Purple Palate

WA winemakers have generally been prepared to rank 2008 right up there with the exceptional 2007 vintage. This Sangiovese Cabernet, one of the wines that put Stella Bella on the map, is a generous, rich blend of sweet/sour complexities and silky/coarse textures. The Sangiovese component brings high-acid red berries - cranberry, sour cherry - and tight, grippy tannins, while the Cabernet gives it a lubricating flush of silky chocolate and dark, ripe plumb characters. A structural wine with a panorama of complexities, it has a special destiny in the company of rich food, and will cellar neatly. -NT