Perigee Components

Perigee is the time when the moon’s orbit is closest to the earth. Most importantly, it’s also a fitting name for L’Ecole No. 41 flagship Bordeaux blend that is sourced from fruit grown in Seven Hills Vineyard, its Certified Sustainable Estate Vineyard in Walla Walla. However, Perigee’s compositions differ with each vintage. So we were delighted to participate in an exclusive 2018 Perigee components tasting last week. Talk about an educational and delicious experience. Read on for details.

Perigee Components Tasting

Perigee 2018 Seven Hills Vineyard blends 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc, 9% Petit Verdot and 9% Malbec. As a result, the blended wine is textured, layered, harmonious and gorgeous.

But what happens when you taste each component individually, alongside a bottle of Perigee? We found out, when we recently participated in an exclusive Perigee components tasting with L’Ecole.

First, L’Ecole sent us five half-bottles of each component, which we decanted. Next, we tasted them individually, and side-by-side with Perigee 2018. Therefore, we could compare and contrast the unique qualities of each component and of the finished Perigee blend.

During the event, we tasted dark chocolate, graphite and olives in the Cab Sauv; cigar-box cedar, blackberries, and chocolate-covered cherries in the Merlot; strawberries, raspberries, savory notes and crushed gravel in the Cab Franc; boysenberries, mocha and violets in the Malbec; and spices, cassis, dark fruit and more savory notes in the Petit Verdot.

When you blend these components together and age them, we discovered that Perigee 2018 offers the best of all of them. On the nose, we found aromas of spices, blackberries, cassis, dark chocolate and violets. The palate features rich, dark fruit flavors with licorice notes. How cool is that? Yes, this was one of the best tastings we’ve had.

Note, this was a special tasting and these half-bottles are not available to purchase. However, you can order Perigee 2018 ($56) from L’Ecole’s website. But supplies are expected to sell out before the new vintage is released in September, so what are you waiting for?

Summary

Above all, we have been big fans of Estate Perigee since our first taste of the 2002 vintage – the initial vintage of this elegant wine made by Marty Clubb, co-owner and managing winemaker. Later, we tasted 2006 Perigee. Subsequently, last year, we poured both the 2015 and 2018 releases. Perigee is one of our favorite L’Ecole wines, so of course we loved them all.

In conclusion, we highly recommend Perigee 2018. You can purchase it, along with their other impressive recent releases, at their website.

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Cheers!
Margot and Dave