Ciel Du Cheval Petit Verdot
⏳ wine.drinking_window
Typically best enjoyed 5 to 15 years from the vintage release, as its formidable tannin structure requires a few years to soften and integrate.
🍽️ wine.food_pairings
grilled ribeye steak, slow-braised lamb shanks, aged hard cheeses
✨ wine.spec_sheet
The Ciel du Cheval Vineyard, planted in 1975 by pioneering grower Jim Holmes, is one of the most revered sites in Washington State's tiny Red Mountain AVA. This sun-drenched appellation is famous for its harsh, desert-like conditions, gravelly soils rich in calcium carbonate, and sweeping winds. While Petit Verdot is traditionally used as a minor blending grape in Bordeaux, the intense heat of Red Mountain allows it to ripen fully, transforming it into a spectacular single-varietal showcase. Winemaker Charlie Hoppes coaxes incredible depth from these low-yielding vines, crafting a wine known for its opaque purple hue, muscular tannins, and signature aromas of violet, dark plum, and graphite. It represents a masterful marriage of old-world structure and new-world fruit intensity.
🍾 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.