Fielding Hills Syrah Wahluke 04
93 Points from Wine Spectator

Fielding Hills makes small amounts of wine from their Estate vineyard outside East Wenatchee, Washington. It's some of the best wine for the price in Washington State. Mike Wade, owner and longtime Wenatchee farmer, has a knack for big reds, and the prices remain reasonable. You get a lot for your dollar, and the wines are both crowd-pleasers and worthy of serious consideration by collectors.

Fielding Hills Syrah Wahluke Slope 04 $28.75/$31.95
Wine Spectator 93 points:
"Fielding Hills, a modestly sized winery on the remote Wahluke Slope of the Columbia Valley, has emerged as a Washington leader for generous, polished and distinctive wines like this. A blast of black cherry and roasted game bird flavors wrap themselves in a warm blanket of fuzzy tannins that make the wine feel almost cuddly as it lingers effortlessly. Drink now through 2014.—H.S."
- Wine Spec Insider Online Newsletter 11-29-06

Avalon says: Our favorite of the 2004 Fielding Hills wines is the Merlot,
with this Syrah a very close second. It's concentrated and offers layers of many different variations on the basic themes of black fruit, spice, white flowers, and smoke.

The nose -- is intense, with perfumed black plum, blackberry, and black cherry dominant, and an undercurrent of white flowers and lilacs.
Flavors -- are of black plum, black cherry, blackberry, and black raspberry, with an appealing sweetness, a continuing sense of a floral component, and a hint of smoke The texture is lush, viscous, and rich.
The blend -- is 80% Syrah, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, & 1% Merlot from the winery's Estate vineyard.

Fielding Hills Merlot 04 $28.75/$31.95
Avalon's favorite of the Fielding wines in 2004.
Fielding takes Merlot to a different, better place with this offering. This is not your typical American Merlot. Mike Wade has quite a knack with this often overlooked grape. We think enough of this wine to send it to our Northwest Big Reds Club this month.

The nose -- id intensely perfumed, with blackberry flowers, black fruit scents, sweet vanilla, and hints of toasty smoke.
The flavors -- are ripe, super sweet and lush, with black cherry, blackberry, and cassis dominating. The wine has great balance, quite impressive, matching the intense fruit with equally potent uplifting acidity and totally seamless tannins.
The finish -- is long and full of more black fruit flavors, with white pepper, sweet oak toast, and silky, subtle tannins.

Fielding Hills River bend Red 04 $25.16/$27.95
93 points, Wine Enthusiast
Seattle Times says: " How to pick one, when all of the new Fielding Hills releases are so beautifully crafted? Try this red blend; it has great color, plush aromas and mouth feel and sets up in the mouth with intense, varied flavors including blackberry, black cherry, black licorice. The young berry fruit scents are sensational, wrapped tight and the oak is gently applied and lends a pleasing milk-chocolate smoothness to the finish. Acrobatic balance and gorgeous fruit." - Paul Gregutt

Avalon says: This vintage of the River bend Red blend from Fielding's Estate vineyard shows a unique combination of juicy fruit, big oak, and hints of pomegranate, tar, licorice, and toast.
The nose -- is of perfumed black cherry, cassis, candied fruit, and black cherry.
The flavors -- are positively lush, with HUGE toasty vanilla, black cherry, hints of pencil lead, and big sweet smokiness.
The finish -- is long, long, long, with big toasty oak, black cherry, and firm tannins. It's both rich and structured in character.

Fielding Hills Cabernet Franc 04 $24.25/$26.95
Wine Enthusiast 91 Points:
"Lush, dense, crowd pleasing and rare. Made with Estate fruit from Fielding's River bend Vineyard. The wine is 76% Cabernet Franc, 8% Syrah, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, & 8% Merlot. It was aged in 76% new oak barrels for 19 months. The barrels were a mix of American and French oak. Only 28 cases were made."