ROHNERT PARK, Calif. — Northwest wineries fared well at the 2010 Grand Harvest Awards, an international wine competition staged by Vineyard & Winery Management magazine.

KELOWNA, British Columbia — CedarCreek Estate Winery today announced the departure of award-winning winemaker Tom DiBello.

Consumers still love their Washington wines but have adjusted their palates to match their pocketbooks.

Wine drinkers typically assume wineries are environmentally sustainable, an impression that is reinforced if vineyards achieve certification of that status from reputable consumer or environmental organizations, experts say.

Washington's wine industry continues to grow at record levels.

Joel Tefft hopes his new distillery now under construction in West Richland, Wash., becomes popular for those seeking something other than wine.

KENNEWICK, Wash. - Grapes from one of Washington's original wine regions won best of show Saturday night at the 31st annual Tri-Cities Wine Festival.

When Washington winemakers and grape growers looked at the forecast for last weekend, they saw a hard frost heading their way and immediately ramped up harvesting efforts.

PASCO, Wash. - Kent Waliser has spent recent weeks balancing his late-season apple and grape harvests, but last weekend's freezing temperatures forced him to shift gears.

David Lake, one of the most influential people in the history of the Washington wine industry, passed away Monday after a lengthy illness.

FINLEY, Wash. — Grandview brothers Andy and Bill den Hoed are prepared to release the first wines made under their partnership with Long Shadows Vintners CEO Allen Shoup and Leavenworth, Wash., winemaker Rob Newsom.

Harvest began slightly early at some Columbia Valley vineyards after the hot summer months rapidly ripened grapes, but several growers said they're pleased with what they're seeing.

A major California wine company soon will begin barrel storage and bottling operations at Andy and Bill Den Hoed's West Richland facility behind Washington's Red Mountain.

McMINNVILLE, Ore. - A legal battle over the departure of winemaker Tony Rynders from the Domaine Serene Vineyards and Winery is being closely watched by an industry that relies heavily on trade secrets.

PROSSER, Wash. — The Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center received $16,000 from this year’s Moteur de Vine benefit ride.

Despite a tough economy, the 22nd annual Auction of Washington Wines still raised $1.5 million for Children's Hospital last week. The Auction expanded to four days of events this year, including Revelry on Red Mountain at Col Solare.

KENNEWICK, Wash. — Don Watts, a long-time Columbia Valley vineyard owner, is building a winery at Suncadia Resort in Rosyln, Wash.

RICHLAND, Wash. -- A Horse Heaven Hills grape grower is among the first suspected human cases of West Nile virus in the Mid-Columbia this year.

PROSSER, Wash. -- Preliminary work is expected to start on the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center site at the beginning of August now that board members have unanimously awarded a contract to Premier Excavation of Richland.

A key element in the future of the Washington wine industry is being developed at the Tri-City campus of Washington State University.

Three distinct climates plus a trio of varying soil types equal three syrah wines with different flavor profiles that reflect the characteristics of the land on which the grapes were grown.

A software glitch that has held up the delivery of an estimated 18,000 cases of liquor per day statewide is likely resolved, said a spokesman with the Washington State Liquor Control Board.

It justgot a little easier to open a winery in rural Benton County.

KENNEWICK -- A warehousing and transportation company that specializes in serving the wine industry is opening a temperature-controlled wine storage warehouse at Vista Field in Kennewick.

Legislators from Washington state and across the country have asked a U.S. trade representative to work with the European Community to allow U.S. wines whose labels contain terms such as "chateau" and "clos" to again be sold within the European countries.