Mark Ryan Water Witch Red Mountain Red Wine 2015
On one of our last nights at home before taking an extended road trip, Linda prepared grilled filets of beef with pasta and a hearty red sauce with homegrown tomatoes and herbs, baked bread and grilled asparagus. I pulled from the cellar this full bore complex aged vintage Washington State Red Mountain Red Blend Cabernet for the occasion.This was a perfect pairing of food and wine enhancing the enjoyment of both for a fabulous meal.
We discovered, tasted and acquired this wine at the producer's Woodinville tasting room during our Seattle/Woodinville Wine Experience in 2018. Mark Ryan Winery was actually recommended to us by one of the other producers that we visited during that tour. We weren't aware of or familiar to the producer previously.
As featured in my producer profile and visit report at that time, Mark Ryan wines are the artwork of Mark
Ryan McNeilly a self taught winemaker who learned the craft working
with well known producers, acquiring Bordeaux varietal grapes from
renowned vineyards in the Columbia Valley Red Mountain
appellation. Established in 1999 in Woodinville, Washington, by Mark Ryan McNeilly, Mark Ryan Winery produces an extensive portfolio of wines from across the region, but is most notably known for several art crafted Bordeaux Blends.
McNeilly crushed and produced his first vintages in garages of friends and family and in the years since its founding, the winery has grown in size, earning respect and acclaim from both wine lovers and critics.
In 2017, production shifted from Woodinville to Walla Walla, allowing tasting rooms to open in both cities and helping Mark Ryan become the 14th largest winery in Washington.
Specializing on Red Mountain. Mark Ryan McNeilly produces wine from grapes grown in the high desert, on a very warm site. They are "big-shouldered wines that we coax a great amount of finesse and elegance. We utilize specific vineyard sites to create our style, and have continued adding a portfolio of the most sought-after vineyards in Horse Heaven Hills, Yakima Valley, and Columbia Valley."
We tasted and acquired these wines at the Mark Ryan tasting room in Woodinville, Washington.
Woodinville is a Seattle suburb that has become a wine mecca with several dozen tasting rooms of producers of wines sourced from vineyards in the Columbia Valley in the center of the State, three hours to the east. The tasting rooms inhabit numerous free standing sites as well as several commercial centers that resemble outlet malls but filled with wine producers.
We tasted this wine flight as part of the wine flight offered at the Mark Ryan tasting room that included Burgundian
varietals, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Oregon, as well as several Bordeaux
varietal blends sourced from the Washington State central Columbia
Valley.
The
scheduled tasting flight on offer for the day was as follows and as
pictured. This is a great bargain to taste this range of quality wines
for $15, which is refundable with purchase. As usual, we tasted, and
acquired several wines beyond the standard flight. Mark Ryan dutifully lists the vineyard sources for each of its
wines accordingly. They represent the notable famous sites from the
Central Washington State appellations. Vineyards and their applicable
appellations that provide grapes for Mark Ryan Wines include Red Willow
from the Yakima Valley AVA, the famous Ciel du Cheval vineyard from Red Mountain AVA, Klipsun, Red Mountain, Quintessence and Obelisco Vineyards from Red Mountain, Olsen Vineyard and Red Willow from Yakima Valley and Phinny Hill Vineyard from the Horse Heaven Hills AVA.
The
fact that these famous vineyards source grapes to many producers, the
differences in their various labels is the result of their handicraft of
winemaking since they all come the same sites, rather than the
difference of the vineyard sites themselves. Never-the-less, we were
extremely impressed with the quality of wines coming out of the Columbia
Valley producers.
Like
many of the Woodinville and region's producers, Mark Ryan sources its
fruit from growers of the large established vineyards. Many of these are
long established relationships under contracts for specific rows of a
vineyard or blocks. While not Estate wines, where the grapes are sourced
from producer owned sites, it offers the next best thing. This is
important of course to reflect Terroir, the unique essence of climate,
soil, site, as it manifests itself in the wine, consistently over time,
from vintage to vintage.
Readers of these pages know we're fans and collectors more based on Bordeaux Varietal wines and have we focused the
following wines that were comprised of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot,
Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Interesting, these wines were based on
grapes sourced from the same vineyards, as noted above and were largely
differentiated by the composition of the Blend of the grapes in each
label.
Vineyard Source was the Quintessence Vineyards on Red Mountain
Producer's note:
Quintessence
Vineyards is a 410-acre parcel of land with a base elevation of 675
feet, rising to 1,025 feet as it reaches Red Mountain AVA's
southwest-facing slopes. Quintessence founders Dick Shaw and Paul
Kaltinick planted their first vines as partners on Red Mountain in 2010.
They launched Quintessence with a planting of 68 acres along Red
Mountain's southwestern slope. Positive response was immediate, with
customers pointing to "world class vineyard management" and "spectacular
fruit" as some outstanding attributes. Additional planting followed,
with similar success. Now, with the expansion along the eastern ridge
and slop of Red Mountain, Quintessence will encompass some 300 acres in
total. Quintessence is made up of premium land, a talent for farming,
dedicated management, ideal growing conditions, and a love for what they
do.
310 cases produced; aged in 70%
new French oak barrels
Tonight's tasting was consistent with that previous tasting of this wine back in the fall of 2018
This was dark garnet and purplish colored, full bodied, rich concentrated bright forward extracted black raspberry fruit accented by layers of exotic spices, sweet mocha chocolate and notes of sweet oak and creme de cassis with silky polished tannins on a full long smooth polished finish.This was rated 93 points by Jeb Dunnuck and 92-94 Points by The Wine Advocate.
As with my first tasting, tonight I gave this 93 points.