WINE DINE & TRAVEL MAGAZINE SUMMER FALL 2015 HD.pdf

Within Woodinville are two distinct
wine tasting areas to experience: The
Hollywood Winery District, and the
Warehouse District just a few miles out
of town. The Warehouse District sounds
pretty cool but for the casual wine-tasting
visitor it is somewhat of a letdown.
Here dozens of small and medium-sized
wine making operations are spread
throughout an industrial park - drab
concrete buildings surrounded by asphalt
parking lots like those in any city
USA.
Driving around the maze of buildings,
you wouldn’t know this was a hive of
enology except for an occasional wine
barrel parked in front of a garage door,
or a simple sign with hopeful label
names like Chateau Rollat, Five Star Cellars
and Flying Dreams Winery. When
we visited on a weekday, not much was
open, but many are open on special days
and weekends.
The bulk of the other wine tasting rooms
in Woodinville are scattered throughout
the Hollywood area, with most strip
malls sporting several wine tasting
rooms and eateries targeted at upscale
tasters. It must be great to be a commercial
landlord here since I’m sure there’s a
waiting list for any vacancy. Many of the
wine tasting rooms here are large and
stunningly designed, with wine prices to
match the rent.
Large signs plastered on the windows
and sandwich boards outside of tasting
rooms tout 90-plus point wines in an attempt
to lure wine enthusiasts looking
the next big thing. Most are probably
legit – and most folks don’t ask where
the scores came from. Wine point scoring
is an iffy affair at best anyway. One
person’s 90 pointer can be another’s candidate
for the spit bucket.
Considering that wines in the tasting
rooms come from all over the state, it’s
not surprising to find wide diversity
in varietals and styles of both whites
and reds. Cab, merlot, syrah, blends and
some pinot noir are the most common
reds found here alongside some very nice
whites including chardonnay, sauvignon
blanc, viognier, and pinot gris.
Opposite: Columbia winery and tasting room. Top:
Hollywood Vineyard shopping center, housing
tasting rooms and restaurants. Above: The odd wine
country of Woodinville where an industrial park has
been taken over by winemakers big and small.
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