Col Solare to Build Winery on Red Mountain
Woodinville, Wash.
Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, one of the most acclaimed wine companies in the world, has announced it has signed a purchase agreement for a 20-acre parcel of land on Red Mountain in Eastern Washington where it will build a winery for its luxury red wine, Col Solare. Its partner in this joint venture, the Antinori family of Tuscany, Italy, will help build the winery and plant its estate vineyards.
“Our goal is to make Col Solare the equal of best wines in the world and building this state-of-the-art estate winery will enable us to do that,” said Ted Baseler, President and CEO of Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, owner of Chateau Ste. Michelle, Northstar, Columbia Crest and other wineries in Washington state.
The land acquisition and winery construction, with plans to feature a subterranean barrel room, fermenters built to winemakers’ specifications and an expansive courtyard cast as an idyllic tourist destination, will represent a more than $6 million shared investment upon completion.
The venture is believed to be the largest European investment in the Washington wine industry, and one that was long planned by the Ste. Michelle-Antinori partnership.
“We are pleased with this new step in our relationship with Chateau Ste. Michelle,” said Marchese Piero Antinori. “We know from experience that to make the very best wine you must have a winery solely dedicated to it. Building this winery on Red Mountain shows our commitment to this project and to the state of Washington as a superlative, emerging wine region.”
The Antinoris have been intimately involved in the selection of the land and the design of the winery, which will sit on the west-facing hillside on Red Mountain not far from the Hedges Winery.
“From the start, this partnership has been about marrying distinct winemaking perspectives to create a world-renowned wine,” Baseler said. “Acquiring land for an estate winery and vineyard takes this project to the next level and brings with it an exciting set of creative and qualitative opportunities for Col Solare.”
Ground breaking for the winery is planned for summer of this year, with the winery ready for the 2006 crush. The following phase would see a vineyard planted adjacent to the winery in 2007. Production will grow ultimately to 15,000 cases a year.
The Red Mountain site was selected after the Antinori team walked various Columbia Valley locations with Ste. Michelle winemakers and viticulturists. Red Mountain ultimately was chosen for its record for producing grapes used in some of the best wines in Washington, including Leonetti, Quilceda Creek, Hedges and DeLille Cellars. Col Solare also has been sourcing fruit from Red Mountain.
“The news that Chateau Ste. Michelle and the Antinoris will build a winery for Col Solare on Red Mountain is the greatest news in our state wine industry in a long time,” said Tom Hedges of Hedges Cellars, one of the original wineries on Red Mountain.
For Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, building a winery for Col Solare is part of a long-term strategy that Baseler began in 2000 when he assumed leadership of the company. That strategy, to invest in creating prized wines that bring notice to Washington state appellations, first was implemented in 2002 when the company built its state-of-the-art, limited-production winery in Walla Walla, Washington, for its Northstar Merlot.
For Marchese Antinori, the new Col Solare winery and vineyards mean additional trips to Washington state to assess construction but also to satisfy his lifelong curiosity about grape growing throughout the world.
“Grape quality in Washington is very high because of the type of climate and the soil with its sand and beautiful rocks. They produce high quality grapes and wines. It’s a paradise here,” Antinori said.
Antinori winemaker and general manager Renzo Cotarella, one of the most respected winemakers in the world, visits Washington regularly for blending sessions and vineyard exploration.
Cotarella’s Ste. Michelle winemaking partner is Doug Gore, the company’s senior vice president for winemaking, who will visit the Antinoris in Tuscany this spring for winemaking discussions and wine lot evaluations.
“Col Solare is one of many ventures for us,” said Antinori, “and it is important because just as the Ste. Michelle viticulturists and winemakers learn from us, we learn from them. It is an excellent partnership. We expect Col Solare to become one of the most sought-after wines in the world, and having its own winery is a major step toward that.”
The Antinori family was making wine before Columbus discovered America, with historical records in Florence listing the beginning of their business in the year 1385.
Piero Antinori, the patriarch of this family, is arguably the most respected wine aristocrat in the world. He received the “Distinguished Service Award” from the Wine Spectator in 1999, the influential magazine’s highest honor. The Antinori 1997 Solaia red wine was chosen the number one wine in the world by Wine Spectator in 2000.
Chateau Ste. Michelle teamed with Marchese Piero Antinori to create Col Solare starting with the 1995 vintage. Since then, the wine has received a number of high scores from various publications, including a “91” for the latest vintage, the 2001, from Wine Spectator.
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For further information:
Grace Doyle
425-415-3359
grace.doyle@smwe.com
