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Washington’s state of Riesling

By Andy Perdue on January 28, 2018

A winemaker shows his love for Riesling during the 2013 Riesling Rendezvous. (Photo by Andy Perdue/Great Northwest Wine)

Washington has long had a reputation for crafting world-class Riesling, with the first plantings as early as 1880, pre-dating statehood by at least a decade.

Today, Riesling remains a force in Washington, being the No. 4 grape, trailing Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Chardonnay in total tonnage harvested. It topped 40,000 tons in the 2016 harvest, doubling from the previous 10 years.

While the largest user of Riesling is Chateau Ste. Michelle in Woodinville, which makes more Riesling than any single winery in the world, but after winemaker Bob Bertheau is done, there’s still plenty of Riesling left.

Here are nine examples of Washington Riesling not made by Ste. Michelle. Ask for them at your favorite wine merchant or contact the wineries directly.

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About Andy Perdue

Andy Perdue is the editor and publisher of Great Northwest Wine. He is a third-generation journalist who has worked at newspapers since the mid-1980s and has been writing about wine since 1998. He co-founded Wine Press Northwest magazine with Eric Degerman and served as its editor-in-chief for 15 years. He is a frequent judge at international wine competitions. He is the author of "The Northwest Wine Guide: A Buyer's Handbook" (Sasquatch, 2003) and has contributed to four other books. He writes about wine for The Seattle Times. You can find him on Twitter and Google+.