Washington wines have been on the cost increase for the past 20 years , and the State Department has some of the estimable Gallic blends and cool clime grapevine in the USA to establish it . And should you find oneself yourself in Seattle for weekend , there ’s no shortage ofgreat places to tip a deoxyephedrine of vino , but if you have prison term for a more comprehensive road trip , there ’s a Brobdingnagian wine country waiting just outside The Town . From city wineries and Puget Sound to mountain vine and yurts on the Columbia River Gorge , here are the good wineries to visit in Washington .
DeLille Cellars
Chris Upchurch serve put Washington wine on the map with his red Bordeaux blends and syrah at DeLille Cellars . Luckily , they have multiple Seattle - area locations where you’re able to revel some of the state ’s most noteworthy reds , but you ’ll want to manoeuver out to Woodinville to the Carriage House Tasting Room , which boasts a scenic pond , outdoor space , and a great deal of wine to assay . If you ca n’t make it out there , hit the Maison DeLille Wine Lounge in Kirkland , which has live euphony on Saturdays and Sundays .
Charles Smith Wines Jet City
Charles Smith stop touring and managing band to figure the Walla Walla wine-coloured human race in 1999 . Since then , his cut - esque coiffure , prolific portfolio , and playful wine public figure like Kung Fu Riesling and Boom Boom ! Syrah have made him a household name . This year , he opened a Jet City savouring room so you do n’t have to trek all the room to Walla Walla for a tasting ( but if you could , you should seek to ) .
Northstar Winery
If you want a discernment of the winemaking experience but do n’t require to commit to a real harvest home line of work or certification ( or if you ’re planning the mostSideways - themed bachelor / bachelorette party ever ) , Northstar Winery has a blending seminar where you could learn about winemaking and blend your own bottle . The 90 - instant session is $ 85 per someone , but you get to take home your own personal hard liquor and have people severalise you about its mouthfeel . profits / profits !
Chateau Ste. Michelle
The largest manufacturer in Washington , CSM uses some of the sometime vines in the state , which were set in 1962 . They ’re most famous for their riesling , which is omnipresent on wine lists and/or shop shelves , but the sauvignon blanc is a especially frosty and cagey option for a hot day – also good to keep in nous if you ’re there for the concert serial publication to see the the likes of of Bob Dylan or Paul Simon . And do n’t block yourGhostbustersproton pack , as there are rumors of an old servant named Elizabeth who still haunts the winery Manor House .
Novelty Hill/Januik
Across from Chateau Ste . Michelle is Novelty Hill / Januik , a hypermodern try out room with awarding - winning reds and whites . apart from grab a ice to sip , you ’ll want to stop here around luncheon and try one of their seasonal feel of oven - fired pizza pie , every Friday - Sunday from 12 - 4pm .
Amavi Cellars
Walla Walla ’s Downtown comic strip has an assembly of crawlable sample rooms , but Amavi is only a 10 - minute cause south of town and feel much more like a legit wine-coloured country holiday . Amavi ’s great selection of both loss and White are the thoroughgoing accompaniment to relaxing on their balcony that overtop farm , vines , and mountains .
Gramercy Cellars
For some of the tasty Rhone blends in Washington , chatter the cozy savoring room at Gramercy Cellars . Winemaker Greg Harrington is not only a Master Sommelier , but also a Chairman of the Court , and you could rest assured that they ’re producing some of the good syrah and red blend around . The stave here is a trifecta of friendly , unostentatious , and passing knowledgeable , so it ’s a smashing place for novitiate and nerds likewise .
Waters Winery
Directly on a lower floor from Amavi is a warehouse - style relishing elbow room for Waters and TERO wines . Waters has some ridiculously yummy syrahs , including a well - priced , zippy rosé , so it ’s by all odds worth stopping in for a flight . What ’s good ? They ’re opening a sample way in Seattle ’s SODO in Spring 2016 , on a strip of First Ave South that some expectant Seattleites are preemptively call off “ wine maker quarrel . ”
Cave B Estate Winery
If you ’ve ever jaw a winery and thought , " Man . If only there was a means I could finish this bottleful , overtake out in a first-rate - cool yurt , and awake in the forenoon surrounded by the marvelous smells of nature and grapevines , " you ’re in luck , because you’re able to do that at Cave B. The winery is also located right next door to the Columbia Gorge Amphitheater , so if you have a day to pitch up for ( or recoup from)Sasquatch Fest– or if you ’re looking for a shoes to unwind for a weekend with an easy two - and - a - half hr drive from Seattle – this is the spot . At their taste elbow room , you could try a full flight , catch a bottle of the sometime - vine merlot , or pick up their unoaked chardonnay .
L’Ecole No. 41
This wine maker is work up into an old - schoolhouse thou just outside of Ithiel Town . Do n’t be shoot by the new pelage of paint – once you walk in , it ’s a well-off nineteenth - century labyrinth with a library , honest-to-god desks , and gross ton of wine . After observe on how erstwhile everything is and wondering if it ’s all authentic , be certain to take your ice out back – there ’s a shaded patio with a view of the buck farm next door .
Sapolil Cellars
If you ’re in Walla Walla for the weekend and looking for something to do at night , this Downtown wine-coloured cellar transforms into a residential area watering mess on weekend nights , complete with live music and other people who will also talk to you about how sure-enough everything in L’Ecole is .
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Lara Douglass is a food for thought and drink writer based in Seattle .
Delille Cellars
Charles Smith Wines
Chateau Ste. Michelle
Lara Douglass/Thrillist
Waters Winery
Lara Douglass/thrillist
