While I rarely post on a winery twice in two months, Force Majeure Vineyards has become a rare breed of Washington wine that will also be showing off their dazzling lineup at our 2019 Washington Wine Blog Critic’s Choice of Washington Event Feb 16th at the Columbia Tower Club. Located on the steep upper slopes of Red Mountain, the Force Majeure Vineyard is set at 960 to 1,230 feet and is plated to Syrah and Grenache as well as Bordeaux varietals. Force Majeure recently purchased a small vineyard in the Walla Walla Rocks AVA to round out their collection of wines and have also purchased land at the North Fork of the Walla Walla river and will soon plant at that very special, steep-sloped site set on broken basalt. Superstar winemaker Todd Alexander came to partner with proprietors Paul and Susan McBride in 2014 which has transformed this winery. Todd was formerly the winemaker for Bryant Family Vineyard in the Napa Valley, one of the top producers of Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. As Todd continues to immerse himself in Washington, these wines will only get better and better.
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to try his 2016 wines which were all sourced from the Force Majeure Vineyard and I was absolutely blown away with the wines, starting with their entry level red bank style wine, the 2016 Parabellum ‘Alluvio’ Red Wine (WWB, 93). This is a seriously great Cabernet Franc based blend with serious richness, poise and wonderful herbal Cabernet Franc character. I highly recommend you seek out this wine as it offers some very serious value. Todd Alexander has also crafted one of the best Viogniers in Washington with his 2017 Force Majeure Vineyards Viognier (WWB, 94). The mouthfeel and texture combined with tension in the wine is just insanely good. I would also urge you all to seek this wine out before it is sold out. One of the best wines from North America that I have tried in the past year, the 2016 Force Majeure Vineyards ‘SJR Vineyard’ Syrah (WWB, 97) is also the best wine that I have sampled from this great vineyard in the Walla Walla Rocks AVA thus far. The mouthfeel is incredible here as the wine effortlessly glides across the mid-palate. This dazzling wine has incredible range and is a true heavyhitter. Learn more about this great winery at https://forcemajeurevineyards.com Here are the beautiful new pre-release wines by Force Majeure
All 2019 Release Wines:
2016 Parabellum ‘Coulee’ Red Wine- This wine is a blend of 75% Syrah with the remainder Mourvedre. This shows good smoky character on the nose with green olive and copious dark fruits. The palate shows good richness with red cherry puree, black tea and anise with nice earthy tones. This is drinking pretty well right now. Drink 2019-2029- 92
2016 Parabellum ‘Alluvio’ Red Wine- A blend of primarily Cabernet Franc, the Parbellum ‘Alluvio’ shows beautiful red bell pepper with creme de cassis and Turkish coffee aromas that build in the glass. Refined and rich on on the mouth, there are ripe mocha, anise, sagebrush and red bell pepper puree flavors. Balanced and highly poised, with light tannins, this is a spectacular effort that will cellar well for a decade or more. Drink 2018-2028- 93
2017 Force Majeure Viognier- The 2017 Force Majeure Viognier is a simply stunning Viognier by superstar winemaker, Todd Alexander. This Viognier was entirely sourced from their Red Mountain estate. The wine was aged in new oak (50%) for ten months prior to bottling. The wine shows very pretty aromatics of lychee, gooseberry and vanilla cream that continue to build in the glass following some air. The mouthfeel is simply stunning as the wine unveils a wonderful tension and saline streak. Lychee, ripe peach and Meyer lemon cream flavors all marvelously come together in the glass. Intense and showing incredibly well right now, this will cellar well for a decade but I would recommend that you enjoy this in its youth while the wonderful freshness remains. This is truly one of the best in Washington. Drink 2018-2025- 94
2016 Force Majeure ‘Parvata’ Red Wine- A blend of Syrah, Mourvedre and a touch Grenache, the 2016 ‘Parvata’ is a gorgeous wine at this juncture but has a long life ahead of it. This red blend was aged for 18 months in nearly all French oak prior to bottling. The nose shows nice smoky character with smoked pork shoulder, Hoisin sauce, blueberry compote and wild thyme. The aromatic range here his really good. The palate is plush and inviting showing good richness as well as excellent freshness. Black fruits mingle with blue fruits, chocolate, smoke and earthy terroir. The exceedingly long finish lingers. Drink 2018-2030- 94
2016 Force Majeure Syrah- The 2016 Force Majeure Syrah is a marvelous wine made by Todd Alexander that is already showing beautifully in its youth. Roughly 20% of this wine underwent while cluster fermentation. The Syrah was aged in 25% new oak for 18 months prior to bottling. The nose shows wonderful dark fruits with smoky character, sage, dark chocolate, and damp earth. The palate is exceedingly refined. Black tea, black forest cake, cigar ash and smoked brisket flavors with citrus rind undertones that all marvelously combine. There is a seamless quality to this wine that glides across the mid-palate. Seductive and rich, yet maintaining a wonderful elegance and an intriguing salinity, this is a simply tremendous bottling by Force Majeure. I would gather to say that this is up there with the best Red Mountain Syrah I have ever tasted. Drink 2018-2035- 95
2016 Force Majeure ‘SJR Vineyard’ Syrah- The 2016 Force Majeure ‘SJR Vineyard’ Syrah is one of the best Washington wines I have sampled over the past year. This simply awesome new Syrah was sourced from the esteemed SJR Vineyard in the Walla Walla Rocks AVA. The wine was fermented using native yeasts and then was aged in oak puncheons (50% new) for 18 months prior to bottling. While the Syrah was obviously given a good amount of oak treatment, this does not come off as particularly oaky. The wine shows serious range on the nose from green olive to bacon fat to blood orange rind to red cherry candy and guava puree. The beautiful aromatics bring you back to the glass for more pleasure. The texture to this wine borders ethereal and absolutely delights the senses once on the mouth. Black olive tapenade, wild blackberry cobbler, salted smoked pork shoulder, umami and touches of milk chocolate all come together marvelously. This is just stunning wine that marvelously showcases this great vineyard. Drink 2018-2030- 97
2016 Force Majeure Cabernet Sauvignon (August 2019 release)- The 2016 Force Majeure Cabernet Sauvignon is a tour de force in Washington Cabernet Sauvignon. This gorgeous wine was aged for 22 months in 80% new French oak prior to bottling. The nose is intense with light oak undertones with black fruits, creme de cassis, mocha and tar. The palate is exceedingly soft and plush revealing a silky texture and wonderful seamless quality. Toasty oak beautifully wraps around creme de cassis, blackberry cordial, Turkish coffee, creosote and chocolate covered dark cherry flavors. This is exceptionally rich and moderately tannic at this stage but shows a really good elegance as well as varietal typicity. Try to give this beautiful wine some more time to fully evolve — but if enjoying in its youth, be sure to give this at least a two hour decant. Drink 2020-2040- 96
2016 Force Majeure ‘Epinette’ Red Wine (August 2019 release)- The 2016 ‘Epinette’ is a seductive blend of 46% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc and 16% Cabernet Sauvignon with a touch Petit Verdot. You are immediately intrigued by the intense bouquet of this wine which shows violets, blackberry cordial, dark chocolate shavings, Turkish coffee and anise. The beautiful aromas compel you back to the glass for more. The palate is plush and exceedingly rich, showing an inviting mouthfeel. Black tea, Asian spice, mocha and creme de cassis flavors all entice. Moderately tannic, try to give this at least two more years to fully evolve as this wine will only get better with some time. Drink 2020-2040- 95