Kiona Vineyards: Foundation and future on Washington’s Red Mountain

Kiona Vineyards is the pioneering winery of Washington State’s Red Mountain AVA, today in the hands of the third-generation – brothers JJ and Tyler Williams.

The siblings’ grandfather, John Williams, bought land on the mountain 51 years ago, in 1972, with the first 4ha vineyard planted in 1975.

With Tyler taking over as winemaker from his father Scott in 2019, and older brother JJ having worked on the business side since 2009, Kiona now has more than 113ha, growing grapes for 60 wineries, as well as making its own estate wines.

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of six Red Mountain wines from Kiona Vineyards

The Lake Missoula floods more than 10,000 years ago formed the slope that is Red Mountain. The repeated flooding created an overlay of nutrient-rich deposits on top of sandy, gravelly soils.

Its southwest exposure provides long hours of sunlight, while significant diurnal shifts in temperature allow for gradual, slow ripening and good acid retention in the grapes.

Before there were wineries, or even vineyards, there was just sagebrush and native grasses here. Strong winds circulate air and reduce disease pressure while minimising the risk of frost damage during winter. Red Mountain has a primarily desert climate, with an average of 18cm of rain annually.

John Williams and his friend Jim Holmes saw an opportunity on this barren slope. Based on studies from the Washington State University’s Horticultural Extension Program in the late 1960s that showed its viticultural viability, the two began grooming land for a vineyard in 1972.

John and Jim weren’t winemakers or viticulturists. But their previous experience farming alfalfa fields, combined with engineering knowledge (they were material scientists by trade), gave them the skills they needed.

First, they created the infrastructure to support a vineyard, which meant drilling for water and establishing electricity. Paved roads came later. John’s son Scott Williams (JJ and Tyler’s father) recalls coming home from school to pull the sagebrush out, one by one, using a chain and tractor.

In 1975, with 4ha cleared, they planted their first vines. At the time, the market favoured Chardonnay and Riesling, which they split evenly along with Cabernet Sauvignon. These days Cabernet Sauvignon is the dominant variety on Red Mountain, along with other Bordeaux and Rhône grapes.

Red Mountain grows

The results were enough to prove the area’s potential. Other Washington winemakers began making their way to Red Mountain, including Col Solare, a partnership between Tuscany’s Marchesi Antinori and Washington State’s Chateau Ste Michelle, which planted its first vineyards in 2006.

According to JJ and Tyler, the big turning point for the AVA – officially established in 2001 – was in the 2010s. Until then, water was scarce, but after the state government paid for an irrigation system, the mountain burgeoned with new development.

‘It’s hard to overstate that importance,’ says Tyler. ‘Basically, everything to the east of Col Solare is new Red Mountain, largely made available from that project.’

Despite the small community feel here, there has been significant outside investment. In addition to Col Solare, other large brands such as Aquilini Vineyards and Terlato Wine’s Klipsun label have also bought up land.

Since the AVA is planted right up to its borders, acquisition is now the only way into Red Mountain.

Remaining family-owned

The Williams family has owned Kiona Vineyards outright since 1994, when they bought out co-founders the Holmes family. They have been able to maintain their autonomy thanks to a few pivotal decisions Scott Williams made in his 40-year tenure as owner-winemaker.

Heart of the Hill, at 60ha, is the largest of Kiona’s five vineyards. Before planting the first vines in 2006, the Williams’ sold a portion of the land to Chateau Ste Michelle to further develop Col Solare. It freed them to plant incrementally and scale the business in a manageable way.

Scott decided to cap their volume to focus on quality, in both their own wines and the premium grapes they sell to 60 other wineries – another factor that allows them to remain family-owned.

‘We don’t have debt now, and we don’t have investors, nor will we ever,’ says JJ. ‘Heart of the Hill was kind of a pay-as-you-go situation.’

Joining the family business wasn’t a foregone conclusion for JJ and Tyler. ‘Our folks did a really good job of making it clear that there was an opportunity for us to work here if we wanted,’ explains JJ. ‘But we couldn’t just have a laissez-faire approach.

‘They wanted to make sure that if we worked here, we were both uniquely qualified to do so. And that we would serve the family – and by extension the business – rather than the other way around.’

The third generation

Older brother JJ, now 36, is Kiona’s general manager, overseeing the operations side of the business, including the wine club. He explains that because so few Red Mountain estates have a distribution network, Kiona often flies the flag for the AVA for consumers beyond Washington State.

After graduating from Washington’s Gonzaga University in 2013 with a biology degree, Tyler, now 32, knew that he wanted to be a winemaker. He spent the next few years working in cellars in Bordeaux, South Africa, Sicily, Chile and beyond.

After returning home in 2017, he received a paid appointment to complete his Masters in Wine Science from Washington State University. ‘By the time I learned enough to talk about wine proficiently from the production perspective, I’d worked 10 years for other people, yet not a single year for my dad in the cellar,’ he says.

He took over from his father as Kiona’s winemaker in 2019 and says his experiences during that decade of work and study has influenced his winemaking style. While he and Scott mainly align, there are some differences.

‘I’m a more oxidative winemaker during fermentation,’ he explains. ‘I give it air: whites, reds, it doesn’t matter. I’m a “New World” winemaker. I like really fresh, bright, fruity, clean wines. Everything I do is to highlight the aromatic perspective.’

‘That includes oxidation upfront and then a really consistent élévage with regular sulphuring – but not too much – and topping up.’

Tyler says he also likes to give the Cabernet Sauvignon three years in oak barrels to create what he calls the ‘Goldilocks’ of texture: not too dense, not too light.

Past and future

While Cabernet Sauvignon and other Bordeaux varieties form the majority of the Kiona portfolio, Lemberger (aka Blaufränkisch) remains close to the family’s heart. Planted in 1976 by grandfather John Williams, it was not only the first wine made under the Kiona name in 1980, but also the first commercial Lemberger in the US.

Back in the 1980s and 1990s, when the brothers were growing up, much of the family income came from their mother Vicky Williams, who was a registered nurse.

‘It’s often the men that get credit for planning the vineyards or making the wine,’ says Tyler of his father Scott and grandfather John. ‘But I want to highlight the importance of the women in our family [to the success of Kiona],’ he says, also paying tribute to his grandmother Ann, John’s wife.

The brothers are also spearheading new initiatives. Starting with the 2022 vintage, all five Kiona estate vineyards are certified sustainable under Sustainable WA.

‘We spend a lot of time thinking about how to make our business more efficient, and to use less carbon and material,’ explains Tyler, which led to their World Class in Glass lighter-weight bottling program.

JJ adds: ‘My dad built this business into what it is today. It would be foolish for Tyler and me to have an attitude where we elbow him out.

‘Why not take advantage of having someone who is one of the most experienced, technically sound and caring individuals in the entire Washington wine industry? Who also happens to be our dad!

‘Tyler and I do offer new perspectives though. And we’re both at the point where we don’t need to ask for permission to change something. But it’s always collaborative.’

Kiona Vineyards: six Red Mountain wines to try

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