When Carrie and I ducked into Cascade Cliff’s Woodinville tasting room, I had no idea that they would have so many wine tasting choices for us. With over 20 Piedmont Italian varietals, specializing in Barbera, Nebbiolo and Dolcetto, we had many delicious options to enjoy.
This tasting room is located in the West Valley District, next to Basel Cellars and Tandem Dinner and Wine Bar. The family owned winery is also home to their estate vineyard located on the beautiful Columbia River Gorge and a Hood River tasting room.
We enjoyed meeting tasting room associate Nathalie, who spent a lot of time talking to us about the vineyard and the winery.
Our first tasting pour was the 2017 Sauvignon Blanc, which we found herbaceous and crisp, with notes of lemongrass. You can see the bottle logo shows a petroglyph that was found on the vineyard property. Nathalie told us that National Geographic visits and offers tours of the vineyard – so cool!
My eyes were immediately drawn to these unusual chairs! They are made from salvaged black walnut wood. I loved the rustic warmth that these chairs bring to the tasting room.
Here is another angle that shows more of the beautiful woodgrain – I had to get cozy for a few minutes and enjoy tasting my glass of 2017 Sangiovese!
The tasting lineup included a 2015 Tempranillo, a smoky, Spanish style red.
Cascade Cliffs offers six wine club options that can be customized to your wine tastes. Read more about Cascade Cliff’s wine club options here, or ask the friendly staff when you visit. They don’t sell their wine through stores, only via their tasting rooms and club memberships.
Next, we tried the 2017 Barbera Rosé, a dry, Italian style rosé which suited my palate.
Cascade Cliffs offers a 2016 Estate Barbera as well as a 2016 Blood Red Barbera (which we did not taste)! The 2016 Estate Barbera was on the drier side, with a 15.2% alcohol content.
When it came time to taste this 2015 Estate Nebbiolo, Carrie and I were excited! We learned that Nebbiolo means “little fog” in Italian. This one was light in color, sourced from horse heaven hills AVA. We found it elegant, complex with notes of fig and dates. We would pair this red with wild mushroom risotto or chicken. Notice that this bottle has a black label, meaning it was aged two extra years in the barrel.
Carrie sips a glass of the Sauvignon Blanc at the gorgeous cedar bar. In the background, you can see the bay doors which open up to a cozy patio with tables and seating for guests to enjoy.
Cascade Cliffs’ Woodinville tasting room is located at 15029 Woodinville-Redmond Rd. NE, #300, Woodinville, WA. Hours of operation are: 12-6:15pm Thursday – Monday. You don’t want to miss this warm, rustic tasting room with unique Piedmont style wine offerings!
-Jen
Resources:
