The high elevation, volcanic soils at the Boatique Estate are described by geologists as “Glenview / Arrowhead complex”. This soil consists of several feet of very gravely loam over clay and weathered bedrock. What that means to us is that these soils are heaven for red Bordeaux varietals. Growing grapevines at over 1300ft imparts intense sunlight but also helps to cool vines off at night. It allows for longer growing conditions, resulting in excellent hang time. All of these things result in grapes with great concentration and complexity.

The 2022 Exit West, Mount Family Reserve is our first release of this wine. It is a powerful wine made to showcase the intensity and depth that grapes from our ranch can achieve. The wine is all black berry and cassis on the nose with a mid-palate is mouth coating and rich. The tannins are very nicely framed with an impressive lingering finish. We believe that the Red Hills AVA is a tremendous place for growing outstanding Bordeaux blends and we think we’ve achieved our goal with this wine.

The grapes were picked at night, so they arrived at the winery ice cold. From there, the clusters were hand sorted and destemmed, then berry sorted before being added to tank. The fruit was kept very cold for 5 days during its “cold soak” period. Then the tank was heated up to start fermentation. No yeast or bacteria were added at any time. The wine fermented on the skins for 14 days before being drained and pressed off to barrel. The wine was aged in 100% French Oak barrels, 50% new. It was stored for 22 months in 10 barrels total before bottling without fining or filtration.

The label is inspired by our reserve series under Exit West, the ‘Mount Collection’. For us, it incorporates the family name. Robert and Madeline Mount started this vineyard years ago, and it emphasizes our commitment to high-elevation vineyard sites. Each wine in this series is identified by the topographical map of the mountain the vineyard is located on.