Force Majeure Vineyards

Paul and Susan McBride founded the operation in 2004 on the upper southwest slope of Red Mountain, partnering with vineyard manager Ryan Johnson who had spent fifteen years managing the nearby Ciel du Cheval Vineyard. The winery initially operated as Grand Reve Vintners (French for great dream) and launched with a Collaboration Series that paired guest Washington winemakers with fruit from the new estate plantings and from Ciel du Cheval. Early collaborators included Mark McNeilly of Mark Ryan Winery and Ross Mickel of Ross Andrew Winery; the 2007 Collaboration Series Reserve from McNeilly and Mickel earned a 97-point Wine Spectator score that was at the time the highest the publication had given to any Washington Cabernet Sauvignon. The Grand Reve name was retired around 2011 following an ownership claim on the original brand, and the winery was renamed Force Majeure (French for an unstoppable or superior force, also used in legal contexts for an act of God) to evoke both the geological forces that shaped Red Mountain and the strength of the winemaking team assembled around the project.

• Paul and Susan McBride founded the operation in 2004 with Ryan Johnson, vineyard manager at Ciel du Cheval Vineyard, as the third partner in the early operation
• Originally branded as Grand Reve Vintners (great dream); renamed Force Majeure around 2011 after an ownership conflict over the original name
• Collaboration Series launched with the debut 2004 vintage: guest Washington winemakers worked with fruit from the new estate and from Ciel du Cheval
• 2007 Collaboration Series Reserve by Mark McNeilly and Ross Mickel earned 97 points from Wine Spectator, then the publication's highest score for a Washington Cabernet Sauvignon

The Force Majeure estate vineyard sits on the upper southwest face of Red Mountain and was the first vineyard planted on the mountain's steep, rocky upper slopes. The site covers approximately 20 acres hand-tended in small micro-blocks that follow the varied soils left behind by the Missoula floods, with the upper elevations dominated by gravelly windblown loess over fractured basalt and the lower-slope sections shifting toward sandier loams. The Bordeaux variety blocks include Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot, with Cabernet Sauvignon concentrated on the leaner upper-elevation sections best suited to structural tannin development. The Rhone variety blocks include Syrah (with some gobelet-trained plantings inspired by Northern Rhone practice), Grenache, Mourvedre, and a small block of Viognier. The hillside aspect, the elevation, and the sub-block soil variation give the estate a wider range of micro-terroir than most flatter Red Mountain vineyards, which the winemaking team works through separate small-lot fermentations before blending or vineyard-designating the wines.

• Approximately 20 acres on the upper southwest face of Red Mountain; the first vineyard planted on the steep, rocky upper slopes of Red Mountain
• Soils vary by elevation: gravelly windblown loess over fractured basalt on upper slopes, sandier loams on lower slopes
• Bordeaux blocks: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot; Cabernet concentrated on leaner upper-elevation sections for structural tannin
• Rhone blocks: Syrah (some gobelet-trained), Grenache, Mourvedre, plus a small block of Viognier; small-lot fermentations preserve micro-block character

Todd Alexander joined Force Majeure in 2014 as the winery's first head winemaker and general manager, arriving from Bryant Family Vineyard in Napa Valley where he had worked under consulting winemaker Michel Rolland and with vineyard manager David Abreu. His appointment coincided with the retirement of the Collaboration Series in June 2014 and a deliberate focus on estate-grown wines. Under Alexander the lineup consolidated around a set of estate bottlings that remain the core of the program today: Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (the flagship Red Mountain block selection), Estate Syrah (with co-fermented Viognier in some vintages, drawing on Northern Rhone practice), Estate Grenache, Estate Cabernet Franc, Epinette (a Bordeaux blend led by Merlot and Cabernet Franc with smaller amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot), Parvata (the Southern Rhone-style Mourvedre-led blend), and a small Viognier. Alexander also developed wines from The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater in the Walla Walla Valley, including Syrah from the basalt cobblestone soils that define the appellation. He departed in early 2025, and Louis Skinner of Betz Family Winery was named estate winemaker in March 2025; Ryan Johnson returned to manage the estate vineyards in 2024.

• Todd Alexander joined 2014 from Bryant Family Vineyard in Napa Valley (worked with Michel Rolland and David Abreu); first head winemaker and general manager
• Collaboration Series retired June 2014; program focus shifted to estate-grown wines under Alexander's direction
• Core estate lineup under Alexander: Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Estate Syrah, Estate Grenache, Estate Cabernet Franc, Epinette (Bordeaux blend), Parvata (Southern Rhone blend), Viognier
• Alexander departed early 2025; Louis Skinner (from Betz Family Winery) named estate winemaker March 2025; Ryan Johnson returned to manage estate vineyards in 2024

Parvata, named for the Sanskrit word for mountain, is the estate's Southern Rhone-style blend and the wine that most directly reflects the lower-slope sandier soils of the Red Mountain vineyard. The blend is led by Mourvedre and built out with Grenache and Syrah, with the exact proportions shifting year to year as plantings mature and the team responds to vintage conditions. Recent compositions illustrate the range: the 2016 was 69 percent Mourvedre, 21 percent Syrah, and 10 percent Grenache; the 2017 stepped Grenache up to 25 percent with small additions of Counoise and Cinsault; the 2020 was the first Grenache-dominant vintage. The winemaking is straightforward: cold soak in concrete, gentle extraction, and approximately 18 months in French oak (a small percentage new) before bottling. The wine is structured but more aromatic and high-toned than the Bordeaux estate bottlings, with the white pepper, dried herbs, and savoury character associated with cooler-handled Mourvedre. The Force Majeure team has indicated Parvata will move toward Grenache leadership as the Grenache plantings mature into full production.

• Parvata: Southern Rhone-style estate blend, name from the Sanskrit word for mountain; reflects the sandier lower-slope soils of the Red Mountain vineyard
• Mourvedre-led with Grenache and Syrah; recent vintages range from 50 to 69 percent Mourvedre with Grenache and Syrah filling out the blend (occasional Counoise and Cinsault)
• Winemaking: cold soak in concrete, gentle extraction, approximately 18 months in French oak with a small percentage of new wood
• Stylistic register: high-toned and aromatic with white pepper, dried herbs, and savoury Mourvedre character; positioned to move toward Grenache leadership as plantings mature

Force Majeure operates at small production scale across approximately seven to eight estate bottlings plus the Rocks District wines, with overall annual production in the low thousands of cases. Distribution is anchored by a direct mailing list with limited wholesale placement through select restaurants and retailers, a model common to small-production Washington premium producers. The winery's position within Red Mountain is distinct: while founding-generation Red Mountain producers like Hedges Family Estate, Kiona Vineyards, and Quilceda Creek established the appellation's commercial profile in the 1990s and early 2000s, Force Majeure was part of a second wave that focused on premium small-production hillside viticulture (alongside Cadence Winery and Mark Ryan Winery on adjacent slopes). The dual focus on both Bordeaux and Rhone varieties from a single estate site is unusual in Red Mountain, where most producers concentrate on Cabernet Sauvignon-led Bordeaux blends; Force Majeure's parallel commitment to Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvedre programs reflects both the suitability of Red Mountain's heat and aspect to Rhone varieties and the founders' explicit interest in extending the appellation's range beyond Cabernet.

• Small-production scale across approximately seven to eight estate bottlings plus Rocks District wines; low thousands of cases per year
• Distribution: mailing list anchored with limited wholesale through select restaurants and retailers
• Part of the second wave of Red Mountain premium producers (alongside Cadence and Mark Ryan) following the founding generation (Hedges, Kiona, Quilceda Creek)
• Parallel Bordeaux and Rhone programs from a single estate are unusual in Red Mountain; reflects both site suitability and the founders' interest in extending the AVA beyond Cabernet