Dave Wanek is making serious waves in Walla Walla through his creation of the Walla Walla Land Company and exquisitely high-end label Cimento, which in Italian means experimental. The land business has been acquiring vineyards such as Pepper Bridge (calling it San Tommaso on its labels) with much more to come. The team has also recently launched Imagemaker wines. These wines aim high and reach their goals. They will be fascinating to watch and taste over time.
Readers looking for the next big thing in Washington wine will need to put Cimento on their radar. The wines are made by Todd Alexander, and while they focus on their estate Le Mani (formerly known as River Rock) Vineyard in the Rocks region, they pull from a handful of other sites as well. These 2021s will be their first releases, and I’d say they’re more than starting off on the right foot. These wines push the price, but the quality is undeniably there, and these are world-class wines.
David Wanek, co-founder of both Walla Walla Land Company and Cimento Winery, explained the project’s integrated approach: “We are combining the farming and winemaking teams so everyone understands the process and end goal.” That alignment between vineyard management and winemaking is central to Cimento’s development. Walla Walla Land Company could simply farm vineyards and sell fruit as The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater gains popularity; instead, Cimento was created to explore what these vines can produce under estate-directed farming and winemaking.
Wanek brings a broad frame of reference to the project, shaped by tasting and analyzing wines from around the world. Cimento remains young and continues to fine-tune its processes in the vineyard and cellar. The 2023 reds are developing well, while the white varieties from Orselli Estate Vineyard point to the growing potential for Rhône whites in the Rocks District. As of 2024, the vines are just four years old, but the wines already show clarity and complexity.
International Wine Report listed the 2022 Cimento Syrah as one of The Top 100 Wines of 2025.
