Owen Bargreen

Owen Bargreen An expert's guide to Washington, Oregon and California wines. I write about wines that inspire me.

Wine critic Owen Bargreen offers independent expert coverage on Washington, Oregon and California wines, wineries and will share in-depth written interviews and video interviews on his website, Facebook and Instagram page, https://www.instagram.com/owenbargreen/
Owen has a special focus on wines of Spain and Sauternes.

09/07/2026

Crazy beautiful Beaux Freres wines from ‘95 and ‘15 shared by Decanterberrytales | Jason and beautiful food shared at Canard PDX 🍷 🦆 💥

09/04/2026

Gorgeous new releases by Champagne Bollinger. 2018 LGA is a total stunner 🍾⚡️

08/31/2026

Walter Scott’s ‘24s are rich and powerful, loaded with tension. It’s a knockout lineup 🍷 🥊

08/28/2026

Amazing ‘Initial’ by Selosse. So youthful and complex, this will be a 20 year wine. Amazing match for caviar 🍾🔥

RujayaThis is now the second time I have tasted the new wines by Rujaya. It is the second time that I have been seriousl...
08/26/2026

Rujaya

This is now the second time I have tasted the new wines by Rujaya. It is the second time that I have been seriously impressed with winemaker Benedict Almquist and his precision of crafting wines with a sense of place. For nearly a decade he worked alongside his cousin at Almquist Family Vintners in Seattle, and then in 2018 became their resident winemaker. Since spring of 2023, Benedict worked as assistant winemaker at Darby Winery in Woodinville, WA. He found his inspiration in a bottle of FX Pichler Riesling from the Wachau Valley, Austria and became infatuated with world-class Riesling. His first Riesling release was a home run! The new wines were even better than the first wines that I tasted. These are all fall 2026 releases. You don’t want to miss out on the 2024 ‘Icarus’ Grenache (OB, 95) which has amazing rocks character and is pretty and downright sexy in its incredible flavor range. Learn more about this electric new winery at https://rujayawinery.com/ and here are my reviews of the inaugural wines from Rujaya.

2024 Rujaya ‘Apinya’ Boushey Vineyard’ Grenache- The fabulous 2024 Rujaya ‘Boushey Vineyard’ Grenache was sourced from this famed site in the Yakima Valley. Stored in neutral oak, this opens with a heady melange of red and dark fruits, with pretty red rose petals and orange blossom on the nose. The palate is soft and inviting with a seriously good texture, as well as weight and length. Generous, and showing lovely stony nuance, this is drinking beautifully right now. Drink 2026-2034- 94

2023 Rujaya ‘Apinya Royal Slope’ Syrah- The seriously good 2023 Rujaya ‘Royal Slope’ Syrah comes from the acclaimed Stillwater Creek Vineyard and utilizes Joseph Phelps clonal selection. All of this wine underwent whole-cluster fermentation. It stands inky in the glass, with black cherry compote, coffee grounds and green olives that combine with shades of chocolate pie on the palate. This has a bulls blood, sanguine character that makes it very Cote Rote meets Washington. Very dense and exotic, with Asian spices that linger, enjoy this beauty now and over the next ten years to come. Drink 2026-2036- 95

2024 Rujaya ‘Apinya Icarus Vineyard’ Grenache- Sourced from the Icarus Vineyard in the Walla Walla Rocks District, this 2024 Grenache is sensational, third-leaf wine that has amazing Rocks character. Once on the nose this takes on layers of anise with charcuterie, beef drippings, orange peel and fresh sage, with great stony essence. The palate is beautifully-textured with serious verve. A joy to consume right now, watch this evolve over the next six to eight years. But why wait? Drink 2026-2033- 95

2023 Rujaya ‘Apinya Walla Walla Valley’ Syrah- The 2024 ‘Walla Walla Valley’ Syrah was entirely whole-cluster fermented and hails from the famed Stoney Vine Vineyard. It is soft, savory and neatly-textured stuff. Black olive tapenade and smoldering wet stones all combine with sagebrush, boysenberry and smoked meats on the palate. Beautiful now, enjoy over the next eight years. Drink 2026-2034- 95

Chateau MiravalToday we share one of the famed houses in Provence. Miraval is one of the historic houses in Provence and...
08/26/2026

Chateau Miraval

Today we share one of the famed houses in Provence. Miraval is one of the historic houses in Provence and a true Hollywood drama, Chateau Miraval is a highly scenic 1,200 acre estate in Provence, which was founded by Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Married at Miraval, Pitt and Jolie prior to their split lived there since 2008. The property boasts pine forests, olive groves, terraced hillsides, working vineyards, a private lake as well as a moat. Much of the chateau dates back to 17th century, including 35 rooms in the main house as well as several tenant residences.The estate also contains remains of a Romanesque chapel, as well as the famed vineyard from which the Miraval Rose comes from. The recording studio at Miraval has housed some famous musicians including personal favorites Sting and The Cranberries (R.I.P. Dolores O’ Riordan).
It was back in 2012 that Pitt and Jolie purchased this famed land for an estimated $60 million and records indicate that in 1252 philosopher and theologian Saint Thomas Aquinas visited the Miraval estate. The vineyard itself is very large, Jean-Pierre and Francois Perrin are the iconic vintners behind this great Rose wine that produce white and rose wine from the 500 hectare property. They produce a ton of Rose (roughly 200,000 bottles) and despite the quantity of wine produced, the quality of the wine has been apparently throughout the past five vintages.
I had such a marvelous visit to Miraval last August. Walking through this incredibly beautiful site, you can’t help but notice the immense stony quality of the vineyards. Massive limestone deposits are everywhere as you can see how the heat and stones lead to the struggle in the vines, resulting in extremely high quality grapes. The 2025 Miraval Rose (OB, 91) is direct and shows great mineral backbone with pretty red fruits. Learn more about Miraval at http://miraval-provence.com/en/ Here are the new 2025 Miraval review.

2025 Chateau Miraval Rose- The 2025 Chateau Miraval Rose is a great combination of Cinsault, Rolle, Grenache and Syrah. It shows delicate red raspberry and watermelon tones alongside honeydew melon and vibrant acidity on the palate. Enjoy now and over the next few years. Drink 2026-2032- 91

Krug ChampagneOne of the famed Champagne houses, Krug was founded by Joseph Krug back in 1843. Located in Reims and curr...
08/26/2026

Krug Champagne

One of the famed Champagne houses, Krug was founded by Joseph Krug back in 1843. Located in Reims and currently owned by LVMH Moet Hennessy, Joseph Krug, a German, originally founded this house. He later moved to Paris to work in accounting for Champagne Jacquesson and learned so much about Champagne that he began making his own privately. A brilliant linguist, Joseph spoke French, English and German and spoke some Russian, which put his Champagne house in good position to sell to overseas markets.
Following Joseph’s death his son, Paul Krug, took over and began selling Krug across Great Britain. Major turmoil followed Paul’s death in 1910 with two World Wars, although many people contend that the best Champagnes of the century were made between 1926 and 1928. Some have said these were some of the finest wines the house has ever made.
For many years Krug has crafted a range of wines including their famous ‘Grande Cuvée’ (which I reviewed), as well as a stunning non-vintage rosé, a vintage Blanc, a vintage Blanc de Blancs from the Clos du Mesnil Vineyard, a vintage Blanc de Noirs from the Clos d'Ambonnay Vineyard and older vintages released as Krug Collection series.
I adored the the 171 eme. Edition ‘Grand Cuvée’ which has a base from the warm and rich 2015 vintage.Learn more about these very special wines at https://www.krug.com Here is my review of the new ‘Grand Cuvee’ Champagne by Krug.

Krug Grand Cuvée 171 eme Edition Champagne- With a base from 2015, the 171 eme. by Krug is a dazzling bottling that still has so much life in front of it . It really needs about 30 minutes of air to be fully aroused. Lemon rind and salted melon combine with brioche and toasted hazelnuts on the palate. This edition is primarily Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with a small amount of Meunier blended in. Bravo! Drink 2026-2039- 97

08/23/2026

Made a great steak meal for family and loved this Alban. Just hit the spot 🥩⚡️🙏

08/20/2026

Such a brilliant Brunello, paired with homemade burgers 🍷 🇮🇹 🍔

Long Shadows For years I have loved the wines of Long Shadows, one of the premier wine lineups that you will find anywhe...
08/18/2026

Long Shadows

For years I have loved the wines of Long Shadows, one of the premier wine lineups that you will find anywhere in the Pacific Northwest. Allen Shoup had a celebrated 20-year career leading Chateau Ste. Michelle, its affiliate wineries and Washington wines to international prominence. Shoup retired to establish Long Shadows in 2002, the most ambitious and personal project of his storied career. He hired Gilles Nicault to be winemaker, serving as the director of winemaking and viticulture, while collaborating with a team of all-star vintners to refine Allen’s vision. Gilles is making some of the most consistently great wines in the Pacific Northwest, including arguably Washington’s finest Riesling to silky and concentrated Cabernets. He also makes the finest Super-Tuscan inspired wine in Washington, the ‘Saggi.’
Long Shadows has recently released a new line of wines that are their ultra-premium and limited production bottlings, their ‘Meritant’ series. I tasted with Nicault and was so impressed with the wines. I went back the next day and re-tasted the wines. You are going to be blown away with these bottlings. Learn more at https://longshadows.com/ and here are my reviews of the incredible new ‘Meritant’ wines by Long Shadows.

2024 Long Shadows ‘Meritant’ Chardonnay- One of the finest Chardonnays that I have tasted in the past year, the 2024 Long Shadows ‘Meritant’ Chardonnay was sourced entirely from the famed Celilo Vineyard. The wine was stored in all 600L barrels (light toast, tight grain) prior to bottling. Brioche, bananas foster and shades of rich cardamom dusted melon all mark the nose. The palate is big and bold, with amazing tension and salty minerality. The sense of place and salinity from this special vineyard is clear. The finish is exceedingly long as this is dazzling in its heady youth. Drink 2026-2037- 97

2022 Long Shadows ‘Meritant’ Cabernet Sauvignon- The 2022 ‘Meritant’ Cabernet Sauvignon is a barrel selection wine hailing from Red Mountain. It was stored in all new French oak, as the oak integration is spectacular. There is loads of tension and bright acidity from this slightly cooler vintage — yet this beauty builds in weight and flavor density with more and more air. Creme de violette and tar flavors combine with sagebrush, black currant cordial and blackberry pie with milk chocolate dusted Arabica bean on the palate. Decadent and dense with serious minerality, make sure you give this another year in the bottle to fully evolve. Flirting with perfection, enjoy this total heavyhitter now and over the next fifteen to twenty years to come. Tasted twice over two days with consistent notes. Drink 2027-2050- 99

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