Join Alex Good of Spur Imports as he guides us through a delightful selection of wines from Kiona Vineyards Red Mountain Wines. This will be a 4 course pairing dinner with a menu created by Chef Randel and Chef Jake, using red meat supplied by The Meat Box

Tickets ($125+gst) include:

4 different wines paired with 4 courses.

Knowledge and stories about the wonderful wines you will be drinking.

Time after the event to enjoy the wines at a discounted glass price. As well as the ability to purchase bottles for your cellar.

We will have several sitting times for this event starting at 5/530/6/630/7/730 and 8pm. Message or call to reserve your table, a 50% deposit will be required to hold your booking.

Few wineries in Washington state have contributed as much to their region, or the American wine industry, as the Williams family of Kiona Vineyards. In the early 1970s, John Williams was working as a metallurgist at General Electric, when he received a circular soliciting participation in various ad-hoc steering committees for local university programs. Among those listed was one for viticulture and enology research trials. An avid wine consumer, he applied, and was accepted. Williams’ father-in-law owned an eighty-acre parcel on Red Mountain, which at the time was a bare, dusty hill covered in sagebrush. There was no water, electricity, or road access. A road had to be built, and electricity brought over three miles to the site, but finding water in the eastern Washington desert is no small feat. Williams, an engineer, also understood geology. Over the various geological upheavals of the region, pockets of water deep in the rock layers on Red Mountain became trapped and could possibly be accessible by drilling. With what money he had, an old salt well digger was hired. Water was found 550 feet down. The rest is history. With the help of John’s son Scott and his high school buddies, the first vines on Red Mountain were planted in 1975:

Riesling, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon. Those plantings were augmented by other varietals in subsequent years. It was quickly discovered that grapes from Red Mountain had special properties. The berries were small, concentrated, high in acid and rich in colour. The flavours were ripe and intense, and the structure translated into very age worthy wines of great concentration. In 1980, Kiona produced their first commercial vintage, releasing a Chenin Blanc and a Lemberger. 1982 saw Williams help found the Yakima Valley AVA, and later the Red Mountain AVA in 2001. Since the initial few planted acres in the 1970s, the Williams now own over 280 acres on Red Mountain. Today, the third generation is at the helm of Kiona. Tyler Williams, armed with a degree in biology and masters in enology, with winemaking experience in Bordeaux, Sicily, South Africa, Chile, New Zealand, Australia, and several top tier Washington producers helms the winemaking. His older brother JJ is the winery general manager, while their father, Scott, is the viticulturalist. The American wine industry owes much to the Williams family, for helping lead the way to establish one of the great AVAs in the United States.