Wine from the Pacific Northwest of the United States is starting to come of age and gaining in popularity as well. Washington, Oregon, and Idaho are the 3 founding states of the Northwest Wine Coalition formed in 1991 to promote wines from this region across the United States and around the world. If you have not had a chance to sample wines from this up and coming region, you owe it to yourself to give them a try.

Idaho

Idaho is the smallest producer of the 3, and I have only had one wine from this state so far but i’m interested in seeing what comes of these wineries. There is a smattering of different styles, with more of them leaning towards Pinot Noir at this point.

Oregon

Oregon is the big producer in this region, with dozens of small producers as well as some of the large scale operations calling this home. Oregon is best known for it great Pinot Noir and if you are looking for Pinot Noir and havent tried one from Oregon I definately recommend it. Pinot Gris is also popular in Oregon, and Chardonnay has a presence as well.

Washington

Washington state also has a fair amount of producers. Although many people think of this region to be very similar to Oregon, as far as wine producing is concerned, its certainly different. The day-night temperature shift is easily 40 degrees and up to 50 degress or more at times. Very cold winds bring the wind chill to well under 0. One other interesting thing about Washington, is that its high latitude gives it more hours of sunlight in the summer months than most other regions.

Washington has quite alot of varieties to offer, however the best I have had is the Syrah. I am possibly biased since I love Syrah so much, but Merlot is quite popular for the reds as well. Washington also offers some whites and finding wines made from Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, and Semillon are not uncommon.

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