Boom in Washington Wineries Has Its Roots in a Handful of Groundbreakers

Follow this column with any regularity and you’ll know that I’ve always been a big proponent of Washington wines. This week I’ll take a look back at just how far the state’s wine industry has progressed over the past 15 years and next week, we’ll look forward to what you might expect in the near future.

Up until 2000, the state saw a steady, but relatively small annual increase in the number of wineries. For example, according to the Washington Wine Commission, from 1999 to 2000, there was only a net increase of three wineries, bringing the statewide total to 163.

Then in the next 10 years, things started to go a little crazy.

By 2010, that number had more than quadrupled to around 700 wineries and today we’re at 850-plus. That’s an average increase of nearly 50 wineries each and every year for the past 15 years.

The obvious question: why the explosion in Washington wineries?

Start with the grapes. The dry climate in Eastern Washington is ideal for many wine grape varietals with its extra hours of sunlight during the warm summer months; and cool evenings contribute to grapes with higher acidity levels that, “California wineries can only dream of,” so I’ve been told.

You’ve also got to give credit to the winemakers, whose skill level seems to be improving every year. Even in the cooler, testy 2010 and 2011 vintages, Washington winemakers pulled through with wines that were extremely well-balanced with excellent cellaring potential. It’s that level of consistency that makes local, domestic, and even international wine enthusiasts stand up and take notice.

But none of this growth and current popularity would have been possible without the groundbreaking work of Washington’s pioneer wineries decades ago.

A short list could include Casey and Vicki McClellan from Seven Hills Winery in Walla Walla; Gail and Shirley Puryear from Bonair Winery and Paul Portteus from Portteus Winery in the Rattlesnake Hills region; Rob Griffin from Barnard Griffin Winery in the Tri-Cities; Clay Mackey and Kay Simon from Chinook Wines, Scott Pontin from Pontin del Roza Winery, and Dr. Wade Wolfe and Becky Yeaman from Thurston Wolfe Winery in Prosser; and from Red Mountain, John and Anna Williams of Kiona Vineyards and, more recently, Tim and Kelly Hightower of Hightower Cellars.

These folks, some by their own admission, may not have known exactly all the ins-and-outs of growing grapes and producing wines. But they all shared the same vision in that Washington had the potential to be a great wine producing region and relentlessly pursued that goal.

For that, we owe them and many others, a debt of gratitude every time we lift a glass of Washington wine today.