2016 DeLille Cellars Chaleur Blanc Columbia Valley 750 ml

Modeled After Haut-Brion Blanc

Robert Parker saluted Chris Upchurch and his Bordeaux-style wines by dubbing DeLille Cellars the “Lafite-Rothschild of Washington State.” But Upchurch took his cues for the 2016 DeLille Cellars Chaleur Blanc directly from the white wine of another historic Bordeaux property: Château Haut-Brion. Since debuting two decades ago, Chaleur Blanc has become one of the standard-bearers for Bordeaux-style whites in the New World: Its 94 points from Vinous made this “knockout” Washington State’s highest-scoring white wine of the 2016 vintage, and it is often compared to wines from Peter Michael and Luc Morlet that command three times the price. A barrel-fermented blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon that spends seven months on the lees, Chaleur Blanc is creamy, succulent, bright, and beautifully balanced: a Bordeaux-style white inspired by the best in the world—it is one of the best representations in the New World. $38 from the winery, or just $24 on cases from Wine Access.

Back in 1995, the partners at DeLille Cellars wanted to make a white wine, but did not wish to add yet another Chardonnay to a market already flooded with California whites. So Chris Upchurch went on a pilgrimage to France, to learn all he could from Jean-Philippe Delmas of renowned Château Haut-Brion. Haut-Brion blanc is one of the most treasured white wines in the world, having earned 100 points from Wine Spectator in 2005 and often exceeding $1,500 per bottle.

At Haut-Brion, Chris learned about how some years favored Sauvignon and Sémillon over others, how the wine could reach incredible levels of complexity and richness without skin contact or malolactic fermentation, and how the blend benefited from a long barrel regimen. When he returned to Washington, Upchurch began sourcing fruit for the white wine the estate had been aching to produce.

Around 2007, after more than a decade of honing his approach, Upchurch’s inspired Chaleur Blanc started taking flight. Stephen Tanzer of Vinous has claimed that the wine “could do major damage in a blind flight with some high-end Bordeaux whites,” and positioned it as competition for Luc Morlet’s “La Proportion Dorée” and Nicolas Morlet’s “Coeur à Coeur” at Peter Michael.

The 2016 edition consists of 68% Sauvignon Blanc and 32% Sémillon, drawn from the prestigious Sagemoor, Boushey, and Klipsun vineyards and fermented in 54% new French oak. Two decades after it was first conceived, Chaleur Blanc has earned its place as one of the most inspired Bordeaux-style whites outside of Pessac-Léognan.