Washington State
The Washington State wine industry continues to grow at a rapid pace. In the last decade the number of wineries has increased by 400%. While the 450+ wineries in the state are a far cry from the numbers in California, the state is successfully pushing its self onto the U.S. market.
Washington's wine industry did not begin producing vinifera grapes. In the thirties wines were be produced from the Concord grape, a native to America. It was in the 1960's that the focus of shifted from millions of gallon of low quality wine (much sweet and fortified) to creating wines that would rival those produced by those produced in California. There were only two wineries in Washington when the wine industry exploded in California. Today there are about 460 wineries.
There are nine AVA's, American Viticulture Area, in Washington. The four oldest AVA's are:
- Puget Sound
- Columbia Valley
- Yakima Valley
- Walla Walla Valley
Puget Sound (80 acres) is on the western side of the Cascade Mountains. The Cascade Mountains act as a wall trapping all the moisture and dropping it west of the range. This is a very wet region with a marginal climate. The fewest number of vineyards are found here.
The Columbia Valley AVA (16,600 acres) encompasses the whole eastern growing region. Within the Columbia Valley are the Yakima Valley (11,000 acres) and the Walla Walla Valley (1,000 acres) regions. These three AVA's, as well as the other five east of the Cascades, are in fairly dry climates, only averaging 10 inches of rain a year. Irrigation from the Columbia, Yakima, and Snake rivers bring water to the vines. On the eastern side of the Cascades the geography is semi desert.
Washington State receives 2 hours more sunlight then vineyards in Napa. The hot days and extended daylight allow for even ripening while very cool nights allow the vines to shut down and maintain good acid levels.
In 1972 a Johannesburg Riesling from Ch Ste Michelle won a blind tasting conducted by the Los Angeles Times and set Washington on the national stage. In the early nineties the state began to embrace Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Washington's growing climate offers a perfect environment for both grapes.
Syrah is starting to come into it's own in Washington and the future looks bright for the grape. While growers and vintners have embraced Merlot and Cabernet, white varietals continue to be successful. Other grapes that are cultivated in Washington are Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, and Cabernet Franc (red).