Vancouver USA’s vibrant waterfront on the Columbia River is attracting a number of well-known wineries
Written by Pamela and Gary Baker
Photographed by Renata Kosina
Wine reviews by editor John Vitale
VANCOUVER USA, one of the oldest permanent settlements west of the Rockies, lies on the north bank of the Columbia River. While there is plenty of rich history in this delightful city, it’s Vancouver’s exciting new vibe that is drawing visitors. The recently redeveloped waterfront created a one-of-a-kind urban neighborhood that connects residences with restaurants, tasting rooms, and a river front park. A 90-foot-long pier juts out above the Columbia River like a passing ship’s sail. The historic downtown and the tree-lined Uptown Village are just a short walk away.
Vancouver is the second largest demographic for wine sales in Washington and is drawing a number of well-known Washington wineries. There are nearly a dozen tasting rooms on the city’s sparkling new waterfront and in its pedestrian-friendly downtown. And, like the new pier itself, the wine scene is securely cantilevered out over the expertise of long-established Washington State wineries.
Friday 11:30AM Lunch at Wildfin American Grill
Head straight to the riverfront and dine on just-caught seafood at this new-to-the-waterfront restaurant. Casual lunch and dinner dining options are fresh and plentiful. Happy hour includes classic cocktails from a full bar. Outdoor patio seating along the sleek sides of the river facing restaurant or indoor tables are available alongside a well-stocked wine wall.
12:30PM Grant Street Pier
Extended 90 feet over the Columbia River, the pier is the focal point of the waterfront promenade. A marvel of striking cable stay steel construction, the pier offers unparalleled views of daily sailboats plying the river breezes.
2PM Maryhill Winery Tasting Room & Bistro
Maryhill Winery has been showcasing Washington’s rich and diverse Washington wine flavors with “passion, patience and balance” since 1999. This family owned winery originated in Goldendale. But when redevelopment changed Vancouver’s landscape, owners Craig and Vicki Leuthold opened a tasting room here to be closer to its base of local wine club members.
Craig says, “A high percentage of our customers are in the Vancouver and Portland area. Many would visit the winery two to three times a year. But Maryhill produces 60 different wines and club members couldn’t taste the whole portfolio. Now some members visit our Vancouver tasting room two to three times a month or more.”
Maryhill Winery 2019 Grüner Veltliner Proprietor’s Reserve, $24Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
Aromas of honeysuckle, peach, gooseberry and mandarin orange draw you in to this smoothly textured white, studded with orchard fruit, guava, wet stone and lemony acidity that keep it complex and lively on the mouthwatering finish.
Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
Enchanting, with floral aromatics and a beautiful crunchy texture that unravels expressions of wild flowers, Asian pear and green melon flanked with limestone. Shows fine balance and length.
The 4,890-square-foot tasting room sits on the vibrant waterfront offering an expansive outdoor patio with breathtaking views of the Columbia River and Mount Hood. Like other Maryhill locations, this one includes a large ornate antique Brunswick tasting bar.
With the new location, Maryhill expanded into the restaurant business, including a full kitchen. Its bistro approach offers items such as Dungeness crab rolls, salads, and small Mediterranean-inspired plates. Open daily, live music takes place on weekends.
3:30PM Brian Carter Cellars
With 40 years of successful winemaking experience, Brian Carter opened his second Washington tasting room here in spring 2020. Its location reflects the synergy of the Columbia River waterfront, a 7.3-acre urban green space, and the iconic Interstate 5 Bridge that connects Portland to Vancouver.
Asked why Brian chose to expand, he said, “We are always looking for new ways to make our great wines more accessible to the public; opening a second tasting room is a great way to make that happen.” But why Vancouver specifically? “I looked at several possible locations in both Oregon and Washington. When I heard about the Waterfront project in Vancouver, I drove down there and immediately fell in love with the whole place. Beautiful river park, a nice collection of restaurants and wine tasting locations.”
More of a wine bar, it features flights and bites of Carter’s award-winning red blends and specially selected small platters.
At full capacity, the space can seat about 35 people inside, with outdoor seating available in the warmer months. Their wine list includes a rotating selection of Brian Carter Cellars classics like his flagship pride and joy, Solesce, a Cabernet Sauvignon-based Bordeaux blend and, Oriana, his only white.
Brian Carter Cellars 2014 Le Coursier, $40Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
Sultry and focused, with smoky aromatics of violet, plum and black cherry that emerge on the lively structure with complex flavors of blackberry, currant, espresso and anise. Fine tannins persist on the elegant finish.
Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
Offering rich aromas of white flower blossom, peach, honey and limestone, this exotic white blend is lushly built, revealing layered nuances of baked pear, yellow apple and nutmeg spice that fill in the citrus and mineral-charged finish.
The menu features house made soups, salads, flatbreads, and other small plates. In addition, Wine Club benefits will extend to the Vancouver tasting room, including special offers and the always popular release parties (when they’re allowed again). And just like Woodinville, you may see Brian floating around from time to time. “Sit and enjoy a glass of my wine, eat some fantastic food pairings, and look out at the ever-moving Columbia River; we guarantee a good time at the new Waterfront location in Vancouver.”
“The food and wine connection has always been important to me,” says Carter. “Together they enhance the wine tasting experience.” The stylishly new tasting room features a large wooden bar decorated with blue fish-scale tiles. It has an inviting charm and is dog friendly.
6PM Twigs Bistro and Martini Bar
If a martini is your choice of drink, head to Twigs. Located on the waterfront, Twigs features indoor and outdoor seating with views of the river park. The menu includes pizza, casual fare, and plenty of gluten free options.
Saturday 9AM Breakfast at Bleu Door
Start your day at this made-from-scratch bakery and café. In the heart of Vancouver’s Uptown Village, Bleu Door serves Parisian breads, divine pastries, homemade quiche and a scrumptious array of brunch entrees on weekends.
10AM Walk the Waterfront Trail
A walk or bike ride along Vancouver’s five-mile, paved Waterfront Renaissance Trail will connect you to Fort Vancouver National Historic Site via a land bridge to the 2.3-mile Discovery Historic Loop.
11AM Visit Fort Vancouver & Lunch at the Grant House
Fort Vancouver, built in 1824, was a fur trading post and headquarters of the Hudson Bay Company’s Columbia Department. Docent-led tours of the fort, barracks, an air museum and historic home are available. Stop by the Grant House on Officers Row for lunch. Built in 1849, the Grant House boasts a formal decor but relaxed dining atmosphere.
2:30PM Koi Pond Cellars
Koi Pond Cellars is a tasting room and an Italian style bistro. This family-run winery, founded by Wes and Michelle Parker in 2011, was initially intended to compliment the Parker’s Koi farming business. Seeing the growth potential for direct customer sales in Vancouver, the Parkers opened their downtown tasting room in May 2019.
Koi Pond Cellars 2017 Premier Syrah, $40Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
A combination of savory and fruity, boasting a distinctive profile of bacon fat, lavender, steeped boysenberry, blueberry, plum and light caramel. The supple texture and round tannins wrap around intriguing finishing notes of dried thyme, iron and salinity.
Editor’s Choice – Excellent, 90 pts.
Deeply concentrated, offering aromas of cinnamon stick, black cherry, mocha and brioche. The mouthfeel is lush and savory driven, filled with dried herbs, blackberry cobbler, plum sauce, vanilla wafer and seasoned with white peppercorn.
They source their grapes primarily from the Columbia Valley AVA. “It’s important to educate our guests about the significance of the AVA and what it means to winemaking,” says Wes. He offers “Winemaker Wednesdays” showcasing vertical tastings of single varietals from specific Eastern Washington AVAs, and tastings paired with foods or cheeses.
In the new tasting room the Parkers’ passion for pairing wines, particularly big bold reds, with delicious organic Italian food is on display. Think craft pizza, paninis, bistro salads and small plate antipastos.
4PM SuLei Cellars
This women-owned boutique winery originated in Walla Walla Valley in 2007. With fruit sourced primarily from Walla Walla and Yakima Valley, co-owners Tanya Woodley, head winemaker, and Elaine Jomwe, operations manager, focus on a combination of Old and New World winemaking practices to ensure quality wines of distinction.
SuLei Cellars Six Thirteen Main Red Wine (NV), $28Editor’s Choice – Excellent, 90 pts.
Leading with meaty aromas of red and black fruit, black cured olives and graphite. Well built in a rich, savory style fronted with ripe cherry and dark thistle fruit detailed with white pepper, anise and sage that offers solid appeal.
Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
This version has scintillating aromas of red berries, peach and lime citrus. The beat goes on with flavors of wild strawberries and ruby red grapefruit that weave through the well balanced structure, cut with mineral notes on the clean finish.
Vancouver is the site of their second location that opened in May of 2019. It boasts unique, distressed barn-wood flooring, a tasting bar and a handful of tables.
This is a casual place where locals can buy a bottle, bring in food and linger for a while. In addition to club member events, the tasting room features Thirsty Thursday, music provided by local artists and a sampling of “flights and bites.”
6PM Elements Restaurant
This eatery located in the heart of historic downtown, features upscale, new American dining with a focus on fresh local ingredients. Surf and turf figures prominently on the dinner menu. The chef here has a reputation for creating elegant and sophisticated dining experiences.
Sunday 9AM Breakfast at Syrup Trap
This compact counter-service restaurant offers the best Belgian-inspired sweet and savory waffles in the “Couv.” The atmosphere is casual, if not downright cozy.
10AM Farmers Market
Stop by the farmers market in Esther Park. Held every Saturday and Sunday, 200 vendors sell seasonal produce, artisan foods and local crafts.
12PM Lunch at Barlow’s Public House
On the waterfront, grab a balcony seat overlooking the Columbia River. Chip enabled cards allow customers to self-serve from taps aligned along the inside wall of Public House. Classic pub staples like burgers, fish and chips, and southern style dishes such as braised Mississippi chuck roast and Louisiana seafood boil are on the menu.
1:30PM Pepper Bridge and Amavi Cellars
Owned and operated by three families (the McKibbens, the Goffs and the Pellets) Pepper Bridge Winery and Amavi Cellars use traditional winemaking techniques and estate fruit from the Walla Walla Valley.
Opened in November 2019, this 1,370-square-foot tasting room on the waterfront offers indoor and outdoor spaces. Wine tasting from the terrace of this new facility offers stunning views of the Columbia River and Oregon’s Mount Hood. Pepper Bridge Winery, founded in 1998 shares the tasting room space with sister winery Amavi Cellars.
Vancouver was a natural choice as both wineries already had a large wine club following in the area. “The vibe was pretty spectacular,” adds Jean-Francoise Pellet about the locale.
In its modern, mid-century Danish styled facility, the owners have reinvented the format for wine tasting. Rather than bellying up to the bar, you take a seat at one of the tables inside where a knowledgeable server describes the character of each wine served.
Pepper Bridge Winery 2017 Walla Walla Valley Merlot, $50Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 92 pts.
Sophisticated to the hilt, with coaxing aromas of dark stone fruit and pencil shavings. The gorgeous structure is rich and broad, filled with generous black cherry and dark plum reduction notes underscored by black fruit, tobacco, creamy vanilla and burnished tannins on the luscious finish.
Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
This white Bordeaux varietal wine is a perennial crowd pleaser, delivering unctuous, rich flavors of honeysuckle, apple chutney, lemon citrus, and white peach with an underlay of river rock and lanolin. Complex and finessed, with a lingering aftertaste.
Favorites are the Amavi Syrah, the Amavi Sémillon and the Pepper Bridge Merlot and Trine, a red blend. Small bites from a local provider are also available. The tasting room is open daily.
As Pellet summarizes, “The tasting room is where three families, two wineries, producing 100% estate grown wines are focused on bringing the best of Walla Walla to Vancouver in a casual, but professional way.”
3:30PM Airfield Estates Winery
Airfield Estates traces back to 1907 when the founder, H. Lloyd Miller, pioneered grape farming in Washington State. Based in Yakima Valley, this family-run winery opened their barn-themed tasting room in the River West building on the waterfront earlier this year. A colorful, antique sign from the original family farm, known as Airport Ranch, greets visitors.
Now Lori Stevens and her brother, Marcus Miller, great grandchildren of the founder, make an extensive range of blends and single varietals that are turning local “Couveheads” in their direction. Charcuterie boards and panini can be paired with any one of the 17 estate varietals. All can be enjoyed while seated at outside tables.
Airfield Estates 2017 Yakima Valley Runway Red Wine, $32Editor’s Choice – Outstanding, 91 pts.
A provocative blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot, with smoke-tinged aromas of pipe tobacco and dark cherry. The flavors run deep with rich layers that continue to evolve around currants, fig, plum and cocoa powder accents swirling with sweet tannins on the coaxing finish.
Editor’s Choice – Excellent, 90 pts.
This white Bordeaux varietal wine is a perennial crowd pleaser, delivering unctuous, rich flavors of honeysuckle, apple chutney, lemon citrus, and white peach with an underlay of river rock and lanolin. Complex and finessed, with a lingering aftertaste.
“When we saw the amazing development that was happening at the Vancouver waterfront, we knew it was an opportunity we didn’t want to pass up. We were immediately attracted to the stunning views of the Columbia River,” says Marcus. “We’re thrilled to be a part of this community and the emerging wine and food scene.” The Vancouver location hosts smaller scale events such as release parties and wine club nights.
Where to Stay
Hilton Vancouver
This contemporary hotel across from Esther Short Park offers great views, friendly staff and an on-site restaurant. It provides an ideal location for exploring downtown Vancouver, the waterfront and Fort Vancouver.
Heathman Lodge
Douglas fir logs and basalt boulders give Vancouver’s upscale 182-room lodge a rustic-chic vibe. Expect artisan designed staterooms and award-winning dining. This urban retreat is hand-crafted, mountain-styled elegance at its best. Only six miles north of downtown and waterfront tasting rooms.
Keep Touring!
For a comprehensive list of wine tasting rooms, eateries and things to do, go to www.VisitVancouverUSA.com.