SNOHOMISH – Even with several accolades for his Quilceda Creek wine in his back pocket, Alex Golitzin still wasn’t betting on this latest one.
“It really was a big surprise,” Golitzin said.
On Thursday, Golitzin watched video online as the editors of the influential publication Wine Spectator unveiled their top picks for the best wine of 2006. After tasting 13,500 wines this year, the critics selected Quilceda Creek’s 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon, released this spring, as their second favorite wine worldwide and the top American wine of the year.
“Quilceda Creek has a track record of outstanding Cabernets,” writes Wine Spectator in its Top 100 wines of 2006 announcement.
Wine Spectator placed Quilceda Creek’s 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon second to only one wine in the world. The publication ranks a 2001 Brunello di Montalcino from Italy’s Casanova Di Neri as the top wine for 2006.
Earlier this year, world-renowned wine critic Robert Parker blessed the Snohomish-based winemaker with perfect scores of 100 points for Quilceda Creek’s 2002 and 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon. Parker wrote that the “liquid velvet” 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon “slathers the palate with oodles of fruit.”
Wine Spectator noted that Quilceda Creek’s wines “have gotten even better since owner Alex Golitzin passed on the winemaking duties to his son, Paul.”
The 36-year-old Paul Golitzin followed his father into the winemaking business in 1992. For the 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon, Paul Golitzin changed the ratio of grapes brought in from the various vineyards the family has invested in. “As a result, the wine has silkier tannins and impeccable harmony, while retaining its seamless, pure fruit,” according to Wine Spectator.
Quilceda Creek produced 3,400 cases of its award-winning cabernet. The 2003 originally retailed at $85 a bottle. Its popularity had pushed the price to at least $220 a bottle on an online wine auction site.
Only three other Washington wines have made it into the top 10 since Wine Spectator began its annual Top 100 list. Leonetti Cellars grabbed the No.6 spot in 1992, followed by a No. 4 ranking in 1994. Woodward Canyon rounded out the top 10 in 1990.
Quilceda Creek represents “the very essence why Washington state is the perfect place to produce wine,” said Robin Pollard, executive director of the Washington Wine Commission.
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