Basalt Cellars, Gemma Rossa 2007

The story begins in 2002 at the Grape Symposium when five wine lovers discovered one another and their shared passion for viticulture, winemaking and, of course, wine drinking. These 5 enthusiasts soon found themselves enrolled and immersed in viticulture and enology classes at the Clarkston campus of Walla Walla Community College.

After class, the room would quickly empty except for five lingering souls ardently discussing the lesson and the practical application to starting a winery. The wine grape-growing history of the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley added enthusiasm to the group and soon they were ordering equipment and grapes for a personal use production and trial application of their knowledge and skills.

Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon were produced and aged in 225 liter Bordeaux barrels. At 10 months it became apparent that both were destined to be excellent quality wines and the partners made the decision to move forward with a commercial winery with the intent of creating handcrafted super-premium Washington wines.

The rest is history.