Wines from The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater AVA

I find myself drawn to wines from The Rocks AVA, especially the Syrahs. So I wanted to compile a list (please let me which ones I missed!) of wineries that make wine from that AVA, and see what some of your favorites are.

Cayuse, No Girls, Horsepower
Reynvaan
Buty
Saviah
Sleight of Hand
Two Vintners
Block Wines (Full Pull)
Delmas
La Rata
Proper
Waters
Dusted Valley
Gramercy
K Vintners
Maison Bleue

Good list.

Rocksdistrict.com/wineries has a few more, but I think you have enough to keep drinking for quite some time.

I’m a big fan of Syrah from the Rocks too. More and more wines are being offered from there every year. I’m still on the Cayuse wait list and I dropped off of the Hp list due to cost, but I still purchase my favorites from Reynvaan, Two Vintners, Gramercy (blend with non-Rocks?) and now Block Wines too. In the past I have also tried Proper, but I thought it didn’t have enough of the Rocks funk to it. Will try some Delmas soon. I think Rasa has a Rocks Syrah now also.

OR grows some very serious Syrah up there.

Beresan makes a Syrah from there, I didn’t find it particularly indicative of the region but it was from the Rocks apparently.

Balboa’s estate vineyard, Eidolon, is in the Rocks, as is Tertulia’s estate, Riviere Galets.

Va Piano and WT Vintners also get grapes from Stoney Vine.

Two Vintners Some Days Are Stones is just a complete knockout for the $45 it retails for.

Rulo’s Syrah punches WAAAAY above its price point as well, I’m surprised more people haven’t discovered them yet.

I am stuck on the Cayuse waitlist as well, I buy a little at retail. I just got a Gramercy “Old Stones” Syrah in my release that is 100% from the rocks; haven’t tried it but I love all their other wines.

A newer producer, Elephant Seven also sources grapes from the Rocks as well.

Thank you for the insight and recommendations! I love the Two Vintners Some Days Are Stones!

They most certainly do!

If you’re interested, some friends and I recently did a 4-wine blind tasting of Rocks wines, I’ll put my notes below.

MID-PRICED ROCKS SYRAH TASTING - T&A’s House, Seattle, WA (3/15/2017)

We wanted to blind some Syrah from the Rocks to see if the quintessential flavors one associates with that region are universal.

• 2014 Proper Wines Syrah - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley
  Decanted for 2 hours and tasted blind. Very dark purple-red in the glass, nose jumps out of the glass before I even swirl it. Definite “Rocks” funk, meaty, black plum and vanilla on the nose, with a hit of sweet licorice, quite intense and complex, has me excited for the first taste. Once there though, the palate is a bit of a let down, there is some black pepper, a hint of meatiness, and blueberry/marionberry but mostly on the attack, the mid-palate rings a bit hollow and the finish is quite short. Almost no tannin to speak of and with little acid propping things up the whole affair seems flabby and doesn’t deliver on the promise shown by the nose. Alcohol not even hinted to on a sniff is quite present in the mouth, but more as a burn rather than a satisfying weight. It was “smooth” but maybe to its detriment, perhaps a tad boring rather than offensive, I wish more wines smelled like this wine, absolutely exhilarating, and it’s certainly drinkable though my kingdom for some zip. I feel like if this wine was a bit racier it would be profound, but alas.
• 2014 Block Wines Syrah Ankleroller Block Stoney Vine Vineyard - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley
  Decanted for 2 hours and tasted blind. Slightly cloudy and red-garnet in the glass. Slightly advanced seeming bouquet, violets, smoked meats and charcuterie, cherry pastilles/grenadine and serious dill pickles coupled with the red hue in the glass had me thinking Grenache or Grenache-Mourvedre. Definitely an interesting nose, turned some at the table off, but I like unique. Nice acidic backbone on the palate and some med- tannin keep it fresh, seamless alcohol presentation had me revising to Mourvedre. A quite lush midpalate of spice, overripe raspberry and smoke still dominated by the green tomato/dill from the nose, with a finish that lasts on and on. Definitely an odd duck, but I’m into it. When I found out it was Syrah I was flabbergasted, does NOT present as Syrah, so keep that in mind if you’re thinking you’re looking for an expression of the “Rocks”. I enjoyed it, but I have pretty high threshold for green/pickle notes in my wine and unique or unexpected experiences get bonus points in my book, so take that with a grain of salt.
• 2013 Two Vintners Syrah Some Days are Stones Stoney Vine Vineyard - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley
  Decanted for 2 hours and tasted blind. Clear and dark red/red-purple in the glass. Fairly aromatically intense, red fruits, bacon fat are the first to jump out with some raspberry, meat, and iodine/blood notes caressed by the lightest hint of sweet oak. Youthful but complex, my notes say “smells AWESOME”, truly. On the palate there is a refreshing acidity bolstered by light tannin that makes the wine dance. Funk, teriyaki jerky, pepper, sour cherry and ripe red plum on the palate, sounds bad when I type it out but man, very satisfying and complete. Quite a well made wine that showcases what the Rocks can do without going full barnyard. Glad I have a couple at home! (94 pts.)
• 2012 Beresan Winery Syrah Walla Walla Valley - USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley
  Decanted 2 hours and tasted blind. Dark and vibrant purple/red in the glass. Slightly medicinal on the nose with blueberry and tarragon notes dominating. The palate is a completely different story, almost entirely fruit, with red fruits, boysenberry, and lingonberry the only flavors present. Decent structure and balance for sure, not sweet, easy to drink, but not much of a thinker. Refreshing and simple; would be nice with pizza probably or on the porch in the summer. (89 pts.)

Quite a surprising outcome, we all thought that the Ankleroller was a ringer, maybe Grenache or Mourvedre, but it was from the same vineyard as the Some Days Are Stones. The Proper Syrah and Some Days Are Stones carried the Funk flag, while the Beresan was easy-drinking and funk-free. Some Days Are Stones was the overwhelming favorite, half of the attendees’ WOTN, and nobody’s last place, most people agreed that it was the most complete wine, and the most expressive of what “The Rocks” is known for. I’d be curious to blind it next to “big guns” like Cayuse, Reynvaan, and No Girls and see how it does. Surprisingly the Beresan came in second, though it had the most last place finishes, and the Proper and Ankleroller tied for 3rd though just barely.
Posted from CellarTracker

Bryan,

If those wines are from the Rocks AVA why are none of them actually listed under that AVA vs. the ones you name? When you list Washington - that is where the wines were fermented and produced vs. grapes sourced from an AVA in Oregon?

-S

Those are excellent tasting notes, thank you for sharing! I have had the Proper once, and found to be very good. But I think I would agree that my favorite is the Some Days are Stones, and I’m hoping to try the 2014 this weekend!

Have tried almost all of them as these are among our very favorites. In order our top 3 are:

1. Reynvaan - have tried all and generally buy all. Our favorite wine and winery for so many reasons. They truly get it on every level. 2010 Stonessence has cleaned house in more than one blind tasting against some heady competition including The Frog and some La La’s. Can be enjoyed younger than some of the others.

2. Cayuse, No Girls, Horsepower - have enjoyed all and generally buy all. Rea close 2nd to Reynvaan. Wonderful to deal with - very similar packaging etc to Reynvaan. They do collaborate or at least did when Christophe worked with Matt on his first few vintages. More funky and chewy than Reynvaan. Could be described as more masculine as opposed to Reynvaan.

3. K Vintners - enjoy them as well. Less of that WW funk than the others. Personally feel they need the most bottle time before drinking. Also wonderful to work with even when we had to return a few.

All of these are readily available without paying a premium with just a little effort. PM if you want more info.

Thank you for the input Larry! I haven’t tried many Reynvaan’s, but I really liked the ones I did!

Sleight of Hand The Psychedelic punches with Rocks heavyweights all day long.

100% agree Glenn, The Psychedelic is an amazing representation of what the rocks is all about.

You should add The Walls to your Rocks list. Mike Martin hisself was pouring a barrel sample of their forthcoming "Stony Vines Vineyard " Syrah at their Walla Walla production facility the first weekend in April (Cayuse weekend). It was just delicious with that Rocks combination of intense fruit, animal nose and fine-grained approachable tannins for such a young wine. (Many impressive, exciting wines were poured at their facility that day). They have a 20 acre estate site next door to Stony Vines in Milton Freewater that they will be planting this year. Ali Mayfield is making some fantastic wines at The Walls and I look forward to their upcoming Rocks-sourced wines.

The grapes are sourced from the Rocks AVA in Oregon but usually vinified in WA, but I’ve heard from producers that “The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, Oregon” is confusing to consumers (they hear Oregon and think Pinot) and as such they prefer to list Walla Walla on the bottle, but I think that’s beginning to change. It also could be because the grapes were harvested and vinified before the new AVA was established (2015, vs 2012-2014 for the wines) and as such were technically in the Walla Walla AVA at the time. They’re from the Proper Estate, Stoney Vine, and Yellow Jacket Vineyards, respectively. It’s sort of confusing, much like most things about Washington wine, where much of the production doesn’t happen anywhere close to where the grapes are grown.

Also, that’s just the output from CellarTracker which I believe goes by what’s on the bottle.

Hey Mark, thanks for the recommendation! I have not tried any of the wines from The Walls yet, but am looking forward to it.

Nice thread. I generally enjoy the wines from this AVA. I’ve had a fair number of them, from various producers, and prefer the ones that show a good amount of that savory side of the Rhone varieties we all love. However, I’ve had a bottle or two where that gaminess / funk was actually too much and, at least at the time of drinking, overpowered the fruit in the wine. The most recent, for me, was a special bottling done for CellarTracker users in partnership with the guys at Rasa Vineyards. It was a 2014 Syrah from SJR Vineyard in the Rocks. Uber-meaty and savory…too much so IMO.

I really like the balance, in general, that the Reynvaan wines bring to the table. They tend to be perceived as lighter-bodies than, say, Cayuse. I don’t think that’s fair, however, as I tend to weigh concentration as more important that body. In that respect, it’s amazing how concentrated and complex the Reynvaan Syrahs can be in a seemingly lighter frame (as compared to, say, Cayuse or Horsepower wines). I have really liked that same feature in the No Girls wines as well.

I’ve also loved nearly everything from Two Vintners. They made a killer Zin (not from The Rocks).