Chris and Thea Upchurch, Upchurch Vineyard

Red Mountain’s Upchurch Vineyard has opened a tasting room in Woodinville. The tasting room is located in the Hollywood District.

“It’s a pleasure for me to be back in Woodinville, to be back to the future,” says Upchurch Vineyard proprietor and head winemaker Chris Upchurch.

Upchurch was one of the founders of nearby DeLille Cellars, established in 1992 as one of Woodinville’s first wineries. Bacchus Capital Management invested in DeLille in 2013, and while Upchurch is still part-owner, he is no longer involved in the day-to-day operations of the business. He established the 18.5-acre Upchurch Vineyard on Red Mountain in 2007, and the winery made its first vintage in 2010.

“It’s allowed me to get back to making small amounts of really high-end wine, which I think I’m best at,” Upchurch says of the project. Upchurch Vineyard has both a production facility and a tasting room on Red Mountain next to its estate vineyard.

Upchurch Vineyard’s new Woodinville tasting room had its soft opening May 1st. The grand opening will be in September. The tasting room is just over 1,000 square feet and has a wrap-around outdoor patio. It is next door to Purple Café and Wine Bar in the space previously occupied by Lachini Vineyards.

Bucking recent area trends, the Upchurch Vineyard Woodinville location is a tasting room only rather than offering wine by the glass or bottle.

“I don’t want to get into the wine bar thing,” Upchurch says. “Everybody else is doing that, and I understand it, but we’re a tasting room. We want people to sit down, taste the wines, and see what we’re doing.”

The focus at the tasting room is on educating customers about Red Mountain specifically and Washington wine more broadly. “I’ve always been a huge promoter and proponent of Red Mountain, and these are Red Mountain red wines,” says Upchurch, who has been making wine from the appellation for more than 30 years.

Upchurch Vineyards produces approximately 3,500 cases annually. In addition to Cabernet Sauvignon and a Merlot-dominant blend, the winery makes small amounts of Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc, as well as a rosé.

Upchurch, who lives in Kirkland, notes that the tasting room is close enough to where he lives that he is able to stop by regularly. “It’ll be an experience and an education to how great Washington state really is,” Upchurch says of the tasting room. “It’s been a privilege for me for 30 years to be a part of the development of Washington state.”

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