Cimento "Tenuta Bianca" 2023
(The Rocks District, Oregon) - [JD 96-98] [OB 97] [DM 96] [WE 95] [VM 93]

About the Winery:
Cimento began in 2017 with the belief that the Walla Walla Valley was poised to rise on the world wine stage. The founders were particularly intrigued by a small wine-growing appellation called The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater, where a unique 3,600-acre area possessed one essential quality for global significance: terroir. The winery is focused entirely on its estate vineyards in The Rocks District of Milton- Freewater, Oregon. The wines are crafted by Winemaker Todd Alexander in their state-of-the-art facility, utilizing minimal intervention techniques to create true wines-of-place.

The Rocks District is known for being the only US AVA defined by a single soil series, with a typicity showing savory notes in the wines.

About Winemaker Todd Alexander:
Hailing from Napa Valley, Todd gained invaluable experience and rose to prominence while working on production teams at renowned wineries such as Plumpjack and CADE. His talent and dedication eventually led him to the esteemed position of winemaker at the illustrious Bryant Family Vineyard. In 2014, Todd made a bold move, relocating his family to Washington to assume the role of winemaker at Force Majeure. Simultaneously, he embarked on his own venture, founding Holocene wines. Todd’s creations have consistently received critical acclaim, earning him a well-deserved status as one of the foremost winemaking talents in the United States.

Stephen Morina, who was previously assistant winemaker at Force Majeure under Alexander, took over winemaking responsibilities in 2025. Anthony Yount, who has 20 years of winemaking experience in Paso Robles, began serving as consulting winemaker in 2025.

About this Wine:

2023 is the inaugural vintage of this wine.

The Rocks District of Milton Freewater AVA 
42% Picpoul, 35% Clairette Blanche ,16% Roussanne, 5% Viognier, 3% Bourbelenc 
Direct press to barrel, kept on lees
Native Yeast, Minimal Intervention
16 months in 100% neutral French oak
Bottled Unfined and Unfiltered
112 cases

Ratings & Reviews

96-98 Points - Jeb Dunnuck:
"A barrel sample and the very first vintage, the 2023 Tenuta Bianca Estate White Blend is from a field blend of plantings and is impressively complex, medium-bodied, and seductive in salty mineral and lemon rind. The grapes include 42% Picpoul, 35% Clairette Blanche, 16% Roussanne, 5% Viognier, and 3% Bourboulenc from both the Orselli and San Tomasso Estate Vineyards, the blend given 16 months in 100% neutral French oak. This is going to be one to look for upon release, with tremendous aging potential and appeal." (Jul 2025)

97 Points - Owen Bargreen:
"The 2023 ‘Tenuta Bianca’ is quite simply unlike anything that you will taste in the Pacific Northwest. Sourced from sites in The Rocks District (55% Orselli, 45% San Tomasso) the wine was stored in all neural French oak barks for 16 months before bottling. It is composed of mainly Piquepoul and Clairette Blanche with 16% Rousssanne, 5% Viognier and 3% Bourbelenc. It is intense and golden in the glass, offering honeysuckle water, and mango notes alongside wet stone, cantaloupe and suggestions of salted cashew nut on the palate. Rich and unctuous, with serious verve and texture, this is absolutely amongst the greats that you will taste on the west coast. Drink 2025-2035." (Jul 2025)

96 Points - Decanter Magazine:
"A field blend, co-fermented from 5 different Rhône varietals, led by Piquepoul and Clairette Blanche, sourced from both estate sites, Orselli and San Tomasso, it spends 16 months in 100% neutral French oak. David and Cimento are committed to white wines; they’ve planted 8 acres of all whites, which is from 4.5 acres of Orselli. Haunting aromatics of deep white florals, dried apricots and fleshy, macerated nectarines. ‘We like the weight and mouthfeel of this wine,’ says David Wanek, proprietor of Cimento. There’s plenty of heft and concentration on the palate, with ample spice evocative of honey and cinnamon, lifting opulent peach flesh, apricot skin tones, and finishing with spiced pear." – Clive Pursehouse (Aug 2025)

95 Points & Cellar Selection - Wine Enthusiast:
"This is the most stunning debut I've witnessed since Edward Norton in "Primal Fear." Tenuta Bianca is a blend of 42% Piquepoul, 35% Clairette Blanche, 16% Rousssanne, 5% Viognier and 3% Bourbelenc that spent 16 months in 100% neutral French oak. The medium-bodied wine's aromas are this salty mix of Macadamia nuts, fresh-shucked oyster shell linings, preserved lemons, yellow apples and beeswax. The flavors are equally complex, with lemons, melon and lanolin edged by a bitter almond note. While glorious now, the Tenuta Bianca's career life might outlast Norton's. Enjoy 2026-2038." – Michael Alberty (Apr 2026)

93 Points - Vinous Media:
"The 2023 Tenuta Bianca presents an enticing blend of raw almonds, yellow florals, shavings of ginger and crushed apricots, forming a wonderfully pure bouquet as it blossoms in the glass. Nearly oily in feel yet refined, it envelops the palate with masses of ripe orchard fruits supported by fresh acidity, as ripe melon tones settle on the senses. It leaves a spicy tinge while finishing clean and long, with a subtle saline mineral concentration that lingers." – Eric Guido (Oct 2025)