Columbia
14030 NE 145th Street, Woodinville, WA 98072
Phone: (425) 482-7490
The outside is just lovely and events such as showers, meetings, and weddings are scheduled on the grounds and inside.
The inside has several gathering rooms, food choices and an array of gifts for the wine lover.
The Columbia winery and staff really impressed me with the educational pamphlets they had out for each wine, wine education classes they offer and staff pouring wine who truly had good knowledge and were willing to go to the back room to let me try something spectacular. That’s service.
I ended up trying 7 wines, 2 whites, a rose and 4 reds.
A 2016 Chardonnay from Yakima Valley —100% chard
A 2016 Riesling from Ancient Lakes—drier style
A 2017 Grenache Rose from Horse Heaven Hills—99%Grenache, 1% Muscat and organically farmed
***A 2014 Cabernet Franc from Horse Heaven Hills 85% Cab Franc, 8% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Malbec
A 2014 Tempranillo from Horse Heaven Hills
A 2014 Element Red Blend from Wahluke Slope and was a lighter blend of Merlot, Cab and Malbec and would age well
***A 2014 Legacy Red Blend from Horse Heaven Hills
The ones with *** by them, will have a more detailed blog report soon after I receive my shipment.
CELEBRATING A LEGACY 55 YEARS IN THE MAKING
For more than 50 years, Columbia Winery has embodied the spirit of Washington’s unique and exceptional vineyard sites, rich diversity and warm, welcoming character.
Founded in 1962 by a visionary group of 10 friends, six of whom were University of Washington professors, Columbia Winery is the result of the unrelenting curiosity and deep commitment to proving the potential of winegrowing in the Columbia Valley, located at the same latitude as Europe’s best winegrowing regions.
In 1979, Master of Wine David Lake was named head winemaker and furthered the curious spirit that was fostered under the leadership of the founders. Under Lake, Columbia Winery produced the first series of vineyard-designate wines and the first Pinot Gris, Syrah and Cabernet Franc wines in Washington.
Columbia Winery sources grapes from several WA AVA’s:
COLUMBIA VALLEY
Washington’s largest appellation, the Columbia Valley comprises more than 90 percent (50,300 acres) of the state’s total grape plantings and provides all of the grapes for our blends. This high-desert region encompasses parts of three rivers — the Columbia, Snake and Yakima — as well as the Yakima Valley, Red Mountain, Wahluke Slope and Horse Heaven Hills appellations, among others. Its volcanic, well-drained, sandy loam soils are low in nutrients, which stresses the vines and yields intensely concentrated flavors.
YAKIMA VALLEY
Established in 1983, Yakima Valley is Washington’s oldest appellation. Home to our Sunnyside winery, the Yakima Valley lies within the larger Columbia Valley and includes more than 13,200 acres of wine grapes, roughly one-third the state’s total. Due to its cooler climate in some areas, we look to this region for a majority of our Chardonnay grapes. We also select several of our red grapes from this sub-AVA’s warmer mesoclimates for added layers of complexity.
HORSE HEAVEN HILLS
Located in southeastern Washington, this Columbia Valley sub-region was named by an early pioneer. Admiring the wind-swept vistas and rugged, rolling terrain enjoyed by bands of wild mustangs, the pioneer exclaimed, “Surely this must be horse heaven!” Today, Horse Heaven Hills is planted to nearly 13,000 acres of wine grapes, many on steep, south-facing slopes rising up to 1,800 feet in elevation. A favorite of winemaker Sean Hails, this region provides us with ripe, rich grapes for our Columbia Winery Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec.
WAHLUKE SLOPE
Established in 2006, the geographically isolated, south-facing region of Wahluke Slope has some of the warmest temperatures and lowest annual precipitation levels in the state, an average of just six inches. The region is also distinguished by its uniformity in soils, aspect and climate. This combination of factors creates vibrant color and intense flavors in our wines, especially our Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.
RED MOUNTAIN
Located at the easternmost tip of the Yakima Valley at a sharp bend of the Yakima River, Red Mountain encompasses approximately 4,000 acres, with about 1,650 planted to grapevines. Soils here are comprised of sandy loam and gravel with high alkaline, reducing vine vigor and berry sizes. Also one of the warmest regions in Washington, Red Mountain offers exceptionally bold, concentrated red grapes for our Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, as well as many of our limited production wines.
