Fantastic news for northwest wine enthusiasts! The Columbia Winery will be maintaining their tasting room in Woodinville for the forseeable future. As the first premier winery in Washington, the loss of the Columbia Winery tasting room from its location in the popular wine tasting destination of Woodinville would have been tragic.
Most of the winemaking operations moved to Sunnyside earlier this year, resulting in the loss of 20 jobs in Woodinville; according to The Seattle Times, these workers will not be re-hired by the new ownership. Columbia and Covey Run Winery were sold by Constellation Brands to California Ascentia Wine Estate earlier this year, and Ascentia has expressed its commitment to keeping the Woodinville location open. This development has recieved praise from both the mayor of Woodinville and the Director of Woodinville Wine country.Also earlier this year the venue had ceased to host weddings and other events, but according to Holly Matson, Director of Retail for Ascentia Wine Estate’s Northwest operations, these events will recommence shortly.
Speaking of the Columbia Winery, did anyone make it to the Taste of Red event on November 8th and 9th? This event featured the best of Columbia's red wines, including some only available at the winery. The list of vendors certainly looked impressive!