Andrews & Rowell Vineyard Reserve Malbec
⏳ Drinking Window
Typically best enjoyed 5–10 years from the vintage release.
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Grilled ribeye steak, roasted lamb chops, blue cheese
✨ Technical Specifications
Hailing from the wind-swept slopes of the Horse Heaven Hills AVA in Washington State, the Columbia Crest Reserve Malbec sourced from the Andrews & Rowell Vineyard showcases the dramatic terroir of the Columbia Valley. The Andrews and Rowell families are legendary pioneers in this rugged landscape, where intense sun exposure and strong, cooling winds from the Columbia River gorge create a unique microclimate. These conditions allow the late-ripening Malbec grape to develop thick skins, deep color, and intense flavor concentration while retaining a vibrant, balancing acidity. Crafted in Columbia Crest's state-of-the-art gravity-flow facility and aged in select French oak barrels, this Reserve bottling represents a sophisticated, New World expression of the varietal, characterized by plush dark fruit, velvety tannins, and a distinctive mineral undertone derived from the region's sandy loam and basalt soils.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 1982 by Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Columbia Crest was the pioneer winery founded within what is now the acclaimed Horse Heaven Hills AVA of eastern Washington. Situated along the benchlands above the Columbia River, the estate takes full advantage of a semi-arid, rain-shadowed microclimate marked by intense summer sunshine, constant river breezes that deter frost and pests, and fast-draining, wind-blown Warden silt loam soils. Initial plantings in 1978 and early winemaking under founding cellar master Doug Gore established the winery's benchmark status for reliable varietal purity and commercial scale. The production regimen bridges large-scale precision with small-lot barrel fermentation and French and American oak aging. Columbia Crest cemented its reputation when its 2005 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon won Wine Spectator's Wine of the Year. Today, the estate produces tiered selections ranging from the everyday Two Vines and Grand Estates labels to vineyard-driven Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay expressions.
🍇 Grapes
Malbec