Winemaker Notes
The 2022 Water Witch immediately captivates with its expressive bouquet, where dark cherry
mingles with freshly ground espresso and sweet tobacco notes. The palate shows impressive depth with dark chocolate and rich cherry cordial flavors. Bright, lively acidity provides a beautiful counterpoint to the richness, working in harmony with well-structured tannins. A generous finish is dominated by lingering ripe boysenberry notes. While already showing beautifully, this wine will age gracefully for the next decade or more.
Blend: 69% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
The winemaker's grandfather was a "water witch" who used a divining rod to locate water in eastern Washington's farmlands. This Witch is a 69% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc blend aged for 21 months in 100% new French oak. Aromas of blackcap raspberries, vanilla and dark chocolate lead to flavors of black cherries, fennel and a touch of black coffee. Make your own dowsing efforts lead you to this wine.
Editors' Choice -
Vinous
The 2022 Water Witch smolders with a dark blend of red plums, gravel dust, sage and clove. It's round in feel with cooling acidity and ripe wild berry fruits, while nuances of violet pastille add contrast. Graphite and spice linger through the long finish as a subtle tug of fine tannins provides form. Already enjoyable today, the Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated Water Witch provides plenty of balanced pleasure.
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Wine Spectator
Deeply structured but not weighty, with blackberry, black olive and licorice flavors that slowly build power and tension toward broad-shouldered tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2027 through 2035.
Over a decade later, Mark Ryan Winery has grown in size, earned acclaim from wine-lovers and critics alike, and garnered respect from the state's elite producers. The goal, however, remains the same. Make delicious wines that represent the vineyard from which they come, making every vintage better than the last.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
A coveted source of top quality red grapes among premier Washington producers, the Red Mountain AVA is actually the smallest appellation in the state. As its name might suggest, it is actually neither a mountain nor is it composed of red earth. Instead the appellation is an anticline of the Yakima fold belt, a series of geologic folds that define a number of viticultural regions in the surrounding area. It is on the eastern edge of Yakima Valley with slopes facing southwest towards the Yakima River, ideal for the ripening of grapes. The area’s springtime proliferation of cheatgrass, which has a reddish color, actually gives the area the name, "Red" Mountain.
Red Mountain produces some of the most mineral-driven, tannic and age-worthy red wines of Washington and there are a few reasons for this. It is just about the hottest appellation with normal growing season temperatures commonly reaching above 90F. The soil is particularly poor in nutrients and has a high pH, which results in significantly smaller berry sizes compared to varietal norms. The low juice to skin ratio in smaller berries combined with the strong, dry summer winds, leads to higher tannin levels in Red Mountain grapes.
The most common red grape varieties here are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah, among others. Limited white varieties are grown, namely Sauvignon blanc.
The reds of the area tend to express dark black and blue fruit, deep concentration, complex textures, high levels of tannins and as previously noted, have good aging capabilities.