We left the forested city of Spokane, Washington and headed
south on interstate 90, then onto 395. The further we got from Spokane, the
more the land opened up…water everywhere, and green, grassy rolling hills. Far
off in the distance I thought I caught a glimpse of Mount Rainier. As we
reached Pasco, we got our first view of the Columbia and Snake Rivers. It was
here that we saw vineyards along the banks of the Columbia and far off on the
hillsides of Horse Heaven Hills.
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| Spokane Falls |
For this trip, we chose to focus on the Walla Walla area of
the Columbia River Valley. The previous night we had met up with old friends at
the Wolf Lodge in Couer D’Alene, Idaho. They brought a bottle of Va Piano
Cabernet Sauvignon, and we added a bottle L’Ecole No.41 Cabernet to complement
our steak dinners. They advised us on some wineries to visit on our trip down,
and to avoid what looked like the shortest route to Walla Walla. While more
direct, the backroads are windy country roads. As it was, the trip from Spokane
to Walla Walla took just about 2 hours and 45 minutes.
It has been 30 years since I was last in Walla Walla. I’m
sure they must have been growing grapes back then, but I certainly don’t recall
the town being a wine town. Now there are over 80 wineries located in Walla
Walla, spread across five “tasting districts”: Westside, Downtown, Southside,
Eastside, and Airport. A sixth district would be the wineries located in
Oregon, which are literally a block or two from some of the Southside wineries.
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| From Va Piano |
As we drove to the wine region, you can help but notice the
basalt rock outcroppings, reminding you that this region was dramatically
influenced by volcanic action. The volcanic and sandy loam soil have the great
drainage that grape vines love. Most wineries refer to their vineyards as
having soils of loess (pronounced
“luhss”), made up of wind-blown deposits of sand and silt. The other large
influences are those of the Columbia River, Snake River, Yakima River and Walla
Walla River. This area would be a desert, in the rain shadow of the Cascade
mountain range, if not for the availability of water.
The Columbia Valley AVA has nine smaller AVA’s within its’
large boundaries: Ancient Lakes AVA, Horse
Heaven Hills AVA, Lake Chelan AVA, Rattlesnake Hills AVA, Red Mountain AVA, Snipes
Mountain AVA Walla Walla Valley AVA, Wahluke Slope AVA, and Yakima Valley AVA.
Most people think of Washington as being so far north, that
they shouldn’t be able to grow great wine grapes. However, when you look at a
map of the world, the Columbia Valley AVA is located at the same latitude as
Bordeaux, France. Being this far north gives the grapes more daylight hours
during the growing season. As in Bordeaux, this is Cabernet Sauvignon country,
but Merlot, Chardonnay, Syrah, and numerous other grape varieties are grown.
We entered Walla Walla from the west, along Hwy 12, driving
through dips and valleys that influence the weather in this region. Pockets of
colder air settle into the valleys, and flow into the open areas. This day the
weather was warm, but they were expecting a heatwave into the 90’s within a few
days.
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| L'Ecole No.41 |
The first winery we came to was the iconic L’Ecole No.41. This wine
tasting room is located in an old (1945) school house (just as depicted on
their wine label). Founded in 1983, they are the third oldest winery in the
region, only preceded by Leonetti Cellars and Woodward Canyon Winery. What a
great way to start the day. The comfortable tasting room has plenty of space to
enjoy your tasting. The tasting staff was friendly and guided us through their wines,
and showed us maps, locating their vineyard sources. I came here for their
Cabernet Sauvignon, which did not disappoint. The Apogee, Ferguson and Perigee
were all perfect examples of this AVA: dark cherry, cassis, herbal tones of tobacco,
and well-structured tannins, making for great wines to cellar. They also have
some interesting Semillon and Chenin Blanc, but one standout for me was their Grenache
Rosé. Luckily, they offer shipping to California, and with the hot weather that
was anticipated, for a couple extra dollars, they ship with cold packs. All my
wine arrived safely and cool.
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| Tasting room at Cougar Crest |
Our next stop was just down the road at Cougar Crest Winery.
Here they have a large selection of wines to purchase and taste, including the
normal mix for the area, plus Tempranillo, Malbec, traditional Port grapes and
Viognier. We were the only people in the tasting room, so got full attention
from the two tasting room people. We tasted many of the wine available for
sale, and enjoyed the tasting room atmosphere with their winery cat, and gift
shop. It has been two weeks, and I haven’t seen my shipment of wine yet. We’ll
see how it eventually arrives.
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| Va Piano |
Next we went to the Southside District of Walla Walla, and
visited Va Piano Vineyards. This winery sits right on the border of Washington
and Oregon, surrounded by vineyards. This winery has a large following, based
on the number of people we saw having lunch in their picnic area, and the
packed tasting room located in what looks like a Tuscan villa. And, for good
reason…the wines are very nice! They offered two different tasting flights, so
we did both, by splitting our tasting between two people. The regular flight
was only $10 (as it was at every winery we tasted). The reserve flight was $20.
Don’t let anyone tell you different, there is a difference between the current
releases and the reserve releases. Almost everything we purchased was from the
reserve list. Just like L’Ecole No. 41, these wines are perfect for cellaring.
Big, dark fruit and tasty. My shipment also has not yet arrived, but they did
call, and say they would wait for the weather to cool a bit before shipping.
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| Locati Cellars tasting room |
After a quick bite to eat in the downtown area, we stopped
at Locati Cellars, located in the Marcus Whitman Hotel, right in the heart of
downtown. We stopped here to see what other grape varieties tasted like in the
region. As you might have guessed by their name, these were Italian grape
varieties. Pinot Grigio, Sangiovese, Barbera, Dolcetto and Primitivo, are just
some of the available wines. We were told that all their wines were actually
produced in Oregon, just a few blocks away, and the family has been producing
wine for a century. These Italian varieties have great acidity to them, and
make for great food wines. Their prices are also very good. The most expensive
wine on their list was the Primitivo at $35…and for good reason….tons of fruit
and smooth tannins. All wines shipped and arrived in good condition. Also, when we got home, I noticed we were on their facebook page.
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| Tranche Cellars vineyards |
Our last wine tasting was in the Eastside District, at
Tranche Cellars. At first, we thought for sure that our GPS was off. We drove
through a residential area, winding around the roads, and then made a left turn
into a large vineyard, and in the center was a very modern looking building.
This wine tasting experience was different that the previous four. It didn’t
have the same quaint feeling we had in the other tasting rooms. This was modern,
and stark. The wines were based on Bordeaux and Rhone varieties (including: Grenache
Blanc, Roussanne, Marsanne, Viognier, Picpoul Blanc, Clairette Blanche, Syrah,
Grenache, Mourvèdre, Cinsault and Counoise). Once again, we had the wines
shipped. They arrived within a week. The wines were warm, so I immediately
cooled them down, and we’ll have to see how they did.
Lastly, we drove around the Airport district. It was getting
late in the day, and we had to head back to Spokane. So, no tastings, but
wanted to see what this area had to offer. Here we found about 12 wine tasting
rooms, concentrated within a few blocks of each other. You could spend all day
parked in one spot, and visit numerous wineries. On top of that, the airport is
right there, and Alaska Airlines is offering to check-in your first case of
Washington wine at no cost. This is perfect for anyone visiting the area.
Unfortunately, this was a quick, one-day trip to the area. I
wanted to get a “lay of the land”, and a taste of the terroir. Both were accomplished.
The winery trail booklets were very informative of the multiple wine tasting
opportunities, dining locations, and places to stay. I think the next trip to
the area will be for at least two nights, and will extend into the Yakima AVA,
which rivals Walla Walla for the number of tasting rooms
