2023 Auclair Left Blend Artz Vineyard, Red Mountain, USA 🇺🇸

The Moment

Some Bordeaux-style blends are built around power.
Others are built around poise.

The 2023 Auclair Left Blend Artz Vineyard Red Blend feels like the kind of bottle that leans toward the second lane — serious, structured, and unmistakably Red Mountain, but polished enough to feel graceful rather than heavy. The Left Blend is their ode to the Left Bank of Bordeaux, where Cabernet Sauvignon is king and Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and occasionally Malbec play supporting roles to bring depth and complexity. The wine is smooth as silk with a very long, complex finish, and that with air the wine darkens and gains complexity. 

What It Feels Like

Think steak on the table, dim light, and a bottle that opens slowly into something more layered and a little more commanding than you first expected.

What makes this wine work is the combination of Cabernet-driven structure and Red Mountain fruit. Left Bank inspiration, Cabernet Sauvignon dominance, and supporting grapes chosen for complexity. It is a wine with real shape, but also real polish.

In the Glass

Aromatics
Expected to show dark fruit, subtle herb and mineral tones, and classic Cabernet-led Bordeaux-blend character.

Palate
Smooth and structured, with a long, complex finish that gains depth with air. That core profile is directly supported by the current Artz Vineyard Left Blend public note.

Texture
Silky on entry, but with enough underlying structure to reward decanting and time in the glass. 

Finish
Long, complex, and persistent, with the wine reportedly gaining complexity as it opens.

Why We Love This Bottle

Auclair’s Flagship Left Bank Expression
The winery is explicit that this is one of their flagship wines and their tribute to the Left Bank of Bordeaux, which makes it an important bottle in the lineup rather than just another red blend.

Cabernet Sauvignon Leads The Way
Auclair confirms that the Left Blend is always Cabernet Sauvignon dominant, with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and sometimes Malbec adding depth and complexity.

A Red Mountain Blend With Polish
The wine is “smooth as silk” with a very long finish, which is a very appealing frame for a serious Red Mountain Bordeaux blend.

Pair It With

• Steak
• Lamb
• Braised short ribs
• Mushroom dishes
• Aged cheeses

Technical Notes

Producer: Auclair Winery
Wine: Left Blend
Vineyard: Artz Vineyard
Vintage: 2023
Region: Red Mountain, Washington, USA
Style: Bordeaux-style red blend. Auclair’s Left Blend in the Red Mountain / Columbia Valley Bordeaux red blend category. 

Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant, with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and occasionally Malbec in supporting roles. 

Body: Full
Structure: Silky texture · Cabernet-led frame · long complex finish

Flavor Profile
Dark Fruit · Herb · Mineral · Spice

Drink Window
Now–2032