Red Mountain is located in the southeast corner of

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

state near the Tri-Cities between Rattlesnake Mountain and Candy Mountain. This region is situated among the Columbia, Snake and Yakima Rivers. The mountain covers an area of approximately . Its name is derived from the red-wine springtime bloom of the drooping brome or " cheatgrass" on its slopes. In 2001, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF),

Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry; in a business context, corporate treasury. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be ...

recognized Red Mountain as an American Viticultural Area (AVA) after reviewing the petition submitted by Lorne Jacobson of Hedges Cellars to establish an area known as "Red Mountain." Some of Washington's primer wine estates source grapes from Red Mountain. The sandy loam soil of the region is high in calcium and alkaline. Red Mountain's vineyards are characterized by good air drainage, light soils and deeply rooted vines. With only 6 to of annual rainfall, area growers must irrigate, which allows them to control vine vigor and ease vines into dormancy before winter. Red Mountain's growing season averages 180 days. The vineyards are located on the south-facing slopes, between the cities of Benton City and West Richland within the larger Yakima Valley viticultural area. About of the mountain slopes are cultivated for winegrapes, which mainly include

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebano ...

Merlot Merlot ( ) is a dark-blue-colored wine grape variety that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of , the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the color ...

Cabernet Franc Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux (wine), Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire (wine), Loire's C ...

Syrah Syrah (), also known as Shiraz, is a dark-skinned grape variety grown throughout the world and used primarily to produce red wine. In 1999, Syrah was found to be the offspring of two obscure grapes from southeastern France, Dureza and Mondeuse ...

and

Sangiovese Sangiovese is a red Italian wine grape variety that derives its name from the Latin , "blood of Jove, Jupiter". Sangiovese Grosso, used for traditionally powerful and slow maturing red wines, is primarily grown in the central regions of Italy ...

. The area is resident to 37 wineries.

Nearby cities and towns

Benton City,

Kennewick Kennewick () is a city in Benton County, Washington, Benton County in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. It is located along the southwest bank of the Columbia River, just southeast of the confluence of the Columbia and Yakima ...

, Pasco, Prosser, Richland, West Richland. Cheatgrass NV 1

References

{{Authority control Mountains of Benton County, Washington Tri-Cities, Washington Mountains of Washington (state)