Welcome to a Virtual Taste Washington!

As we all know, Taste Washington, the country’s largest single region wine event, was cancelled this year due to the outbreak of COVID-19. This weekend, we’ll be bringing you a taste of Taste Washington by posting information about some of the wineries that were planning to participate. This information was requested and collated by the Washington State Wine Commission, and is being shared in partnership with their ‘A Taste of (Taste) Washington’ digital showcase on various social media channels (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, New Epicenter site).

Wineries were asked: 1) How would you describe Washington wine in one word? You will see that word at the beginning of most of the posts below. 2) What makes you / your wine unique? They were also asked about promotional programs they were running. Below are some of their responses. This is not a comprehensive list of all wineries that were planning to participate. Just a taste. More to follow throughout the weekend.

Sunday night we’ll also be doing a ‘Virtual Grand Tasting’ on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, drinking wines from 2020 Taste participants (see list here) starting at 6:30pm Pacific. Join us!

Tranche

Committed. I know our Tranche team is committed to producing world-class wine and never cutting corners because we love what we do. But we are also committed to our Walla Walla community, and even more-so the Washington wine community as a whole. I would say this is something every Washington winery could say about their brand. Tranche is a French word meaning slice. While our wines are like a slice of life, our brand literally is a slice of the Washington wine community. Our wines are all Estate wines, three of which utilize Rhône varietals to create unique blends that you can’t typically find – you have to try our Pape Blanc!

Treveri Cellars

Captivating. Treveri Cellars, Washington State’s exclusive sparkling wine house, produces some of the finest sparkling wines in the United States. Winemaker Jürgen Grieb, along with his son, Christian, handcraft each bottle of sparkling wine in the traditional method. Routinely receiving 90+ point scores, Treveri Cellars sparkling wines have also been recognized by the James Beard Foundation and have been served yearly at the US Department of State.

Tsillan Cellars

Wow. Wine Press Northwest 2020 WASHINGTON WINERY OF THE YEAR. UNIQUE. 20 years pioneering Chelan AVA Viticulture

Lake Chelan is the only AVA not influenced by the Missoula floods (Other than Puget Sound AVA). 100% Estate grown award winning wines. Setting standards of winemaking excellence in the Lake Chelan AVA. Bringing world class wine, food and hospitality to the Chelan Valley.

Two Mountain Winery

Delicious AF (is that 2 words?). Fourth generation Yakima Valley farmers making 100% estate wines.  “Our Place” has been an important part of our family and the goal our winemaking is to share ‘our place’ one bottle at a time. 

Upchurch Vineyards

Unique. In Red Mountain we have a special growing environment unlike any other on the planet. Because of the Missoula floods, we have mineral rich soils in a high planes desert allowing us to grow wine grapes. Being a desert we experience a 60-degree diurnal shift during peak growing season. The hot days and cold nights allow the fruit to ripen while still retaining acidity. Upchurch Vineyard is sustainably farmed and utilizes double guyots trellis systems that produce lower yields and higher concentrated fruit. Chris Upchurch’s 30+ years of experience has allowed him to make choices like these in the vineyard and use a minimalistic approach in the cellar. Our world class wines have received 95+ point scores from Wine Advocate and Robert Parker since our inaugural vintage in 2010. NEW! Separate Brand. LTL Named “Exciting producer to keep an eye on” by Robert Parker, LTL was created by Chris Upchurch and the Upchurch family to bring high quality Red Mountain fruit and craftsmanship to your everyday glass. At $30 a bottle this wine is truly an overachiever. “ The Rosé and Cabernet are over-delivering for the price point here. The focus of these wines shows through and these wines are spectacular. “ Wine Advocate December 2019.

UpsideDown Wine

Motivated. The one thing that makes us unique to WAwine is the fact that our winemaker is Vigneron. Meaning we cultivate grapes for our own winemaking. Respecting our land first and committing to telling its story vintage to vintage. On top of this we are committing to making a difference though the best wines we can possibly make.

Warr King Wines

For me, it means community. One of the things I love most about being a winemaker and owning a small winery is the opportunity to work with passionate and creative people. From the growers, to the producers to the  those that serve and sell our wines.  Remarkable people! I consider myself super fortunate to keep such amazing company. Warr-King Wines is a true boutique winery located in the heart of the Woodinville warehouse district in Washington state. We were founded in 2013 by Lisa Warr-King Packer to highlight the uniqueness of Washington wine. We see each wine from grape to bottle and embrace vintage variation, with each vintage a reflection of the vineyard, region and year. We take a minimalist approach to winemaking. We believe in letting the wine be the wine it’s going to be. Washington State offers a unique and distinct terroir that allows many varietals to thrive in its varied soils, creating fruit that evinces a sense of place. This terroir creates bold, structured wines; fruit forward flavors and elegant finishes. We value our relationships with growers and we honor their efforts by producing unique, delicious wines that represent their hard work. We intend to stay small and stay focused, offering a limited production of carefully crafted, quality wines to be enjoyed on any occasion.

Westport Winery

We were going to launch Nitro#Lit (beyond our tasting room walls) at Taste of Washington in Seattle. Nitro#Lit is the first nitrogenated wine in the US. The use of nitrogen, just like in beer and coffee, creates the opposite effect of carbonating. Instead of fizzy bubbles it’s all about creamy smoothness. Each can holds a half a bottle of wine but in a convenient, go anywhere, can. NItro#Lit is available as a classic white Washington Riesling, a deep dark Washington Syrah, and a lively little blush that is a blend of Washington Gewurztraminer, Riesling and…wait for it…Merlot. Westport Winery is one of the top ten platinum earning wineries in the Northwest, its Sea Glass Grill was voted number two winery restaurant in the US, and it was named one of the top twenty most admired wineries in North America. To taste these wines you can visit Westport Winery Garden Resort halfway between Aberdeen and Westport on the Washington Coast or Westport Winery Seaside on the Oregon Coast. Westport crafts over thirty wines to pair with food, friends and fun. The 500 medals from international competitions assure guests that quality is the top priority as we partner with the best vineyards in the state.

WIT Cellars

Balance. Our growing region allows for fully ripening fruit, but maintaining acid levels to achieve perfect balance. We are Wit, which means that We are In it Together.  We work with growers and vineyards that hold practices and philosophies that we deeply align with, and that showcase the utmost quality that our fruit can achieve.  We are incredibly passionate about our craft, but never take ourselves too seriously-as we believe wine is a lifestyle to be enjoyed with family, friends and laughter. Taking a leap of faith, and creating a personal connection to everyone who comes in, we always treat people, like we would like to be treated.

Woodward Canyon

Innovative. Our parents started Woodward Canyon in 1981, before my brother and I were even born. Now almost 40 years later, my brother and I are starting to take over leadership of the company as our parents begin stepping back from day-to-day operations. It’s important to us to keep the business in the family, but it’s not just about making and selling a really good product; we also look forward to farming the same land that has been farmed by our family for generations, to carrying on the traditions and connections to a place and a way of life that has been so meaningful to us. We’ve grown up as the industry has grown up, and we are excited to continue to be part of something that’s bigger than we are.