Fidelitas...A Perfect Wine to Celebrate an Engagement

Greetings fellow winos!  I thought I would take a moment to share a celebration this evening and the wine that is accompanying the festivities.  Previous posts have mentioned a special someone in my life who has been an inspiration and great source of support every since she came into my life.  Well, we were enjoying a lazy President's Day afternoon together and were in the middle of a period of discussion & banter when I felt completely at peace with a decision that I've been mulling around in my head for a while.  I took this wonderful woman in my arms, told her that I wanted to make her a permanent part of my life, and asked her to marry me...

She said yes!

Needless to say, after the obligatory phone calls to family, we had to celebrate.  To go with a dinner of chipotle pork loin and pasta with red chilies, lemon, & arugula, I selected Fidelitas Boushey Vineyard 2006 from Fidelitas Wines in the Yakima Valley, WA.  I had picked up this wine at the winery during a trip to WA back in 2010 and had been waiting for a special occasion to pop it open (I think this qualifies).

Appearance:  Rust-garnet color, clear, gleaming sheen
Aroma:  Restrained nose with light aromas of cherry, coffee, some earthy floral notes, and a tiny amount of cocoa.
Taste: Invigorating with light jammy red fruit.  Well structure & balanced with nicely integrated tannins and a smooth finish.  Rich, round mouthfeel.  A 14.8% abv wine that you can keep drinking until the bottle is gone.

Overall, an incredible wine to go with an incredible event.  Not overly tannic & astringent, not puckering, not overly fruity--just an excellently crafted blend of 64% cabernet sauvignon, 29% merlot, 7% cabernet franc.  And I thought the winery motto was especially appropriate for the occasion:

 Faithful, loyal, true

This is the kind of wine that I seek to make, and those three words sum up everything that Shawna & I feel about our life together.  Thank you Charlie Hoppes for creating a wine to perfectly match this special occasion.

 Salute,
Noel