Tasting 2004 Pedestal Merlot

With fall in the air in the Chicago area, we relaxed outdoors last night at the North Shore home of close friends. The gathering called for sensational wine. We opened the newly released 2004 Pedestal Merlot from Washington’s overachieving Columbia Valley. This is just the second vintage for Pedestal, one of the prestige labels under the Long Shadows winemaking project in Washington. (Long Shadows recently was named Winery of the Year by Food & Wine magazine). But Pedestal already has attracted an avid legion of fans who love its Bordeaux qualities.

Pomerol-based winemaker Michel Rolland (right) crafts Pedestal from Columbia Valley fruit. It took vineyards of extreme promise and, ultimately, quality to pull him away from his native France and numerous consulting duties. Rolland is the winemaking consultant as well to Staglin Family’s world-class wines produced in Napa Valley.

Knowing that the 2004 Pedestal is potentially 30 years from full maturity does not diminish the tasting experience. Not by a longshot.  We drank ours with marinated olives and a variety of cheeses including Manchego from Spain. Tasting this ‘04 Pedestal was long awaited. A nose of wonderfully ripe fruit is a hint of what’s to come. This an inky, full-bodied wine, 77% Merlot and 16% Cabernet Sauvignon (with trace percentages of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot). It is long on complexity. There is a lovely understated hint of chocolate and spice in every sip. Those who wait a few more years can expect to be rewarded with even greater intensity. Robert Parker Jr. forecasts this vintage will be going strong as far down the road as 2040.