 Northwest Wine Country
2007-2008 Vacation Guide
Wine aficionados love to brag that our favorite beverage is now produced in all 50 states, be it salmonberry wine in Alaska or pineapple wine in Hawaii. But no region in the United States boasts as much innovation, diversity, and explosive growth as the one located in its upper-left-hand corner: the Pacific Northwest.
Major Pacific Northwest wine-producing states include Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. Washington makes the lion’s share of the region’s wine, second only to California at 18 million gallons annually. Wine grapes were cultivated by settlers at Fort Vancouver as early as 1832; the state’s modern winemaking industry began in the 1960s.
Washington boasts 500 wineries, nine American Viticultural Areas (AVAs), and 30,000 acres planted to grapes. While most people think of Washington as heavily forested and rainy, the eastern part of the state—in particular the vast Columbia Valley AVA where many of the wine grapes are grown—is arid, with just 8 inches of annual rainfall.
Top white varietals produced in Washington include Chardonnay, Riesling, and Sauvignon Blanc. Red varietals include Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah. Widely available brands to look for include Chateau Ste. Michelle, Hogue Cellars, and Columbia.
 Grapes in Oregon were first planted in the 1850s, with modern production beginning in 1965. The Willamette Valley, about an hour’s drive from Portland, is the state’s major wine-grape-growing region. Oregon’s 15 AVAs include 15,600 vineyard acres and 300-plus wineries, many small, family-owned operations. In addition to Oregon’s justly famous Pinot Noir, other leading varietals are Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Riesling, and Merlot, bottled under premium labels such as Ponzi, Domaine Drouhin, and Domaine Serene.
Up-and-coming Idaho was granted its first AVA designation in March 2007. A majority of the state’s 24 wineries and 1400 acres of wine grapes are located in the Snake River AVA. Look for outstanding Riesling, Chardonnay, Syrah, Bordeaux varieties, and Ice wine produced by Ste. Chapelle, Sawtooth, and Pend d’Oreille.
In Montana, where the grape vines are still in their infancy, the majority of the state’s eight winemakers have turned to the bounty in their own backyards—cherries, apples, pears, plums, huckleberries, chokecherries, and even honey—to produce a wide variety of fruit wines such as Flathead Cherry Dry Wine from Ten Spoon Vineyard & Winery, Huckleberry Mountain Wine from Mission Mountain Winery, or Spiced Mead (honey wine) from Trapper Creek Winery. Winemakers who do produce grape-based wine often buy their fruit from Washington, Oregon, and California growers.
From perky Pinots to mellifluous Merlots to enticing Ice wines, the Pacific Northwest is making its mark as the most vibrant wine region in the United States.
By Braiden Rex-Johnson
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