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All Wines from Tenor Wines
Inventory updated: Fri, Jan 30, 2026 04:02 PM cst
Our vintages of Tenor Wines wine currently include: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
Flickinger Fine Wines' inventory of Tenor Wines wine is listed below. We have an excellent and vast assortment of fine wines to choose from. If you do not see what you are looking for, give us a call and we can suggest another Tenor Wines vintage or even another producer that we are sure you will enjoy.
| Producer |
Vint. |
Wine |
Price |
Qty |
Order |
| | USA Red |
| Tenor Wines |
2007 |
1:1 Proprietary Blend  |
$59 |
2 |
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WA 89 (12/2012): The Tenor 2007 1:1 – its equal shares of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blended with 10% Malbec and aged “just” 18 months in new barrels – is faintly volatile but intense and complex on the nose, featuring arbor vita, cedar, rosemary accents to subtly sweet cocoa powder and ripe dark cherry. There is a certain sweet-sour bifurcation but the sense of piquancy and pungency – with nips of black pepper and juniper berry – make for an impressively persistent and invigorating finish, the wine’s abundant, firm tannins having themselves a rather bracing as opposed to (in its 2008 and 2009 successors) roughly aggressive effect. This encourages me to believe it will be worth following for at least another 3-5 years.
VM 88 (11/2011): Saturated ruby. Black raspberry, minerals and roasted oak on the slightly high-toned nose. Fleshy and full, with attractive sweetness to the black raspberry fruit. Compared to the tougher 2008 version, here the tannins are suaver and riper and arrive later, giving the wine much more immediate appeal. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2008 |
1:1 Proprietary Blend |
$70 |
2 |
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VM 88+ (11/2011): Saturated ruby. Black cherry, plum, mocha and licorice on the nose. Smoky on entry, then a bit gritty in the mid-palate, with substantial tannins cutting off the wine's fruit on the end. More saline and chocolatey than primary-fruity. This will require patience. Stephen Tanzer.
WA 87 (12/2012): Morell’s 2008 1:1 – whose elevage and blend hardly differ from that of the 2009 save for 5% more Cabernet Franc – is possessed of the same bitter sort of dark berry concentration and gum-numbing tannin as that successor, suggestion that an extra year in bottle is insufficient to have any significant effect in that department. Arbor vita, juniper berry, dark tobacco, rosemary and black pepper all add to the rather somber and austere as well as piquant and pungent impression made by this big-boned blend. I guess I have to hope to be able to revisit these wines after several years in bottle (though happily the 2007 was more harmonious and expressive). |
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2009 |
1:1 Proprietary Blend |
$70 |
4 |
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WA 90 (6/2013): Looking at the Bordeaux-blend efforts, the 2009 1:1 is the estate’s flagship wine and is comprised of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Cabernet Franc, 12% Malbec and 6% Merlot that spent 20 months in 100% new French oak. Revealing classic Bordeaux-like aromas of creme de cassis, lead pencil shavings, spring flowers and hints of spice box, this full-bodied effort has a concentrated, firm feel on the palate with bright, if not racy, acidity that gives a slight metallic edge to the substantial tannin. I’d like to see more overall integration on the palate; nevertheless, there’s lot to like here and it’s certainly impressive for the sheer wealth of material and overall high drinkability. I would give bottles another year or two before checking in to see how it is developing; it should have at least a decade of longevity after that (and hopefully warrant a higher score).
VM 90 (11/2013): Saturated, bright medium ruby. Blackberry, cassis, licorice, spicecake and bitter chocolate on the slightly medicinal nose. Plush, creamy and sweet on the palate; a silkier, creamier, more open-knit version of the 2010, for drinking earlier. Plum and chocolate flavors pick up currant and menthol notes on the very ripe, seamless finish. Nothing a bit dry about these tannins. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2010 |
1:1 Proprietary Blend |
$65 |
13 |
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WA 94+ (6/2014): Looking at the top, Cabernet Sauvignon dominated release, the 2010 1:1 Columbia Valley incorporates slightly more Merlot than normal and checks in as 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc and 8% Malbec that spent 20 months in 100% new French oak. It offers fabulous purity in its cassis, licorice, toasted spice, graphite and lead pencil shaving like aromas and flavors. Full-bodied, tight, focused and elegant, with integrated acidity and building tannin that comes through with additional time in the glass, this rock star Bordeaux blend will have upwards of two decades of longevity.
VM 90+ (11/2013): Bright, saturated ruby-red. Reticent aromas of cassis, black raspberry, spicecake, graphite, violet and bitter chocolate, plus a distinct herbal complexity. Offers a lovely restrained sweetness to its sappy flavors of raspberry, cherry, currant and spices. Good texture and extract here, as well as exotic spice and wild herb notes to provide mid-palate lift. With its serious dusty tannins and brisk acidity, this promising but youthfully bound-up wine needs time to unwind. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2012 |
1:1 Proprietary Blend |
$50 |
1 |
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| VM 90 (11/2015): Bright medium ruby. Blackberry, cassis, charred oak, menthol, licorice and minerals on the nose, lifted by a violet nuance. Suave, nicely delineated flavors of black fruits, spices and dark chocolate, complicated by licorice and herbs. Finishes with palate-dusting tannins and a smoky quality. This juicy, slightly dry midweight has the grip to bite into fatty meats and its finishing energy suggests it will evolve gracefully. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2011 |
2:2 Proprietary Blend |
$25 |
4 |
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WA 92 (6/2014): The only Bordeaux blend produced in the vintage (Morell chose not to produce his 1:1 release) and made from 35% Merlot, 34% Cabernet Franc, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance Malbec, that spent 18 months in 83% new French oak, the 2011 2:2 Columbia Valley shows uncommon concentrations and density in the vintage. Loaded with dark chocolate fruits, crushed rock, spice and hints of underlying herbs, this medium to full-bodied beauty has a layered, textured feel, rocking mid-palate density and fine tannin comes through on the finish. In short, it’s a superb effort that will have 10 to 12 years of longevity.
VM 92 (12/2014): Bright red-ruby. Alluring aromas of red and black cherry, boysenberry, licorice and minerals. Sweet, fine-grained and elegant, offering as much red as black fruit character along with an element of Belgian chocolate. A lovely midweight with real depth of flavor. Shows the spicy tannins of the vintage, a complicating saline nuance and very good length. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2008 |
Cabernet Sauvignon |
$52 |
3 |
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WA 91 (12/2012): I’m very sympathetic to Morell’s view that Washington State wines should be taken on (and encourage perception in terms of) their own unique terms, but I certainly had a strong feeling of kinship with Bordeaux when I stuck my nose in a glass of Tenor 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon and encountered band-aid, pencil lead, cassis, olive, dark tobacco, and toasted nuts. The tannins here are so fine that despite their manifest density the effect is almost creamy; and the bittersweet elements inform a finish that while broodingly low-toned, possesses considerable primary juiciness unhindered in its flow by a regimen of 20 months in new barrel. I hope this wine is indicative of where more of the Tenor wines are headed, whether in the bottle or in future vintages.
VM 90+ (11/2011): Good medium ruby. Complex nose melds plum, currant, smoke, violet and dusty minerality. Juicy and firm, with sweetness restrained by the wine's underlying minerality. This seriously structured, very young cabernet finishes with solid tannins and rising, chocolatey persistence. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2008 |
Merlot |
$52 |
1 |
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| VM 89 (11/2011): Good dark ruby-red. Blackberry, licorice, minerals and violet on the lively nose. Offers lovely sweetness but also good restraint to its dark berry and dark chocolate flavors. Finishes with firm tannins and very good length. Tenor is Matthews' high-end line. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2010 |
Tenor Syrah |
$30 |
2 |
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WA 94 (6/2013): An impressive, pedal-to-the-metal effort that stays balanced and fresh, the 2010 Syrah, aged 19 months in 100% new French oak puncheons (larger, 500-liter barrels), offers up a savory, complex array of creme de cassis, salted beef, licorice, pepper and chocolate as well as a full-bodied, beautifully pure and thrillingly textured mouthfeel. Showing more and more purity and Syrah typicity with air, this fantastic effort can be enjoyed now, but will be even better in 2-3 years. A 10-12 year drink window isn’t out of the question. Impressive!
VM 89 (11/2013): Medium-deep ruby. Sexy perfume of blackberry, minerals, meat and licorice. Dens, savory and a bit youthfully aggressive, with a slight youthful bitterness to the cassis and licorice flavors. Can't quite match the Bordeaux blends here for class or depth. My enthusiasm--as well as the wine's fruit--was muted a bit by the high alcohol. Stephen Tanzer. |
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2011 |
Tenor Syrah |
$30 |
4 |
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WA 92 (6/2014): The 2011 Syrah Columbia Valley comes all from fractured basalt and sandy loam soils and spent 16 months in 100% new 500-liter French oak barrels. It’s a drop dead gorgeous Syrah that offers classy black and blue fruits, cracked pepper, violets and slightly green herb/sappy qualities to go with a medium-bodied, pure and textured profile on the palate. Showing integrated acidity and ultrafine tannin, you can feel the cooler nature of the vintage here and this beauty stays remarkably well focused and detailed through the finish. There’s no harm in drinking now, but it will have over a decade of longevity.
VM 90 (12/2014): Bright, full ruby-red. Aromas of blackberry, violet, carob, licorice and peppery herbs. Sweet, supple and seamless, but without quite the ripeness or dimension of the brilliant 2012. A chocolatey flavor is juxtaposed with a faint herbal element, giving the wine a lightly medicinal character. Finishes with firm tannins, moderate energy and a lingering blueberry note. Stephen Tanzer. |
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