It’s easy to spend a day in Woodinville Wine Wine Country. Home to around 130 wineries, it’s just a thirty-minute drive from Seattle. That makes it a great destination for a staycation or weekend escape. Here’s an itinerary for a full day of tasting and dining from the perspective of a wine industry insider.
Avennia
Avennia, a VinoSocial client, pours wines masterfully crafted by winemaker Chris Peterson in a light and bright tasting room. For years now I have regularly purchased their Arnaut Boushey Vineyard Syrah to stock in my home cellar. Try Avennia if you’re looking for high end wines.
By the way, this is a convenient first stop if you head to Woodinville via Highway 522 as it is right off the NE 195th St exit.
Pie Wine Bar
After I visit Avennia I like to stop in next door at Pie Wine Bar to pick up a slice of cherry pie for the hubby, plus a bottle of the Estate Sagrantino from Wilridge Vineyard. The wine comes from the original plantings in Washington of this ancient Italian variety. Its enchanting flavors of crunchy red fruit and bramble berries led me to write, “More please!” in my tasting notes.
Pie Wine Bar is a partnership between Alyssa Bleifuss, a pie maker, and Paul Beveridge of Wilridge Winery and Distillery. On offer are Beveridge’s award winning biodynamic organic wines and spirits along with Bleifuss’s famous fruit pies (there are some savory options like chicken pot pie, too!).
Damsel Cellars
Dedicated Wine Club Room at Damsel CellarsAlthough I’ve only been working with Mari Womack of Damsel Cellars a short time, she is one of the first winemakers I wrote about here on the VinoSocial Blog. Mari crafts a fantastic range of red wines including a luscious, spicy Mourvedre from Boushey Vineyards in addition to Chardonnay, Marsanne, and rosé for white wine fans.
With an in-house cheesemonger on the team, the tasting room offers a thoughtfully curated selection of farmstead cheeses to order along with wine tasting. Not only that, a wine and cheese club is an option for afficionados.
Insider tip: visit on a Friday from 4-7pm and it’s possible that a library wine will be available by the glass. Check Damsel’s social media for a heads up.
The PicNic Table
If you need something a little more substantial to eat, head a couple of blocks over to Chef Dani’s Mediterranean influenced café for some fresh pasta or one of his weekly specials. On Sundays, brunch is available starting at 11:00 am.
Kevin White Winery
Kevin White’s tasting room is walkable from Damsel Cellars in the same Artisian Hill enclave. When the hubby and I last visited, tastings were available in the winemaking facility. Meanwhile, just across the parking lot, I recently got a sneak peek at the stunning new tasting room getting readied.
Kevin has a reputation for crafting fantastic wines sourced from the Yakima Valley at mind blowing prices for the quality. In fact, no matter how often I shush him, my hubby the accountant often says Kevin needs to raise those prices.
Another reason to visit is that Kevin says if someone is going to spend time in his tasting room, he hopes they’re going to learn something about winemaking.
Chateau Lill
This has got to be Woodinville’s best kept secret for a relaxing, high end tasting experience in a stunning setting. There are even alpacas on site!
Back in the day this was home to iconic DeLille Cellars. Currently, Greg and Stacy Lill offer wine tasting at this idyllic destination just south of the roundabouts in the Hollywood District. Each tasting includes a decadent cheese and salumi box created by nearby Heritage Restaurant. Greg works in partnership with lauded local winemakers at Sparkman Cellars and Gorman Winery to craft the enchanting Lill family of wines being poured with memorable names like Lill Sister Chardonnay and Lill Brother Cabernet Sauvignon. These are small production wines only available direct from Chateau Lill.
Pin it!Are you thirsty for more than a day in Woodinville? Check out my itinerary for Two Wine Soaked Days in Walla Walla and follow me on Instagram for regular Washington wine updates.
Full disclosure: a couple of these wineries are VinoSocial clients. However, I am extremely fortunate to work with people whose wines I enjoyed long before I worked with them. I do not receive a commission for recommendations. Thank you for supporting brands that make my small business possible.