Ciel du Cheval Merlot
⏳ wine.drinking_window
Typically best enjoyed 5–12 years from the vintage release.
🍽️ wine.food_pairings
Roasted duck, grilled ribeye steak, rosemary-crusted roast lamb
✨ wine.spec_sheet
Hailing from one of the most revered sites in Washington State's Red Mountain AVA, the Fidelitas Ciel du Cheval Merlot is a masterclass in power and refinement. Ciel du Cheval, meaning 'Heaven of the Horse', was first planted in 1975 by visionary pioneer Jim Holmes. This legendary vineyard is defined by its fan-shaped deposit of gravelly, high-calcium soils left behind by the ancient Missoula Floods. Under the guidance of winemaker Charlie Hoppes, this Merlot defies the soft, simple stereotypes of the grape. The intense heat of Red Mountain, coupled with cool evening winds sweeping through the Columbia Gap, coaxes out thick skins and concentrated sugars. The resulting wine is aged primarily in French oak, yielding a remarkably structured, deeply colored, and savory expression of Merlot that balances dark fruit intensity with earthy complexity and dusty, fine-grained tannins.
🍾 wine.about_producer
Established in 2000 by acclaimed winemaker Charlie Hoppes, Fidelitas is a premier boutique winery deeply rooted in the Red Mountain AVA of Washington State. With a steadfast focus on crafting exceptional Bordeaux-style blends and single-vineyard Cabernet Sauvignons, the winery sources grapes from some of the region's most prestigious vineyards, including Champoux, Ciel du Cheval, and Quintessence, alongside their own estate plantings. Fidelitas is renowned for its modern, precise winemaking techniques, utilizing carefully selected French and American oak barrels to shape wines of remarkable concentration, structure, and aging potential. Under Hoppes' expert guidance, the estate has become a benchmark producer for Red Mountain, capturing the unique, sun-drenched terroir in every bottle of their signature Optu Red and site-specific Cabernet Sauvignon expressions.