Alexandria Nicole Cellars

By Brooke Young

I belong to a lot of wine clubs in Washington, and I would have to say that membership with Alexandria Nicole is the most fun. They have a 243-acre estate vineyard located high above the bluffs on the Columbia River, near the town of Patterson. In addition to the winery, they also feature a wine bar and banquet facilities. They have a tasting room in Prosser and another one in Woodinville, and members can attend events at any and all of their locations. And oh, the events! While most wineries host one shindig a year, the folks at Alexandria Nicole put on events many, many times throughout the year. They have seven to eight releases per year, and each is accompanied by a swank release party in both Prosser and Woodinville. Because of this, I spend more time at AN than at any other winery in the state, and have come to really appreciate their extremely friendly and helpful staff and, of course, the phenomenal wine they make.

All grapes are grown on their estate vineyard, Destiny Ridge, which allows AN’s winemaker (along with Mother Nature, of course), complete control of fruit quality from bud to bottle. Their belief—a constant for all great wines around the world—is that quality starts in the vineyard, and their prime location in the Horse Heaven Hills ensures this. They grow an interesting mix of varietals, from Lemberger to Roussanne, many of which are available to wine club members only.

In addition to being one of the most fun wine clubs, AN is also one of the most generous with their benefits. Membership includes a 25% discount on automatic shipment of featured wines, a 25% case discount when purchased at the winery, a 15% discount on all gift shop items and single bottle purchases, and waived tasting fees for you and a guest when visiting the winery. But coolest of all, wine club members can enter their favorite charity into a drawing to win a jeroboam of wine to auction off at their next fundraiser. Members also get invites to the Harvest Barbecue in Prosser and the first shot at all wines released, many of which sell out quickly or are never available to the wine-buying public.

If you are looking for more out of a wine club than just the requisite four shipments a year, this could be for you. It’s a fun group of people to meet, and the wine is seriously good. If you’re feeling especially adventurous, AN offers a second-tier wine club that has a one-time fee of $5,000 and allows members to participate in everything from planting baby vines to harvest and wine-making, the result of which is ten cases of wine made by your very own hands. More details on this extremely cool offer can be found on the AN website.