the ripening of our grapes and allowed longer hang time and better flavour development. The key to avoiding detrimental damage in the intense heat was proper cluster shading in the fruiting zone and a lot of water through irrigation to cool and keep the vine hydrated.’

Crafting age-worthy wines in a hot vintage

So, how are winemakers approaching their craft when the temperatures soar, and most importantly, how are they crafting wines that their customers can cellar?

Red Mountain, where Corliss grows its vines, is Washington’s hottest appellation, and so vineyard management is essential if there is any hope in making a balanced, age-worthy wine.

Tolliver explains: ‘The success of the vintage started in the vineyard. We opened the interior canopy for good airflow while keeping the exterior fruiting zone shaded to protect the grapes from sunburn and shrivelling.

‘In addition, we do not focus on yield but on the quality of the fruit on the vine, thus dropping clusters that show signs of heat damage. When the fruit is harvested and enters the doors of the winery, it is then meticulously sorted, both clusters and berries, ensuring only the most balanced and uniform fruit enters the fermentation vessels.

He concludes: ‘If the starting product in the tank is exceptional, then you already have 9/10ths of the battle won.’

Time to drink up

For Pepper Bridge’s Pellet, a winemaker who knows the vineyard has the best chance. ‘We use the same blocks, so I know them well. It comes down to picking time, and you have to manage extraction.

‘Many wines are made to drink right away, and that’s okay. You have to make wines that are drinkable; they improve in three to five years, but after 10 years, often wines from hot regions don’t hold on as well.

‘As a result, many of my colleagues in Washington are making wines that are best to drink now,’ he says.

‘This is my dilemma,’ says winemaker Dan Wampler of Walla Walla’s Abeja. ‘How do I make an ageable wine in a hot region? We have made some changes in farming and production to make wines that are ready to go now but can also age. Walla Walla is hot, but compared to other parts of Washington, it’s far from the hottest, which certainly helps us.’

For many of these wines, time has brought out secondary characteristics, and for a few, notably the Corliss and Horse Power Syrah, they are really only beginning to show themselves.

2014 in the Columbia Valley: A look back

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