Walla Walla — July 2012

Walla Walla is just north of Oregon and not too far from Idaho in Eastern Washington. It’s about a 4-5 hour drive from Seattle depending on traffic and stops. Because of the drive I wouldn’t recommend it as a side trip if you’re visiting Seattle unless you have a lot of time and are very keen to see it (and a lot of the wineries have tasting rooms in Woodinville), but it’s fun for a weekend if you’re from the area.

The view from Long Shadows

Hotel:
Walla Walla Faces Inn at the Vineyard: My husband picked this place out (the trip was my birthday present) and it was the perfect choice. It’s plopped smack in the middle of vineyards east of town. There are gorgeous views from the porches and a pool to cool off. It reminded me of Petis Logis in Yountville in that it’s a small place but not in any way a traditional B&B. For one thing, there’s no breakfast, and you could go your entire stay without seeing a staff member. You set your own code for your room in advance, they program it in, and you just use it to get in and out of your room. The only common areas are the parking lot and pool. I think there was an office and a number you could call if you had a problem, but other than that you were on your own.

There are reviews of this place on a couple different sites that go on and on about dogs on the property. I encountered two very sweet dogs that I think belonged to the owners, and another that I believe belonged to a guest. So if you can’t stand the sight of dogs it might not be for you, but if you’re indifferent, like dogs, or want to bring your own dog, it’s a good choice! Several of the wineries we went to also had dogs or people brought their own to the tasting, so I think Walla Walla is pretty dog-friendly in general.

Happy dog at Walla Walla Faces Inn at the Vineyard

Wineries
We took off after work on Friday and came back home on Sunday, so we really didn’t have a ton of time to hit a lot of wineries. But we did our best! We decided to go with tastings at actual vineyards rather than tasting rooms in town to maximize our “country” time. In general tastings were quite casual. If Napa is snooty and Sonoma is more laid back, this place is downright folksy. Only one place we went to required reservations, and we made those by calling and saying, “We’re next door, can we get in for a tasting?” Prices were generally fantastic (although there were a couple that were more expensive) and the wine was tasty.

Amavi: This was high on my list after I’d tried their cab at RN74 in Seattle. The tasting room is gorgeous and the views are even better. The wine is pretty good too, so this really hits everything (in my opinion) you could want when tasting wine.

Gifford-Hirlinger: The hit of the trip! Great wines at a super cheap price, and the owner was a nice guy to talk to. We were both shocked he wasn’t charging way more since we had wine elsewhere in Walla Walla that wasn’t as good but three times the price of these. Everything was great.

Long Shadows: This place was actually recommended to me by Mike at Vin Underground in San Francisco, so it obviously have a pretty big reputation. And it is a very “Napa” style of operation, but still quite unassuming. The owner basically brought in his favorite winemakers from around the world to make wines with Washington grapes to show that they can be as good as anything produced in more established regions. They are very good, and I’m sure these wines would be twice as much if they were produced in Napa, but they’re quite pricey for Walla Walla. I’ve also noticed them for sale at a few places around Seattle, so buying at the vineyard isn’t vital.

Dunham Cellars: This was a pretty large operation in an airplane hangar east of town. The wines were good and the tasting experience was pretty nice, too, considering the size of the tasting room. Friendly staff have a way of doing that.

Tertulia Cellars:Another impressive tasting room, but the wines weren’t super special and were pricier than I think they should have been. I will say that we brought a bottle of the Viognier home because it’s a nice refreshing white and not oak-y (oak-y whites aren’t my thing).

Reininger Winery: Pretty tasting room in an old potato storage shed, but we really felt the wines were quite average and a bit expensive.

The Amavi tasting room

Food
Stone Hut: Due to our late arrival on Friday we didn’t have a lot of options for dinner. I started calling places that were open (according to Yelp) about 20 minutes before we got to town to ask if they were still serving food, and this place said yes. Honestly I wish we had more places like this in Seattle. Basic but very good bar food, good beer on tap. sports on many TVs, and not a hipster in sight. When my burger arrived and had mayo the waitress quickly replaced it with a freshly-toasted bun after I asked for one. Not bad for 10:30 on a Friday night after a long drive.

Saffron Mediterranean Kitchen: This place seemed like a natural choice because we haven’t had much luck with Mediterranean food in Seattle. It was very good but nothing amazing. I will say the service was very good and friendly and they have Gifford-Hirlinger’s excellent syrah on their wine list, so still a good choice.

Colville Street Patisserie: A pretty fancy bakery for a small town. We each had a ham and gruyere croissant and they were just the thing to get our stomachs ready for a day of wine tasting.

Graze: We wanted lunch after Gifford-Hirlinger, and the owner recommended Graze for a good sandwich. We split a banh mi, which was still plant of food and really good. Not International District in Seattle good, but very good nonetheless.