Located in the Columbia Gorge AVA, which straddles Oregon and is at the westernmost edge of Washington State's Columbia Valley AVA, Syncline is a limited-edition, small-batch winery that maintains a strong vision of producing world-class wines through innovative winemaking, while also taking into consideration the environment in every aspect of its biodynamic vineyards.
The lively mid-palate offers aromatic garrigue notes of thyme and sage, as well as ripe plum and boysenberry.
It has a pure fruit flavour, with soft, ripe tannins and juicy acidity, further enhanced by subtle hints of pomegranate.
The winemaker says it's "really delicious."
In 1975, the Williams family began their pioneering winemaking journey in Red Mountain.
In 2006, Syncline planted vines in its own vineyard, "Heart of the Hill," and began making wine from the Mourvedre grapes in this vineyard in 2009.
Today, three generations of the Williams family have been growing grapes in Washington State's top AVA, Red Mountain, producing exceptional wines.
That commitment to quality and innovation is also evident in the work of their youngest son, talented winemaker Tyler Williams, whose expertise was further developed through his previous harvests at Syncline.
The forces that shaped the geology of Heart of the Hill and Red Mountain AVAs are truly spectacular.
The deep bedrock that makes up much of the Columbia Valley is basalt, formed by massive amounts of lava released by intense volcanic activity.
The basalt is topped by layers of sediment deposited by repeated ancient floods.
On top of that is a layer of sand and silt formed by years of erosion and weathering.
These soils are highly alkaline and rich in calcium carbonate, giving the wines from this region incredible structure and excellent aging characteristics.
All the fruit is hand-harvested and 50% is whole-cluster fermented in open oak vats.
Fermentation was done using wild yeasts, with punchdown, pumpover and foot pigeage.
No fining or additions have been made.
The free-run juice is aged separately in 500L puncheons.
Bottled in June 2024.
Syncline is a geological term that refers to a section of rock where horizontally deposited strata are bent by lateral pressure to form a winding valley of rock. The name comes from the Coyote Wall syncline, which can be seen from the winery.
Owners and winemakers James and Poppy Manton's winery and vineyards are located in the Columbia Gorge AVA, straddling Washington and Oregon.
They were also the founding members of AVA in 2004.
The Columbia Gorge is divided into a cool, rain-rich western region and a semi-arid desert eastern region, and they use grapes from this special region as well as from long-established, top-notch growers in Washington State.
Syncline was founded in 1999 by a couple who were making Pinot Noir in Oregon, with just 76 cases, and their winemaking has remained unchanged ever since, with each wine being delicate and elegant.
The winery uses biodynamic farming methods in its own vineyards and has a strong vision of "continuing to produce innovative wines that are environmentally friendly and can be used on a global scale," earning it a high reputation as a limited production winery.