Don’t Rule Out the Westside

As I was browsing the interwebs today, I came across an article at the Examiner titled “Seattle’s Favorite Summer Wine: Semillon Sauvignon Blanc.” Turns out, there’s hardly anything in the article about Semillon Sauvignon Blanc. After I got over feeling duped, I read the rest of it. Writer Ana Kinkaid actually has some interesting things to say about why Washington Wines are so great:

1. Ninety-nine percent of Washington wine grapes are grown in the eastern part of the State where it is extremely dry. That means fewer bugs which means there is virtually no need to use pesticides or anti-mildew chemicals.
2. The sandy, often desert like, terrain of eastern Washington is highly resistant to the dreaded phylloxera louse that has destroyed many of the world’s greatest vineyards. While other wine regions have to graft their roots onto resistant rootstock, many vineries in Washington State are able to use original ungrafted rootstocks.
3. The northern location of Washington State produces 17 hours of daily sunlight during the ripening season, more than anywhere else on the West Coast of the United States. These cooler night temperatures give the vines a “resting period” and, as a result, preserve the natural acidity of the grapes. This helps to produce wines that have a natural balance of tone and flavors.
4. Last, but not least, eastern vineyards are often so dry they must be irrigated to survive. Initially, this might seem a negative, but in reality it is a great benefit to the quality of our regional wines. Irrigate means that each vineyard master controls how much water each vine gets instead of hoping the rains comes at the right time and in the right amount.

While these things all definitely do affect our delicious fruit, I want to point out that there’s more to Washington Wine than just Eastern Washington. Some wineries in the greater Puget Sound area (read: Puget Sound AVA) are also growing their own grapes, and making some noteworthy wines out of them. Western Washington actually gets less precipitation than most winegrowing regions in France, if you must know, which Gerard Bentryn over at Bainbridge Island Winery loves to point out (he has a big chart outside his tasting room to demonstrate).

Don’t count out the wines grown and produced in Western Washington. You may just find some new favorites.