Columbia Crest Winery

At A Glance

Field: Detail
Producer: Columbia Crest Winery
Region: Washington State, United States
Location: Paterson, beside the Columbia River
Wine collections: Grand Estates, Reserve, H3
Featured bottle: Grand Estates Merlot, Columbia Valley
Defining feature: First winery in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA

The Producer

Beside the Columbia River in eastern Washington, Columbia Crest makes wine at Paterson, Washington, and is the first winery in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA. It is also the Northwest's largest winery. Doug Gore was Columbia Crest's first winemaker, and Guy Barnes is its head winemaker.

Place

The Columbia River setting places Columbia Crest in eastern Washington, while the Horse Heaven Hills name marks a defined American winegrowing area. That place name appears in the H3 collection, which celebrates the winery's Horse Heaven Hills heritage. Grand Estates Merlot carries Columbia Valley as its appellation, placing the bottle within the broader Washington wine region.

Soil And Site

The estate vineyards receive six to eight inches of annual rainfall. Columbia Crest's vines therefore grow in a markedly dry setting, where water supply is a central part of vineyard management.

Story

Columbia Crest was founded in 1982. Its winery and visitor center were officially dedicated and opened in June, with Doug Gore serving as the first winemaker. During his tenure, Gore worked with Washington State University to establish irrigation research. The research found that grapevines could handle smaller amounts of water than previously thought.

Vineyards And Cellar

Columbia Crest reports 2,500 acres of estate vineyards. Water reaches the vines through drip irrigation, which applies measured water directly to the vine rows.

Wines

The range is divided into three collections. Grand Estates is built around an authentic interpretation of each varietal, with Grand Estates Merlot presented as a Columbia Valley red. Reserve wines come from selected vineyard sites and are made in the winery's Petit Chai. H3 celebrates Columbia Crest's heritage in the Horse Heaven Hills.

In The Glass

The producer describes Grand Estates Merlot with chocolate, cassis, and dark cherry aromas, blackberry flavor, and smooth, velvety tannins.

The 2021 bottling has aromas of ripe black cherry, plum, blackberry, cola, chocolate, and spice. It is balanced and medium bodied, with berry, cola, chocolate, spice, vanilla, and coffee flavors. The finish is long, dry, slightly dusty, and earthy.

A Bottle To Understand It

Choose Grand Estates Merlot. It is the Columbia Valley red in the Grand Estates collection, where each bottle is crafted around varietal expression. Reserve moves to selected vineyard sites and the Petit Chai, while H3 celebrates Horse Heaven Hills heritage. Grand Estates Merlot puts Merlot and Columbia Valley directly into the bottle name.

Anecdote

In 2005, Wine Spectator selected Columbia Crest's Columbia Valley Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon as its Wine of the Year. The chosen bottle came from the Reserve collection, sourced from selected vineyard sites and made in the Petit Chai. Its full name joined the vintage, appellation, grape, and collection: Columbia Valley Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2005. The award concerned this specific Columbia Crest Cabernet Sauvignon from the Columbia Valley, a Reserve bottle from the 2005 vintage.

Final Word

Columbia Crest combines a dry eastern Washington vineyard setting with Grand Estates wines focused on varietal expression, Reserve wines from selected sites, and H3 wines tied to Horse Heaven Hills heritage. Grand Estates Merlot is the current Columbia Valley example of the first role.

At A Glance

The Producer

Place

Soil And Site

Story

Vineyards And Cellar

Wines

In The Glass

A Bottle To Understand It

Anecdote

Final Word

Sources

Where to go next