Who says Cougars and Huskies can't get along? The cross-state rivals do just fine at Steppe Cellars, our 2009 Washington Winery to Watch.
The Yakima Valley winery, launched in 2005, is co-owned by Tom and Susan Garrison (the Cougs) and Mike and Gabrielle Seibel (the Dawgs). Susan and Gabrielle are sisters.
"It's nice to partner with family," Susan Garrison said. "It's easy to work together." Perhaps less so on Apple Cup weekend.
The Garrisons planted Riesling at their farm in 1981, and the Seibels own a cherry orchard adjacent to the tasting room, though they live in Seattle where they take care of much of the distribution and sales for this up-and-coming winery.
Keeping everything in the family, most of Steppe Cellars' red grapes come from Stone Tree Vineyard, owned by Tedd Wildman, who is the husband of Steppe's winemaker, Anka Freimuth-Wildman. She moved to Prosser in 1990 to work at the WSU research station in Prosser after receiving her education in viticulture and enology from the famed Geisenheim Institute in Germany. Her family has been in the German wine industry for 400 years.
While the winery is gaining an early reputation for German varieties - particularly Riesling and Gewürztraminer - don't think Freimuth-Wildman doesn't have a focus on reds. Indeed, the current lineup includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, two red blends and a recently released Tempranillo-Grenache blend. The high-end blend is called Artemisia, which is the Latin name for "sagebrush," a plant found in abundance throughout the Columbia Valley. At $32, Artemisia is the most expensive wine at Steppe.
So far, the wines have caught the attention of wine critics regionally. The Syrah won a gold last year at the Capital Wine & Food Fest and a double gold at the Seattle Wine Awards. It also earned our top "Outstanding" award last summer. The 2006 dry Riesling earned an "Excellent" rating in our judging last year of Northwest Rieslings, and the 2006 Gewürztraminer received an "Outstanding." The 2006 late-harvest Riesling also received an "Outstanding," and the 2006 Semillon earned an "Excellent."
The winery is named for the shrub -steppe environment that covers much of Eastern Washington, particularly the Columbia Valley where Washington wine country is centered. Unlike a desert, which generally cannot support year-round vegetation, shrub-steppe regions have just enough rainfall to support perennial grasslands and shrubs.
"Shrub-steppe surrounds our farmlands," Garrison said. "We thought that naming the winery after it would bring more awareness to it. I think it's a neat thing for people to be aware of the natural environment of this area of the state."
The majority of sales are coming through the tasting room, which is open daily from April through November. The winery is five miles off Interstate 82. The tasting room has a picnic area next to the cherry orchard with a view of Mount Adams. Visitors are most likely to encounter one or both of the Garrisons pouring behind the tasting bar, as well as providing educational opportunities in the vineyard.
The wines also are distributed throughout the state. In Spokane and the Tri-Cities, they can be found at Yoke's Fresh Markets. In Seattle, they are at such wine shops as Esquin and McCarthy and Schiering, as well as such restaurants as Wild Ginger, Portage and Ray's Boathouse.
One favorite event they hold during harvest is called "Federweisser und Zwiebelkucken." It is in October as white wines are fermenting. Visitors are encouraged to try the fermenting wines (the federweisser) alongside finished wines from the prior vintage. They are served with an onion tart (the zwiebelkucken), which is part of the German tradition.
"We just want to make good wines and have fun things for people to do when they come to Steppe Cellars," Garrison said.
Steppe Cellars, 1191 Chaffee Road, Sunnyside, WA 98944, 509-837-8281, steppecellars.com.
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