Walla Walla, A Wine Oasis in Eastern Washington
By Mattie John Bamman
August, 2013
Click here for a PDF version
Surrounded on all sides by vast stretches of rolling prairie, Walla Walla is an all-American pioneer town if there ever were one, and, just like the much-needed water brought to the lips of dusty cowboys suffering from mirages and dehydration, Walla Walla wine only tastes better after the journey. This wine oasis has all of the essentials required for a wine-tasting adventure—restaurants, shops, hotels, and a plethora of tasting rooms. The tasting fees are low, and the truly fine wines come at excellent prices.
In downtown Walla Walla, modern businesses bustle behind historical facades, and many of the area’s best wineries have tasting rooms on the small city’s award-winning Main Street. Visiting, you’ll soon hear tales from the 1800s and early 1900s involving betrayal, scandal, and mysterious characters—some of which will make your blood run cold.
A great way to get quickly acquainted with the local characters—and to taste some of the area’s best reds—is to visit the Spring Valley Vineyard tasting room. The tasting room tells the family’s story through sepia-toned photographs. It begins in the mid-1800s, when the family began farming in the area, and there hasn’t been a dull moment since.
In 1929, Nina Lee, a spunky tart and travelling Vaudeville actress, married into the family, and, though many thought she would bring ruin, she ultimately ran the ranch for years nearly single-handedly with great success. She’s now featured on the label of the winery’s award-winning syrah. Subsequently, Nina’s son-in-law, Dean Derby, was drafted in the NFL, playing for the Rams, Steelers, and Vikings. Then came the wine: Spring Valley released its first merlot-based blend, named Uriah, in 2001, and Wine Spectator featured the next two vintages on its Top 100, a list that showcases the world’s top 100 wines. Not a bad way to enter the wine business.
Indeed, many Walla Walla wines have been ranked among the world’s best, and several are so exclusive that you couldn’t buy their wine if you tried. For Example, Cayuse winery has a four-to-five-year waiting list for anyone wishing to purchase its wine.
Fortunately, most wineries are easily accessible. Rotie Cellars has a tasting room in downtown that offers wine tastings for $5, and it sources its grapes from the same elite growing area made famous by Cayuse. The vines in this 4.9-acre area, known locally as ‘the Rocks,’ grow out of ostrich-egg-sized stones, and this imbues the wines, especially Rotie Cellars’ 2011 Northern Red Blend, with complex, mineral flavours.
Many Walla Walla tasting rooms are located outside of the city, and this means exploring the Palouse landscape, its lips and divots planted with vineyards. About a 15-minute drive from downtown, Northstar Winery offers expansive views and wine tastings daily for $7. The winery focuses almost all of its attention on producing three merlot wines, and winemaker David "Merf" Merfeld has said, “There are many varietals that do really well in Washington state; I believe merlot does the best.”
Northstar’s wines repeatedly score well when judged by Wine Spectator, Wine Advocate, and others. In fact, the Northstar Walla Walla Merlot has received a score of 92 or higher from Wine Advocate nearly every vintage since 2003. In addition to its merlots, the winery pours some of its limited release wines in its tasting room, and, for those seeking a picnic, it sells cheeses by the reputed, local cheese monger, Cheese Louise. àMaurice Cellars, L’Ecole No.41, Charles Smith, and Long Shadows are other great wineries with tasting rooms located in the countryside.
For a city of 32,000, Walla Walla offers a comprehensive selection of hotels and restaurants at every price point. The fine-dining Saffron Mediterranean Kitchen, whose chef Chris Ainsworth has been a James-Beard-Award semi-finalist for the past five years, produces innovative Mediterranean-inspired dishes using Walla Walla ingredients. For a more local scene, check out The Green Lantern, which serves craft beer and pub-style fare, including vegetarian options. As for staying the night, it’s hard to beat the Marcus Whitman Hotel, which is a historic, landmark hotel with a wide range of luxurious rooms and suites.
There’s one more tale to tell—one involving Walla Walla’s infamous arsonist dentist: James Otis Kenyon. Upon entering the Otis Kenyon tasting room, you may notice the winery’s labels are charred around the edges. In the early 1900s, James Kenyon burned a rival dentist’s practice to the ground. No one is certain why; nor do they know why he and his wife had a falling out afterward, but the next generation of the Kenyon Family was raised believing that their father was dead.
Stephen Kenyon, owner of Otis Kenyon, was dubious, and, in the 70s, he decided to investigate his grandfather’s disappearance. To his surprise, he found his grandfather alive and well living on the Oregon coast! James went on to live the ripe age of 101. Was it all of the great wine?
By Mattie John Bamman
August, 2013
Click here for a PDF version
Surrounded on all sides by vast stretches of rolling prairie, Walla Walla is an all-American pioneer town if there ever were one, and, just like the much-needed water brought to the lips of dusty cowboys suffering from mirages and dehydration, Walla Walla wine only tastes better after the journey. This wine oasis has all of the essentials required for a wine-tasting adventure—restaurants, shops, hotels, and a plethora of tasting rooms. The tasting fees are low, and the truly fine wines come at excellent prices.
In downtown Walla Walla, modern businesses bustle behind historical facades, and many of the area’s best wineries have tasting rooms on the small city’s award-winning Main Street. Visiting, you’ll soon hear tales from the 1800s and early 1900s involving betrayal, scandal, and mysterious characters—some of which will make your blood run cold.
A great way to get quickly acquainted with the local characters—and to taste some of the area’s best reds—is to visit the Spring Valley Vineyard tasting room. The tasting room tells the family’s story through sepia-toned photographs. It begins in the mid-1800s, when the family began farming in the area, and there hasn’t been a dull moment since.
In 1929, Nina Lee, a spunky tart and travelling Vaudeville actress, married into the family, and, though many thought she would bring ruin, she ultimately ran the ranch for years nearly single-handedly with great success. She’s now featured on the label of the winery’s award-winning syrah. Subsequently, Nina’s son-in-law, Dean Derby, was drafted in the NFL, playing for the Rams, Steelers, and Vikings. Then came the wine: Spring Valley released its first merlot-based blend, named Uriah, in 2001, and Wine Spectator featured the next two vintages on its Top 100, a list that showcases the world’s top 100 wines. Not a bad way to enter the wine business.
Indeed, many Walla Walla wines have been ranked among the world’s best, and several are so exclusive that you couldn’t buy their wine if you tried. For Example, Cayuse winery has a four-to-five-year waiting list for anyone wishing to purchase its wine.
Fortunately, most wineries are easily accessible. Rotie Cellars has a tasting room in downtown that offers wine tastings for $5, and it sources its grapes from the same elite growing area made famous by Cayuse. The vines in this 4.9-acre area, known locally as ‘the Rocks,’ grow out of ostrich-egg-sized stones, and this imbues the wines, especially Rotie Cellars’ 2011 Northern Red Blend, with complex, mineral flavours.
Many Walla Walla tasting rooms are located outside of the city, and this means exploring the Palouse landscape, its lips and divots planted with vineyards. About a 15-minute drive from downtown, Northstar Winery offers expansive views and wine tastings daily for $7. The winery focuses almost all of its attention on producing three merlot wines, and winemaker David "Merf" Merfeld has said, “There are many varietals that do really well in Washington state; I believe merlot does the best.”
Northstar’s wines repeatedly score well when judged by Wine Spectator, Wine Advocate, and others. In fact, the Northstar Walla Walla Merlot has received a score of 92 or higher from Wine Advocate nearly every vintage since 2003. In addition to its merlots, the winery pours some of its limited release wines in its tasting room, and, for those seeking a picnic, it sells cheeses by the reputed, local cheese monger, Cheese Louise. àMaurice Cellars, L’Ecole No.41, Charles Smith, and Long Shadows are other great wineries with tasting rooms located in the countryside.
For a city of 32,000, Walla Walla offers a comprehensive selection of hotels and restaurants at every price point. The fine-dining Saffron Mediterranean Kitchen, whose chef Chris Ainsworth has been a James-Beard-Award semi-finalist for the past five years, produces innovative Mediterranean-inspired dishes using Walla Walla ingredients. For a more local scene, check out The Green Lantern, which serves craft beer and pub-style fare, including vegetarian options. As for staying the night, it’s hard to beat the Marcus Whitman Hotel, which is a historic, landmark hotel with a wide range of luxurious rooms and suites.
There’s one more tale to tell—one involving Walla Walla’s infamous arsonist dentist: James Otis Kenyon. Upon entering the Otis Kenyon tasting room, you may notice the winery’s labels are charred around the edges. In the early 1900s, James Kenyon burned a rival dentist’s practice to the ground. No one is certain why; nor do they know why he and his wife had a falling out afterward, but the next generation of the Kenyon Family was raised believing that their father was dead.
Stephen Kenyon, owner of Otis Kenyon, was dubious, and, in the 70s, he decided to investigate his grandfather’s disappearance. To his surprise, he found his grandfather alive and well living on the Oregon coast! James went on to live the ripe age of 101. Was it all of the great wine?
