Last night a storm in the area brought an intense amount of rain drumming down around our home, making for a perfect evening to enjoy one of my favorite red blends, The Descendant, from Warr-King wines. It is a complex blend, with a floral and spicy nose, that leads into deep red fruit and full tannins. The wine is mainly cabernet franc, but the magic is the in the blend. A tiny hint of merlot gives it that floral nose and the full mid-palette. I would not call it a ‘Big and Bold’ Washington Blend, so much as a ‘introspective’ blend. A great wine to read a classic novel with.

I live in a house with 3 teenagers. So beyond the yelling, (why there is always goddamn yelling with teenagers?), about “where such-and-such is in the kitchen”, and yelling at a Zoom call, and yelling about some video game being epic but also totally unfair and hacked, I could only attempt a moment’s peace with a magazine and a glass. The pictures were nice, and I opened the window so I could point my ears at the sound of driving and pounding rain and avoid the sound of ‘stupid unfair hackers’ and ‘where’s the coconut oil.’

Heather and I have been happy members of the Warr-King wine club since mid-2019, and we got this particular bottle at a club pickup in November of 2019.

A Note About Wine Clubs

Heather and I are members at eight local wineries. All of them have their individual charms, but as a club member, you can usually expect a few perks. Wines are released to you first, and usually at a discount to their retail prices. Release parties at the wineries are common, and are sometimes even offered with food. Visits and tastings at the winery are usually offered gratis (including tastings with guests) for a fun afternoon where you usually end up buying a bottle of something wonderful, and again, usually discounted. Often, there are different commitment levels to boot.

Frankly, wine club membership is a heck of a deal. You make a relatively small commitment to purchase wine from an artisan crafts-person whose wine already you know you enjoy. The winery enjoys less risk in production, and you get the wine you will enjoy at a lower price.

The Story of The Descendant

If you ask Lisa up at Warr-King, she probably has a wholly different story, but for me, the story of The Descendant started at a local restaurant in downtown Bothell, Revolve Food and Wine. The restaurant offered local wine, and an entirely gluten-free menu. My wife is gluten-free, so having a whole menu my wife could pick from made for a happy evening.

While there I had sampled a few local wines but my favorite on the evening happened to be from a local winery I had not heard much about. The wine was deeply ruby, rich and fruity and a little spicy. Tannin was present, but only just. One of the points I enjoyed the most was the balance. Many Washington wines are so fruit-forward, that they tend to have higher alcohol content. They burn and feel ‘boozy’. This one didn’t at all. It was just wonderfully complex and delicious.

A $75 restaurant bottle of wine is a little out of my ‘everyday drinker’ category, so I promised myself I would do a little more research on this as we went home.

Around about that time, I had started following a Washington Wine Podcast called Decanted. The fates conspired, and I happened to be on the way to work, when I clicked into 5th episode, highlighting Lisa and Warr-King. An hour later, I had put ‘go to Warr-King’ on our calendar.

A Happy Fate

It did not take long. Several visits over several months passed. Heather and I had the Passport to Woodinville Wineries, so visited first from there, then we came in again, to sample a Syrah, and again when the Malbec came out. We were hooked.

I had almost forgotten about the Descendant, until the release party in late 2019, when it was happily secured in our club allocation.

The 2017 is fuller this year, and just as lovely as it was when I first got it. It was rich and dark ruby again. I got hints of tart red fruit and Bing cherries and a floral nose. It is a wonderful blend you should try today. Or, join her wine club, and get a 15% discount!