We get it. Wine tasting can be intimidating. You don’t want to look foolish or unsophisticated, you don’t want to pay too much or drink wine you won’t like. You want to go out with friends and have a good time, but you’re not sure where to take them if most of you aren’t yet experienced wine tasters.
It’s totally ok to be a wine newbie. Everybody has to start somewhere! I myself only started drinking wine when I was 25 years old (half my lifetime ago). I had kept myself too busy with delicious, delicious vodka and rum. And when I was 25, I was a broke social worker and unfortunately couldn’t afford good wine. It took me a while to get to like wine. ($4 Chardonnay bottles really aren’t all that great!)
Well, one of the many reasons we started Woodinville Wine Blog was to help people figure out which of our city’s 120+ tasting rooms are a good fit for them. We’ve only run into one or two wine snob tasting room employees in our nearly three years of blogging, so I want to assure you that just about everywhere you go in town, the tasting room staff will be super friendly and helpful to you. These wineries only hire “people people” who get along well, are personable and social.
Ready to think about going wine tasting in Woodinville? Let’s get started!
Read this helpful guide to the Wine tasting process, courtesy of Winevoice. Next, let’s read tips on how to get the most out of your wine tasting.
If you want to dive in a little deeper, take a little time to read through WineFolly’s helpful Wine Basics Beginner’s Guide.
Familiarize yourself with wine tasting etiquette here and here. Check out these tips for attending a wine walk or wine event, too.
For your first few wine tasting visits, we don’t recommend going to any of the bigger wineries in Woodinville – not just yet! The popular Hollywood District tasting rooms (such as Mark Ryan, Patterson/Gorman, Bookwalter, Goose Ridge and Maryhill, etc) get really crowded on weekends. I’d rather encourage you to go to smaller, more out-of-the-way tasting rooms where the staff really has time to interact with you and teach you about their wines.
Also, please remember to call ahead and make a reservation at the tasting room if your party is six people or more. Most tasting rooms prefer you do this ahead of time; it’s polite; and it ensures you have a much better experience with your friends.
Alexandria Nicole Cellars
I’ve only joined three wine clubs in Woodinville, and Alexandria Nicole Cellars is one of them! It’s just so much fun to hang out in their tasting room, drinking delicious ANC wines and chatting with visiting wine tourists. The tasting room staff are cheerful, not pretentious, and really love their jobs – you can tell! Try their red wine “Quarry Butte” and pick up some of their canned wines for your next outdoor outing.
https://www.alexandrianicolecellars.com/
Brian Carter Cellars
Brian Carter Cellars is one of the very first places we tasted wine as new bloggers in Woodinville. The staff here are always extraordinarily friendly. They’ll serve you out on the patio on a nice day, let you take your time, teach you about Brian Carter’s wines, and not give you a big sales push. Try “Oriane” white wine and “Abracadabra” red.
https://www.briancartercellars.com/
Bunnell Family Cellar
This warehouse district winery will treat you right! They have been making Washington wine for a very long time. The employees will be gentle with you, and won’t mind if you ask “dumb” wine questions. There’s a kitchen on site, and you can order light bites if you’re hungry. Try their Merlot if you get a chance.
https://www.bunnellfamilycellar.com/
Cascade Cliffs
This tasting room is where we probably learn the most about Washington wine every time we go. Nathalie is incredibly passionate and well informed, and talks with us (not “lectures”) while serving us amazing wines from Washington and sometimes from Oregon. They also have a tasting room in Georgetown if that’s closer for you. The wines are a bit more expensive than elsewhere (and worth it), be forewarned.
Cave B Estate Winery
This winery is a great place to start if you’re new to wine. They have a lot of easy-to-drink white wines, and their red varietals are excellent as well. The ladies who work here are fun, nice and easygoing. They have a sparkling wine (“Blanc de Blanc”) you might want to purchase for the holidays, too. Bet you’ll like their “Caveman Red” and “Cavewoman White” wines.
If you go on a nice day, you can take your wine glass outdoors to their spacious patio!
Chandler Reach Vineyards
After getting turned away with our cameras on our first visit to a winery as new bloggers, we went to another nearby tasting room. Nervous and slightly embarrassed, we chose Chandler Reach Vineyards. The ladies at that tasting room welcomed us warmly and non-judgmentally, and gave us an encouragingly wonderful wine tasting experience. The wines are delicious, the tasting room cozy and spacious, and you’re sure to have a good time there with your friends.
You’ll mostly be tasting red wines, so maybe save this visit for a third or fourth wine tasting trip if you’re all still at the “white wine” stage.
https://www.chandlerreach.com/
Efeste
We’re recommending Efeste because they’re nice, the tasting room is gigantic and has comfy seating, and they sometimes use their pizza oven on weekends! You might get to meet one of the owners, Daniel, as he’s often kicking around the venue. I bet you’ll like their Evergreen Riesling and their Feral Sauvignon Blanc!
Lobo Hills
I’m recommending Lobo Hills because not only are their wines really enjoyable, but the staff are the friendliest and warmest people on the planet. We’ve had such a good time all three or four times we’ve tasted wine at this Artisan Hill tasting room. I’m excited to go back and take a couple wine lovers with me!
This tasting room is a great place to start if you and your friends are really new to wine – They make several varieties of highly drinkable white wines. There’s a Sauvignon Blanc, a a Chenin Blanc, an Auxerrois (Woodinville’s only one), a Rose and a dry Riesling. Moving to the reds, their Petit Verdot might be a little advanced for you – but it’s perfectly ok to quietly and politely dump it without comment after tasting. Their Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon are incredibly good, and you might have three syrahs to choose from.
Smasne Cellars
I’m recommending this friendly tasting room specifically because they have so many varietals you can try. They offer the largest tasting menu I know of in Woodinville. You can try several whites (an Albarino or two; a Marsanne and a Roussanne; a couple of white wine blends; a Sauvignon Blanc and a Viognier) a Rose; and an incredible number of red wine styles. There’s also a Zinfandel sometimes! They’re out in the warehouse district and have a really big tasting room with lots of tables and room for your party of wine adventurers.
Tinte Cellars
You’ll taste William Church and Cuillin Hills wine, learn a bit about wine and have a good time at Tinte Cellars. They have a location in the Hollywood District and one in the Warehouse District.
These are just a few suggestions, and we aren’t trying to hurt the feelings of anybody else we failed to pick for this list. We thought way back about our first couple months of wine blogging and remembered all the industry people who were so kind and patient with us!
-Carrie
