Washington Wine Country

August 3 – 13, 2021

The drive from Salem, Oregon into southeastern Washington was very interesting. Leaving Salem we took I-5 north to Portland and caught I-84 east along the Columbia River Gorge. We passed Bridal Veil Falls and Wahkeena Falls, Bridge of the Gods, Cascade Locks, and eventually the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center. Unfortunately there was so much smoke in the air as we drove through this area that everything looked gray and flat so I didn’t even attempt photos. (We talked about maybe coming back here during our stay but decided it was too far.) Beyond the Discovery Center the terrain began to change from green cliffs to brown desolate tree-less hills and scrub brush – not how I pictured Washington state. Eventually we turned northeast on I-82 and US 395 as we headed to Kennewick.

Kennewick

Kennewick, thought to mean “grassy place” lies along the Columbia River opposite Pasco and immediately southeast of Richland (the Tri-Cities). This destination, in the heart of Washington Wine Country, is known for its sunny days (300 days each year). We were surprised to discover that there are more than 200 wineries in a 50 mile radius of Kennewick.

Columbia Sun RV Resort

Our choice for RV park in this area was Columbia Sun RV Resort. It was a really nice park with spacious paved and grass sites. We had a deluxe site that included picnic table and glider. Park amenities included a heated pool, event center, common area, fitness center, and 2 laundry facilities. The weather here was a mixture of very hot (100+ degrees) smoky/hazy days and cooler blue sky days after the winds picked up. Some of the sunsets were incredibly beautiful.

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Visiting Wine Country

I didn’t know that much about Washington wines so I was surprised to discover that there are 19 unique growing regions within the state. Looking at the map below you can see that the Tri-Cities are in the heart of the majority of them.

Walla Walla Valley

After a couple of days relaxing at the campground, we headed out for some wine tasting in Walla Walla (in the Walla Walla Valley AVA), about an hour to the east.

The Walla Walla Valley AVA is located in the southeastern part of Washington State but extends across state lines into the northeastern corner of Oregon. The region is wholly contained within the larger Columbia Valley and is named after a Native American term for “many waters.”

In addition to grapes, the area produces those world famous Walla Walla sweet onions (aka Walla Walla Sweets) along with a number of other agricultural crops such as wheat, apples, asparagus, and strawberries. After the Yakima Valley AVA, the Walla Walla AVA has the second highest concentration of vineyards in Washington State.  However, the Walla Walla AVA has the highest concentration of wineries in the state.

It’s believed that wine-grape growing in the Walla Walla Valley dates back to the 1850s, although the modern day wine industry began in the 1970s when childhood friends Gary Figgins of Leonetti Cellars and Rick Small of Woodward Canyon began conducting enological experiments in Rick’s garage. They soon began growing grapes in the Valley, and subsequently founded their wineries in 1977 (Leonetti Cellar) and 1981 (Woodward Canyon). L’Ecole No.41 was established soon after, in 1983.

The Walla Walla Valley is ideal for grape growing, as the dry July and August heat provides a vibrant core of ripeness in the berries, while the chill of September nights assures the acidic backbone necessary for creating top flight wines. Annual rainfall figures range from a sparse 7 inches at the western end of the Valley to a lush 20 inches along the foothills of the Blue Mountains to the east.

The Walla Walla Valley is hemmed in by the Blue Mountains to the southeast, the Palouse to the north, and the Columbia River westward. Elevations across the valley soar between 400 feet and 2,000 feet above sea level.

Discover Washington Wine

Choosing which wineries to visit was a daunting task. I spent quite a bit of time searching for suggestions on the internet (best Washington wines) and narrowed the field by what we tended to like, distance from Kennewick, and availability of reservations. This day we had two tastings scheduled.

Gramercy Cellars

I found Gramercy Cellars on several lists as “producers of world class reds”. We tasted their Viognier, “Third Man” Grenache, L’Idiot du Village Mourvedre, “Forgotten Hills” Syrah, “Red Willow” Syrah, and 2017 Cab-Sauv. All but the Viognier were rated 93 points or higher. We liked the “Forgotten Hills” and Cab.

Long Shadows Winery

For our second tasting we headed a bit out of town to Long Shadows Winery. Their Poet’s Leap Riesling, Feather Cab-Sauv, and Pedestal Merlot were all highly rated on some of the lists I had found. We were seated in the Chihuly Tasting Room for the Portfolio Tasting and cheese platter (which was a bit disappointing). The Riesling didn’t live up to our expectations, but we did like the Feather.

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Downtown

Two days later we returned to Walla Walla but with more time to explore the downtown. We stopped at Maple Counter Cafe for breakfast. This is a very popular breakfast location where wait times can be over an hour. Fortunately we had joined the waitlist via Google on the drive in so our wait was about 5 minutes. The food was fantastic – Ham and Cheddar French Baked Omelette for me, Northwestern Eggs Benedict for Bill. Don’t miss this place if you are ever in Walla Walla!!

After breakfast we walked around town, investigating several shops, and thoroughly enjoying the cooler temperature and sunny, blue skies. We stopped in at the historic Marcus Whitman Hotel for a view of the lobby.

Missionaries Marcus and Narcissa Whitman came to this part of Washington in the 1830s to work with the local Cayuse tribe. They met an untimely death in 1847, but locals refused to let them fall into oblivion. As the little town blossomed, the Whitman name was used on businesses and sites throughout the valley. So, naturally, when a luxury hotel was planned in 1927, it was named for Marcus Whitman.

The finest hotel for hundreds of miles, the Marcus Whitman drew presidents, celebrities and dignitaries with its elegant rooms, friendly service and famous restaurant.

Marcus Whitman

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Maison Bleue and Pambrum

Near the Marcus Whitman Hotel we found the tasting room for Maison Bleue and Pambrum wineries. Both had been recommended as sister wineries to the Willamette Valley Winery that we loved in Oregon. We decided to share a glass of their Maison Bleue Graviere Syrah which we liked.

Seven Hills Winery

Our only reserved tasting this day was at Seven Hills Winery (a sister to Archery Summit in Oregon) which was a short distance from Maison Bleue. Here we enjoyed a tasting and tour in Walla Walla’s only working winemaking facility. This facility is housed in the historic Whitehouse-Crawford building which was built as a wood mill in 1904. The building, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, underwent restoration in 2000 to house the winery and preserve its architectural integrity. We added a bottle of their McClellan Estate Vineyard Cab and one of their Pentad to our growing “cellar”.

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Woodward Canyon Winery

On a lark as we drove out of Walla Walla, we decided to stop at Woodward Canyon Winery .

Woodward Canyon Winery was established in 1981 by Rick Small and his wife, Darcey Fugman-Small. The winery was named for the canyon where Rick’s family farmed for multiple generations and where the Woodward Canyon Estate Vineyard is now located. Woodward Canyon was the second winery in the Walla Walla Valley, and the Smalls were instrumental in the process of obtaining federal approval of the Walla Walla Valley Appellation in 1984. The winery has consistently produced premium, age-worthy cabernet sauvignons, Bordeaux-style blends and merlots as well as chardonnays. 

Woodward Canyon

We were blown away by their 2018 Old Vines Cabernet and also enjoyed their 2018 Artist Series Cab-Sauv both of which joined our “cellar”.

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Red Mountain

A few days later we decided to try some wines from a different region so we headed for Benton City about 25 minutes west of Kennewick. Benton City is the gateway to the Red Mountain AVA.

The Red Mountain AVA is located on a southwest-facing slope in south central Washington, a three and one-half hour drive from Seattle.

At 4,040 acres, this is the smallest, warmest wine-grape growing region in Washington. It has a unique combination of diverse geology, gentle south slope, consistent winds and notable heat profile.

A complex mixture of the most rare and highly valued soil types in Washington was created by wind-blown silt and sand over glacial outflow. The AVA’s red wine grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah are highly prized for creating wines of superb concentration and depth, which consistently earn critical acclaim.

The southwest slope of the Red Mountain AVA provides the vineyards in the region with a directional aspect to the sun that is ideal for prolonged sunlight exposure and warmth. These highly desirable conditions allow for a ripeness in tannins that is recognized as a primary characteristic of Red Mountain fruit.

The Cascade Mountain rain shadow has its greatest effect in Red Mountain, where the desert climate experiences an average annual rainfall of seven inches, and almost no precipitation during the growing season. The use of drip irrigation provides ideal grape growing conditions through canopy management. The result is dramatically lower mold and mildew pressure compared to most vineyard regions.

Discover Washington Wine

Frichette Winery

Our first tasting and tour was at Frichette Winery, a family-owned limited production winery.

Owned by Greg & Shae Frichette, Greg is from Pasco, Shae from South Carolina. Both were living in Southern California when they met, married, and had their son Jayden. They wanted to move closer to family in either South Carolina or Washington. With a flip of a coin, the coin toss determined they would relocate to Washington. Both agreed when they moved, they wanted to create a business that would give them goosebumps. With a little research and cheerleading from friends, they decided to go into wine, opening their tasting room in 2013 and offering their first vintage of 2011 with 650 cases of wine. Today, Frichette is a 2000 case winery hosting events for wine club members and guests from all over the world.

Frichette Winery

We had a wonderful server/guide (edutainer) who provided fascinating information about the winery and area as she led us on a tour of the vineyard, showed us the wine press, and walked us through their processing facility. In the tasting room, we met both Greg and Shae Frichette. We enjoyed their wine but given the size of our “cellar” only purchased one bottle. As we were leaving, a bus load of folks from one of the riverboat cruises arrived for their tasting.

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Col Solare

For our final tasting we went to Col Solare.

Col Solare is the partnership between two influential wine producers who are recognized leaders in their respective regions: Tuscany’s Marchesi Antinori and Washington State’s Chateau Ste. Michelle.

Col Solare

The vineyard planting pattern was totally different at Col Solare than anywhere in the Red Mountain AVA.

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For more information on why they chose this pattern click here.

We had high hopes for the wines here as we like Chateau Ste. Michelle (which was too far away to visit). We arrived a few minutes early but the tasting area was full (two small tables). They offered us outside seating on the patio but as it was an extremely hot day, we declined. With no other choice, we were ultimately seated at a long table in their conference room which provided no ambiance whatsoever. Luckily our server remembered that we were there. He started us with a red blend and yet another disappointing cheese plate. (Obviously we had been spoiled by some of our earlier experiences.) We then tasted their Cab-Sauv, Syrah, and another red blend. We tried different vintages of each hoping that we would find something that appealed to us. Ultimately we decided against purchasing any wine here.

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We need to get out of here

Although we didn’t actually do much in Kennewick itself, we really enjoyed the campground, area, and obviously, the wines. Now it’s time for us to leave Washington and head to Montana (with a stop in Idaho).