Page 33 - washington state wine

Red Mountain vineyards stretch up
to the mountain, but few vineyards
thrive near the top the mountain.
Top right: Tim and Kelly Hightower
of Hightower Cellars inspect their
vineyard. Right: The contemporary
and elegant Col Solare winery and
tasting room.

make beautiful wines. So beautiful that Montana deserves a lot of credit for growth. The result is smaller grapes
Robert Parker, awarded a Red Mountain great wine growing conditions as well. with concentrated flavors and tannins.
Cabernet sauvignon by Quilceda Creek You’ll hear a lot about the Missoula
Winery 100 points in 2002 and 2003. floods in the Columbia Valley. Over Like the nondescript mountain, wine
10,000 years ago a giant glacial ice dam country ambiance is equally low key.
Most of the vineyards are southwest burst sending an enormous wall of water It’s a no-nonsense growing ground now
facing planted from the Yakima River from Lake Missoula all the way through attracting major players like Duckhorn
up the slope of the mountain, which eastern Washington into Oregon. The Vineyards. Wine tasting rooms scat-
gives it nearly two more hours of sun- Montana sand, silt and loam dumped by tered around Red Mountain run from
light than Napa Valley. The days are the flood provided lots of calcium and small garage types to big and stylish.
warm and the evenings and nights cool alkalinity that encouraged deep root It’s pretty easy to navigate the dusty
which brings out the best in the grape. systems, but inhibited vigorous grape roads from one tasting room to another.

Wine Dine & Travel Summer/Fall 2015 33