Four Great Sparkling Wines from Washington
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Four local bottles for this season.
Image: Amber Fouts
Washington’s history with sparkling wine dates back more than 40 years, but bottles of bubbles have bobbed into our mainstream only recently. Its newfound popularity began, in part, when local producers like Grosgrain and Savage Grace started making bottles of old-school petillant-naturel, or pet-nat, in the late 2010s. The term refers to the ancestral way of making sparklers, where wines go through a single fermentation in the bottle. They’re relatively easy and inexpensive to make—which induced Washington winemakers to explore this new (to us) style.
Pet-nat proved to be the gateway drug leading winemakers to craft sparkling wines using what’s called the traditional method, a.k.a. the way producers in France’s Champagne region produce their famed bottles. This approach is technically harder and considerably more expensive than making pet-nat. It involves, among other things, a primary fermentation followed by a second fermentation in bottle.
Now, Washington’s fluted glassware suddenly overflows with locally made sparkling wine. A few of the state’s custom winemaking facilities have added sparkling capabilities, which put effervescent wine within reach for labels that want it in their lineup but need help with the effort. Others have embraced the learning curve. Today, the state even has a half-dozen wineries specifically dedicated to bubbles. Here are some selections that sparkle.
Domaine Ste. Michelle Luxe
Columbia Valley 2017 $30
This OG sparkling house—it’s part of the Ste. Michelle Wine Estate family (Chateau Ste. Michelle, Columbia Crest, 14 Hands)—made its first wine decades ago. The Luxe is its top-end offering.
Treveri Cellars Gewürztraminer
Yakima Valley NV $17
The Wapato-based winery was way ahead of Washington’s sparkling curve. It started in 2007 and makes nothing but sparkling wines, well-priced for the value. This one is hyperaromatic, with lychee and floral notes.
Elentone Shadowplay Sparkling Rosé of Pinot Noir
Columbia Gorge 2019 $55
Chris Sherry, originally from the UK, and Washington-born Miguele de Quadros-
Sherry focus on fruit from the Columbia Gorge and Lake Chelan appellations for their Woodinville-based winery.
Tirriddis House Blanc Rendition No. 1
Columbia Valley NV $23
Three relatively recent grads of Washington State University’s Viticulture and Enology Program make a wide assortment of sparkling wines. The winery’s name is a play on traditional-method winemaking steps: tirage, riddle, disgorge.