Winemaker Notes
The Walls' captivating Rhône blend from the sun kissed slopes of Eastern Washington. The Ramparts has a captivating levity and brightness that can be enjoyed now or savored later.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2018 The Ramparts is based on 47% Mourvèdre, 22% Syrah, 18% Grenache, and 13% Counoise, all from Red Mountain. Its deep purple color is followed by a great nose of ripe blueberry and blackberry fruits supported by plenty of peppery herbs, leather, tree bark, and violets. Hitting the palate with full-bodied richness, it's textured and has fine yet significant tannins, good overall acidity and freshness, and a great finish. It needs 2-3 years of bottle age to develop more complexity but will cruise for 10-15 years in cold cellars. It's impressive.
Rating: 94+ -
Wine Enthusiast
Mourvédre makes up 47% of this wine, with the rest Syrah (22%), Grenache (18%) and Counoise. The aromas are compelling, with notes of raspberry compote, pomegranate, whole red cherry, orange peel and dried herb. The red fruit flavors are rich but retain a sense of grace and purity, along with plenty of good old fashioned yum. A warm finish caps it off.
Editors' Choice -
Wine & Spirits
A GSM that expresses the warmth of Red Mountain, this is a heady red with an enveloping scent of spiced cherries and plum. Those scents follow into mouth-filling flavors, with firm, chewy tannins for brisket.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
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.