A Brief History of Wine in the Yakima Valley

The Yakima Valley cultivates as much diversity and quality as any agricultural region on Earth. Apples, cherries, peaches, nectarines, pears, and more fill a rich cornucopia. Completing this bounty is a remarkable spectrum of world-class wine grapes.

Yakima Valley’s agricultural patchwork

The first grape vines in the valley are credited to a French winemaker named Charles Schanno, who in 1869 planted cuttings taken from the famous Hudson’s Bay Company trading outpost at nearby Fort Vancouver. But it was not until the very early 20th century that Seattle attorney William B. Bridgman pioneered the modern wine industry in the Yakima Valley. Many of the vineyards established across the region during this time were planted from Bridgman’s own vine cuttings. Following the hiatus of Prohibition, Bridgman opened Upland Winery and initiated some of the earliest varietal labeling for American wines.

Scientific support for viticulture, or the craft of grape growing, began in the Yakima Valley as early as 1917. In that year, a 200-acre plot of sagebrush near the city of Prosser was designated as an agriculture research site. Known today as the Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center, it is operated by Washington State University and the USDA. In 1937, this facility hired Dr. Walter Clore, who initiated grape plantings that proved vital to the nascent Washington State wine industry.

Dr. Walter Clore

Today’s Yakima Valley wine landscape likely emerged in 1962, when Associated Vintners purchased a 5.5-acre site near the town of Sunnyside. It was recommended by the pioneering Bridgeman for its elevation – above frosts along the valley floor – and the south-southwest-facing slopes that take advantage of Eastern Washington State’s sunshine. This became the Harrison Hill Vineyard, which is now farmed by the Newhouse Family for DeLille Cellars.

Even more remarkable vineyards came into being during the following decade. Mike Sauer planted his first three acres of Cabernet Sauvignon at Red Willow in 1973. Forty years later, grapes from Red Willow’s 140 acres supply many of America’s finest winemakers. At almost the same time, in 1975, John Williams and Jim Holmes started with a dozen acres at Kiona on Red Mountain. Today, much like Red Willow, both Kiona and neighboring Ciel du Cheval supply fruit to Washington State’s finest wine labels.

Red Willow 1973 Cabernet vines

During the 1980s, along with the rest of the Washington State wine industry, the Yakima Valley experienced a boom in the planting of new vineyards and the opening of new wineries. These included Hogue Cellars and Covey Run, both established in 1982, and Chinook Wines in 1983.

Then on March 23, 1983, the Yakima Valley appellation was officially designated by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. It was the first American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Washington State, and also the only recognized AVA north of California at that time. Just four wineries operated in the new appellation: Kiona Vineyard and Winery, Hinzerling Winery, Yakima River Winery, and Tucker Cellars. But some of our region’s finest vineyards were coming on stream in those years, including the now-famous Boushey in 1980, Klipsun in 1984, and many more.

Boushey Vineyard

Across the following three decades, the Yakima Valley wine industry has consistently justified its status as the “first growth” of Washington State. From the earliest vintages until today, the Yakima Valley has grown more wine grapes for Washington wineries than has any other appellation. Simultaneously, it has cultivated most of the best wine in the region, since award-winning wineries from Woodinville to Walla Walla to even the Willamette Valley have grown to greatness through their use of Yakima Valley grapes.

The Yakima Valley AVA now cultivates more than 17,000 acres of vineyards. Yakima and Benton counties are home to more than 152 wineries, and collectively they make up more than half of the wine production in Washington State.

Toast to Construction

Wine and agriculture leaders from across the state will gather for the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center’s “Toast to Construction” celebration on Friday, May 24, beginning at 11 a.m., 2140 Wine Country Road, Prosser, WA.

Currently under construction and designed to complement its natural surroundings, the 15,000 square foot Clore Center will offer several indoor and outdoor venues including a tasting room, demonstration kitchen, agriculture and viticulture exhibits, classrooms, conference rooms, office space, retail shop, instructional vineyards, interpretive and production gardens. Building completion is scheduled for October.

The Vineyard Pavilion, a satellite building opened in June 2011 and has become a popular site to hold weddings, parties and reunions. The 2,400 square foot building features indoor and outdoor assembly areas, a catering kitchen, office space and rest rooms.

“The completion of this facility marks a critical milestone to increase consumer education through classroom opportunities and exhibit-display areas,” commented Clore Board President, Dr. Bob Stevens. Workforce training sessions, state-wide conferences and grower meetings are just a few of the anticipated wine and agriculture industry uses for the building. “The Center’s flexible spaces can accommodate small groups for a private setting, 300 people for a seated dinner, or as large as 400 for a classroom-conference style of presentation and will help fill the gap for facility needs in Washington’s wine country”, stated Abbey Cameron, Event Coordinator for the Center.

The Clore Center site is located in Prosser, Washington on 24 acres overlooking the Yakima River. The site also offers views of the Horse Heaven Hills and Rattlesnake Ridge. Prosser is home to the largest irrigated agricultural research center in the United States (WSU-IAREC) where Dr. Clore performed his research. The Clore Center site is easily accessible from I-82, Exit 82.

For More Information Contact:
Kathy Corliss
509.786.1000 Email: kathy@theclorecenter.org

Yakima’s New “Wine & Dine” Enhances 2013 Spring Barrel Tasting Experience

Yakima Valley’s annual Spring Barrel Tasting weekend, set for April 26-28, now features an enhanced visitor experience. The new Spring Barrel Tasting Wine & Dine program includes wine-themed dinners at participating Yakima Valley restaurants from April 24th to the 28th.

Participating restaurants have put together delightful dining combinations featuring Yakima Valley wines. Wine Yakima Valley Premier Pass holders can bring their pass to the restaurant for validation and receive a limited edition wineglass with each meal purchased. It features a new logo celebrating our wine region’s 30th anniversary. The Yakima Valley appellation was officially established in the spring of 1983.

Whether you’re from the valley or planning a much-needed getaway, Spring Barrel Tasting is ready for you to take part in our wine-filled weekend of festivities. Friday, April 26 kicks off the three-day event weekend with wineries opening their cellars, vineyards, and tasting rooms to all guests. Experience an exclusive sneak peek of wines from the barrel, indulge in wine-friendly food or dessert pairings, and become fully immersed in the wine culture with the accompaniment of live music along the way.

The $30 Spring Barrel Tasting Premier Passes can be purchased in advance by April 21, or for $35 at wineries during the event weekend. Premier Pass holders will receive waived tasting fees, access to exclusive pairings, library tastings and tours not available to the public.

While winding your way through the Yakima Valley, allow your photography skills to come alive and encapsulate its beauty and your memories. Photos can be entered into our Sip and Click contest for a chance to be a prize winner!

Simply follow these three steps:
1.Tweet or Facebook a photo of your Yakima Valley wine tasting experience
2.Mention your location (winery, restaurant, tasting room, etc.)
3.Use the hashtag: #Yakimawine

Come join in the fun and create your own memories at the largest, oldest, and most diverse wine region in Washington. Bring your pass and a wine glass to taste your way through the valley! We’ll see you there!

Taste Washington Honors 30 Years of the Yakima Valley AVA

Thousands of wine consumers gathered at CenturyLink Field Event Center this weekend for the annual Taste Washington celebration hosted by the Washington State Wine Commission and Visit Seattle. The highlight of the two-day event was a series of seminars led by top winemakers and leading wine experts; and this year’s seminars culminated with a 90-minute toast to the Yakima Valley American Viticultural Area (AVA), which was established 30 years ago this month—the first in the Pacific Northwest.

Eighty people filled the room to learn about the taste Yakima Valley wines.

Eighty people filled the seminar hall to capacity, as wine journalist Andy Perdue of Great Northwest Wine (greatnorthwestwine.com) moderated an all-star panel in sharing why the
Yakima Valley is the backbone of the Washington State wine industry. “Yakima Valley is the cradle of Washington wine,” said Perdue. “It’s where everything began, and it’s still where most regional wineries get their grapes. The Yakima Valley is the state’s largest appellation in terms of vineyard acreage, and the leader in many ways.”

Andy Perdue spoke with Yakima Valley grape grower Dick Boushey.

Grape grower Todd Newhouse outlined the history of wine grape production in the Yakima Valley, including the remarkable tale of agricultural pioneer Bill Bridgman. “He really was
the grandfather of Washington wine,” said Newhouse. “Without him, I can’t imagine how far behind our regional wine industry would be at this time.”

Todd Newhouse, Upland Vineyard

Woodinville-based winemaker and Master of Wine Bob Betz noted, “The Yakima Valley has been, and remains, a source of wonderful fruit for winemakers across Washington State. You find incredible diversity in this AVA–geological, topographic, and climatic conditions that yield both a wide spectrum of varieties as well as very different expressions of any given variety.” Seattle-based Master Sommelier Thomas Price agreed: “I love the Yakima Valley for its diversity, and for the elegance and food-friendliness of its wines—across the board.”

Bob Betz, MW

Thomas Price, MS

W. Blake Gray, a San Francisco-based wine journalist and blogger on the panel said, “I’m an outsider here. I don’t know much about the Yakima Valley. But I really like the wines I’ve tried today. They’re balanced with very nice minerality. So there’s great terroir to be discovered here.”

Grape grower Dick Boushey explained why Gray and others know little about the Yakima
Valley. “In previous years, much of our fruit disappeared into big blends. Those wines were good, but the identity of their sourcing was lost.” He added, “Now I think the Yakima Valley is gaining some recognition because so many top winemakers are doing great things with our grapes. As well, we finally have significant age within our vineyard blocks, and they are really coming into their prime. We are all reaping the rewards of 30 years of work across what is a very special place.”

Yakima Valley’s Superlative Syrahs

There has been a lot “ink” on Washington Syrah recently. Beginning with the September, November 2012 and March 2013 issues of the Wine Spectator. These three issues included a good number of Yakima Valley Syrah’s scoring 90 points and above.

The Bellingham Herald recently published an article by Dan Radil, discussing how the Syrah grape is growing into a staple of Washington’s red-wine industry, and Andy Purdue writes about What is fueling growth of Washington Syrah? in his Great Northwest wine blog. Lastly, an older blog post “Wine Folly” discusses Washington Syrah It’s Awesome!  

The versatility and popularity of this grape is trending. Continued success by wine producers and wine grape growers will, as Andy remarked, fuel the growth of Syrah in Washington.

Following is a handfull of Syrah producers using Yakima Valley grapes receiving recognition for exceptional wine.

Amaurice Syrah-Grenache from Yakima Valley’s Boushey Vineyard (2010). This wine received 91 points from Wine Spectator.

Avennia Syrah Yakima Valley Arnaut (2010), again from Yakima Valley’s Boushey Vineyard received a 93 this month in the Wine Spectator.

Avennia Syrah Yakima Valley Parapine (2010) also received a 94 point score from the Spectator.

Maison Bleue Syrah Yakima Valley Liberte Boushey Vineyards (2010) scored well with 91 points.

Owen Roe Syrah Yakima Valley Chapel Block Red Willow Vineyard (2010) was recognized with 92 points while the Owen Roe Syrah Yakima Valley Lady Rosa (2010) received 90 points.

Sparkman Cellars Syrah Yakima Valley Darkness (2010) boasts 93 points from the magazine.

Betz Syrah Yakima Valley La Serenne Boushey Vineyard (2009) has 90 points for the wine while the Betz Syrah Yakima Valley La Cote Patriarche Red Willow Vineyard (2009) received 93 points from the prestigious magazine.

Doyenne Syrah Yakima Valley Signature (2009) was honored with 91 points for the wine.

Efeste Syrah Yakima Valley Jolie Bouche Boushey Vineyard (2009) also received 91 points for this bright flavorful wine.

The Efeste Syrah Yakima Valley Elenti Red Willow Vineyards (2009) wine was recognized with a score of 92 points.

The quality of these Yakima Valley wines support last week’s blog explaining how the geology of the Yakima Valley has contributed to the purity in grapes and therefore the wines from the Yakima Valley.

The Yakima Valley Syrah grape benefits from exposure to sunshine, long daylight hours, controlled water and the most experienced grape growers in the state. The best vineyards live on southward facing slopes where they can absorb the sun’s rays.
A recent blog post noted that the best Syrah Vineyards in Washington state are:

Boushey Vineyard, Yakima Valley AVA
Ciel du Cheval, Red Mountain, Sub Appellation of Yakima Valley AVA
Clifton Vineyards, Wahluke Slope AVA
Dubrul Vineyard, Yakima Valley AVA
Fries Vineyard (aka Desert Wind), Wahluke Slope AVA
Kiona Vineyard Red Mountain, Sub Appellation of Yakima Valley
Klipsun Vineyard Red Mountain, Sub Appellation of Yakima Valley
Larence Vineyard, Columbia Valley AVA
Les Collines, Walla Walla AVA
Outlook Vineyard, Yakima Valley AVA
Red Willow Vineyard, Yakima Valley AVA
Terra Blanca, Red Mountain, Sub Appellation of Yakima Valley

A commendable group of vineyards indeed, with eight of the twelve being located in the Yakima Valley AVA.

Many wineries blend from multiple vineyards, but several of the most sought after Syrah wines in Washington State (as noted above) have a single vineyard designate, many of which are labeled Yakima Valley.

Fire and Ice ~ Geology of the Yakima Valley AVA

The Yakima Valley is celebrating 30 years as the first official wine region in the Pacific Northwest. As part of the celebration, the membership of the Wine Yakima Valley association has created an educational series featuring the attributes of the Yakima Valley Appellation. Every quarter, we feature a new lesson about our appellation. The concise curriculum covers our terrain, growing conditions, industry history, and more. Following is Lesson One:

The federal government designated the AVA in early 1983; but the story of this appellation began much earlier … fifteen million years earlier. Imagine molten lava flowing from huge fissures in the Earth’s crust around what is now eastern Washington State and northern Oregon. Hundreds of these outflows eventually covered the area under thousands of feet of basalt. The massive weight of this blanket of rock actually depressed the Earth’s crust, forming the region now called the Columbia Basin.

At the western edge of this basin, the volcanoes of the ancient Cascade Mountains spewed out their own lava. Ash and volcanic sediments rained down into rivers and lakes to the east of the mountains, and these deposits became intermingled with those old Columbia Basin basalts. The combined material is called the Ellensburg Formation, and this special alluvial-volcanic mix can be seen across the Yakima Valley today. Meanwhile, the ancestral Columbia River that flowed through this region brought in pebbles and stones from outside the Columbia Basin, including granite and quartzite. These smooth, rounded rocks still lace the soils along the old channel of the river.

Volcanoes are only part of the story shaping this region. There’s also the astounding power of tectonic plates that meet along America’s northern Pacific coast. The Pacific plate grinds against the North American plate, and this pushing and shoving has produced everything from small tremors to large, destructive earthquakes. These big forces have actually compressed and wrinkled the Columbia Basin region into a series of east-west running ridges called the Yakima fold belt. Two of these ridges, now called the Horse Heaven Hills and the Rattlesnake Hills, form the boundaries of today’s Yakima Valley. The uplifting of those folds even re-routed the mighty Columbia River to its present ‘S’-shaped course through south-central Washington’s TriCities and down to a spot called the Wallula Gap, along the Oregon border, where it cuts back westward and flows to the sea.

All of this heat and commotion finally ended about 18,000 years ago, when sheets of polar ice advanced south to cover much of North America. The freeze was temporary (thank goodness), and when the climate warmed, the glaciers receded. But their retreat along what is now the Idaho-Montana border created an ice dam on the Clark Fork River. With its flow blocked, the river flooded a giant valley to create what geoscientists call Glacial Lake Missoula. Holding back that lake eventually proved too much for the ice dam. It broke and a huge wall of water roared across northern Idaho and eastern Washington. The surging flood soon constricted at the Wallula Gap, and its waters backed up into the Yakima River basin, depositing the sediment that it carried from Idaho and Montana. But the inundation didn’t end there. It seems these cataclysmic floods occurred dozens of times over the course of two millennia. You can still see what are called slackwater sediments across the Yakima Valley (up to 1,200 feet in elevation), and they still constitute the deeper layers of soil in the AVA.

Since the end of that last ice age, the flood sediments of the Yakima Valley have been topped by layers of a wind-deposited soil called loess, which varies in depth according to the orientation and steepness of the slopes. It can be very fine stuff, too—almost like talcum powder. Finally, these loess-based soils have been coated in places by ash deposits from the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens, rising just to the west. It seems those volcanoes had the first and final say on the landscape.

So what does all this mean to the wines of the Yakima Valley? In a word: purity. The terrain of this region remains as open and clean as when cataclysmic floods swept through at the end of the ice age. The soil components are uniformly silt and sand with quartz and micas—and nearly devoid of organic matter or pests common to the rest of the wine world. Water drains through these soils with remarkable ease, and this forces vines to send their root systems deep. Such an unalloyed foundation also allows Yakima Valley to grow ungrafted vines. It’s a very traditional, but now very unusual, technique—and possible only because of our special geology. The end result is grapes and then wines that are completely true to their varietal character.

(Lesson content reference: “Folds, Floods, and Fine Wine,” by Kevin Pogue, pp.1-17 in The Geological Society of America’s Field Guide 15, 2009)

LESSON ONE TASTING – VARIETAL PURITY IN YAKIMA VALLEY WINES
The following Yakima Valley wines* showcase the varietal purity of wines produced by Yakima Valley grapes. 2009 Doyenne Signature Syrah, 2009 Chinook Cabernet Franc, 2011 Efeste “Sauvage” Sauvignon blanc, 2008 Wineglass Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, 2010 Rolling Bay Cabernet Sauvignon, 2010 Smasne Viognier, and 2011 Thurston Wolfe Lemberger.

*Each of these wines is made with a minimum of 85% Yakima Valley fruit.

Vineyard Spotlight: Upland Estates’ Todd Newhouse explains Pruning 101

An unpruned vine from Upland's 1973 block of Cabernet Sauvignon

It’s that time of year again: Pruning. All year long the vines’ “hair” is allowed to grow to hippie-like length and then come late winter we treat them like they are reporting to boot camp by giving them crew-cuts. In fact, in almost all cases we are pruning up to 95% of the previous years’ growth. At Upland Estates we grow cherries, apricots, nectarines, peaches, prunes, pears, apples, juice grapes, and wine grapes. Every winter we have to prune them all but not one of those other fruits ever comes close to the wine grapes’ 95% number. Why, you ask? Two reasons: the way a vinifera (wine grape) vine grows and most importantly, quality.

Vinifera: First, let’s concentrate on how a vinifera vine grows. As a shoot on a vine grows, it forms nodes; each node being separated by a bud. Ideally, you want to let each shoot get approximately three and a half feet long during the growing season. Typically, each node will be around 2.5” long. Therefore, each shoot will contain roughly 17 buds. These buds are what determines next year’s crop. Each bud normally contains two clusters of grapes and an average cluster will weigh about 0.3 lbs. Now consider that a usual vine will have roughly 30 total shoots before pruning. That would amount to 300 lbs of fruit per vine if left unpruned! Ideally, we are looking for 6 to 15 lbs, depending on the price point of the ultimate product, but more on that subject later.

Physiologically it is impossible for a vine to produce 50 lbs of fruit per vine, let alone 300, and this is for two reasons. One: the more fruit you have hanging on the vine, the less sugar each cluster will have and you need a certain brix (sugar measurement) to make a decent wine. Two: the more buds you leave on last year’s shoots, the more sporadic your fruit set will be because the vine will automatically abort excess buds due to a limited amount of energy. In other words, if you don’t prune hard enough, you will be forcing the vine to do more than it is comfortable doing. When this happens, the vine will exert too much of its energy early in the season, hence greatly affecting my next topic: quality.

A pruned vine from Upland's 1973 block of Cabernet Sauvignon

Quality: To make the best wine possible, wineries need the best fruit possible, which sounds simple enough until we start analyzing just exactly what it is that goes into growing quality grapes. Generally speaking, there are different levels of quality and those levels are all driven by one universal thing that we are all familiar with: money. The quality level is usually determined by the price of the bottle of wine that the fruit is going into. To grow the best grapes possible, us growers need to grow less grapes per vine and make many more manual labor passes throughout the year in the vineyard. The more passes with our skilled workforce we make, the more our money spent per acre goes up. Likewise, the less fruit we put on our vines, the more money we need to get per pound (or ton) in order to meet what the banker has deemed our ideal bottom line. Take Cabernet Sauvignon for example. On Snipes Mountain, we can get Cab ripe (25+ brix) at six tons per acre. It will also make a decent wine at that tonnage if other key viticultural practices are followed. I say “decent” because it may not have the ideal color, fruit intensity, or complexity that you want in a high-end bottle of wine. It will be a perfectly fine bottle to have with your homemade spaghetti during a family meal (with red sauce, of course), but you wouldn’t necessarily want to take that bottle to a five star restaurant to pair with your rare elk loin, chanterelle duxelles, and black currant demiglace.

For winemakers to achieve an ultra premium cab from Snipes Mountain that truly is ultra premium (and not just pricey), they need to start with fruit that is cropped around three tons per acre. But to get to this point, we will have to pass over every vine by hand at least ten times during the growing season. In comparison, that “decent” six ton cab might only require four passes. This can make a huge difference to a farmer’s pocketbook when minimum wage is $9.04 per hour. In addition, the detail required for many of the “three tons per acre” passes is such that you may have to pay well above $9.04 in order to get the skill set you desire.

The point of all my rambling is that the end product of these quality passes starts with pruning. To minimize work throughout the growing season, I want to prune as aggressive as possible while at the same time leaving a little “insurance” in the form of a couple extra buds to compensate for what Mother Nature may throw my way. If I leave too many buds, then I will be leaving extra work for the vine to do, making it much more difficult for that vine to achieve its end goal: ripeness. The same goes for quality. Because I normally know before the growing season how much I will get paid for the end product, I want to minimize work on my vines as much as possible. This is done to gain the maximum dollars per acre that I can, while at the same time achieving quality ripeness.

So remember: If you’re driving by your favorite vineyard in the spring and the vines look naked compared to when you make your annual wine tasting trip in the late summer/fall, it’s all part of a master plan to make your favorite Washington State wine the best it can be!

Adapted from Upland Estates grower Todd Newhouse’s blog: A View from the Tractor.