Guide to Wine Scores

When vintner and outdoor enthusiast Stephanie Jones at Glacier View Cellars calls someone a dirtbag, it's a term of endearment for fellow nature fans who hold an appreciation for bold, hand-crafted wines. An avid hiker, many of Stephanie's vegetarian-friendly wines are named after her favorite trails in the Pacific Northwest. In fact, members of the winery's “Dirtbagger Wine … [Read more...] about Glacier View Cellars 2019 Gothic Basin

A passion for the sport of horse racing and love of world-class red wines is Terry and Kriss Wells’ inspiration for the winery. It has been a decade since they worked on their inaugural vintage, locating their winery in the Woodinville Warehouse Winery District. Not unlike breeding thoroughbred race horses, their “slow and steady wins the race” approach to winemaking continues … [Read more...] about 3 Releases from Love That Red Winery

The Mercer Bros. tier is an extension of Mercer Estates, a family operation that planted the first wine grapes in the Columbia Valley’s Horse Heaven Hills nearly 50 years ago. The Mercer Bros. Cabernet Sauvignon was recently ranked as a "Top 100" wine. These latest releases are exceptional values. You can find many of them on store shelves at major retail outlets, however some … [Read more...] about 4 New Releases from Mercer Bros. & Mercer Estates

Veteran winemaker Brian Carter has been crafting his proprietary blends for a remarkable 43 years in Washington. In 2022, he moved his former Woodinville tasting room where he had operated for many years and relocated in exciting new surroundings in Woodin Creek Village closer to downtown Woodinville. The Village location boasts a full kitchen and bistro pairing menu. It’s … [Read more...] about Brian Carter Cellars Takes It Up A Notch in Woodinville’s Woodin Creek

Sandor and Sabrina Faludi have been part of the fabric of Woodinville's warehouse winery district since opening officially in 2019.  The husband and wife team turn out small-lot, carefully crafted wines served at the tasting room with hospitable flair. Sandor’s winemaking talent and inspiration come from his grandfather, who was a winemaker with a small vineyard in Hungary … [Read more...] about 3 Reds from Prohibition Cellars

Entrepreneur Marty Taucher and esteemed winemaker Chris Peterson partnered in 2010, forming a tour de force that consistently turns out impressive vintages. They recently purchased the prominent Tapteil Vineyard in the Red Mountain AVA, in addition to Tapteil’s former tasting room on the property, which has been transformed into Avennia's Red Mountain tasting room adjacent to … [Read more...] about Avennia Creates Bold Presence On Red Mountain

This pioneer winery was founded in Prosser, WA by the husband and wife team of John and Louise Rauner in 1977. John Rauner was the first wine commissioner with the Department of Agriculture and a nd chairman for the Washington State's first appellation, the Yakima Valley AVA. Louise and John went on to launch the Yakima Valley Winegrowers association in 1982, leaving an … [Read more...] about Yakima River Winery 2017 Last Cast Red Wine, $45

Innovators like this boutique warehouse winery have helped to shape Woodinville’s reputation as a destination for world-class wine. Page Cellars was started two decades ago by James and Rothelle Page. Upon retiring last year they relayed the baton of ownership to Todd and Dee Krivoshein, former club members as well as cellar volunteers who were keenly familiar with the … [Read more...] about 3 Releases from Page Cellars

If you love French wines and live in Seattle, consider yourself fortunate. Princess and Bear Wines is a new tasting room in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle that is importing small batch, affordable wines from over 40 independent French winemakers exclusively from the Languedoc-Roussillon region. This wild and unspoiled appellation in the South of France is currently … [Read more...] about Princess & Bear Wines in Seattle Offers Chance to Taste Uncommon French Imports

Mike Metheny, a former aerospace engineer, along with business partner Lisa Swei, a technology expert, fall into that delightful echelon of people with magnetic personalities. Their balanced upbeat-nature is contagious not only to winery guests, but seems to flow through their carefully French-oaked reds and stainless steel-aged whites. With a bevy of awards and genial hosts, … [Read more...] about Three of Cups Expands Woodinville Footprint with Winning Combination

Rallying around a slogan of “wine, food and the great outdoors,” Leigh McMillan and Kristen Dorrity chose Bellingham for their second tasting room location when they decided to branch out from West Seattle. Welcome Road is named for a road near Mount Baker where Leigh and Kristen own a cabin. The pair have been making their Yakima Valley-sourced wines for well over a decade, … [Read more...] about Welcome Road Winery Opens Satellite Tasting Room in Bellingham

As a vintner and lifelong drummer drawn to the arts and culture, Matt Frazier says he had a revelation about wine during a visit to Chicago’s Art Institute. He stood gazing at a stunning Impressionist painting by Renoir and realized that great wine was akin to fine art in the sense both could be appreciated by the masses, not just those with deep intellect on the subject … [Read more...] about Drum Roll Wine Marches to a Different Beat

Tim Oas produces assorted red and white wines but his eye has been trained on Zinfandel from the very start of Story Cellars' first commercial vintage back in 2014. Oas continues to shine a spotlight on the masterful potential of this variety grown with grapes culled from the hot slopes of Red Mountain, as well as the cooler climate of the Columbia Gorge region. These bold and … [Read more...] about Story Cellars Shines Light on Northwest Zinfandel

Brock and Erica Lindsay built this Manson, Wash. winery from humble beginnings into one of the premier wineries overlooking Lake Chelan. As a viticulturist and vintner, Brock's has what it takes to craft solid New World reds, whites and rosé wines that are as enchanting as the lakeside views from their back patio. Visit and taste at the winery's sleek and modern tasting room … [Read more...] about Succession Wines 2021 Rosé

When Ciel du Cheval Vineyard was planted on Red Mountain in 1975, Richard Holmes was there assisting his father, Jim Holmes, alongside members of four other families (including John and Scott Williams of Kiona Vineyard fame). In 2012, after 37 years of growing grapes for some of the most hailed wineries in Washington, Richard and his family decided to allot a portion of their … [Read more...] about 2 White Varietals from Côtes de Ciel on Red Mountain

Epic views of the glacial waters of Lake Chelan are abundant from Silver Bell’s sleek tasting room that opened in the summer of 2021. The modern winery facility on six beautiful acres is the result of four years of sweat equity, constructed by hand literally from the ground up by entrepreneurial owners Alan and Diane Holtzheimer. “We built the current winery ourselves with the … [Read more...] about Silver Bell Winery Lands on the Shores of Lake Chelan

Owners Kim and Larry Harris opened their first tasting room during the summer of 2021 in Woodinville’s Woodin Creek neighborhood. Although they produce a Chardonnay, a Cabernet and Rosé with grapes from eastern Washington growers, the real story centers on their series of estate Pinot Noir grown north of Seattle. They began planting vines on the family’s estate land in … [Read more...] about Trio of Pinot Noir from Bayernmoor Cellars

This outfit consistently turns out head-turning wines, and the caliber of guest services scores high marks, too. Since 2009, Washington Tasting Room magazine has followed Charlie and Lacey Lybecker’s wine "journey," if it’s fair to call it that. Considering their many accomplishments over the past decade on a deep dive into Washington-grown Rhône-style wines, the term “journey” … [Read more...] about Cairdeas Winery’s Deep Dive Into Rhône Varietals