Red Willow Vineyard 1973 Block Cabernet Sauvignon
⏳ Drinking Window
2024 - 2034
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Grilled ribeye steak, roasted rack of lamb, braised beef short ribs
✨ Technical Specifications
The Red Willow Vineyard, located in the far western corner of the Yakima Valley, is a legendary site in Washington viticultural history. Planted by Mike Sauer starting in the 1970s under the guidance of Dr. Walter Clore, it represents some of the oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vines in the state. Owen Roe's '1973 Block' bottling pays homage to these ancient, deep-rooted vines. The block sits on a steep, south-facing hillside with ancient, well-drained soils composed of silt loam and gravel. This unique terroir, combined with the vine age, produces a Cabernet Sauvignon of remarkable depth, structural complexity, and elegance. The wine is celebrated for its classic old-school profile, showcasing dark fruit, dried herbs, graphite, and the signature dusty tannins of the Yakima Valley, refined through careful French oak aging.
🍾 About the Producer
Established in 1999 by David and Angelica O'Reilly, Owen Roe is named in honor of the 17th-century Irish patriot Owen Roe O'Neill. Operating across the Pacific Northwest, the winery bridges Washington’s Yakima Valley and Oregon’s Willamette Valley, celebrating cool-climate microclimates, diverse volcanic and windblown loess soils, and dry, high-sunlight ripening conditions. Following a brief period under corporate ownership, the O'Reilly family repurchased the estate in 2024 to reassert their founding independent vision. The viticultural and cellar philosophy prioritizes rigorous low-yield vineyard management, hand harvesting, small-lot fermentations, and judicious use of French oak barrel aging to preserve varietal clarity and site-specific typicity. Sourcing from benchmark terroirs such as Red Willow and DuBrul, Owen Roe produces critically acclaimed single-vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Chardonnay alongside value-driven cuvées under their Sharecropper’s and Corvidae labels, delivering structured, cellar-worthy expressions marked by vibrant acidity and deep concentration.
🍇 Grape Varieties
Cabernet Sauvignon