On a beautiful day in Snoqualmie Valley, I had the distinct pleasure of sitting down with owner and winemaker of Wm Grassie Wine Estates, Bill Grassie, and found that some of the best wines come from the most unsuspecting people and places.

Bill is a Kansas native, but moved to Washington in the early 2000s for the same reasons many of us do, a job in tech. A master gardener, Bill bought four acres in Fall City, WA and went to work on landscaping and planting around his new home. It was the rough, rocky soil in front of his home that first got him thinking about vines and the potential of growing grapes for no other reason than an attractive feature on the property. “I had no intention of becoming a wine maker” he tells me, a phrase he would repeat several more times during our conversation as his journey into wine continued piece by piece without him realizing what he was really getting into. After his first grapes began to take hold, Bill decided to get educated in wines simply to better understand the gardening aspect versus wine production and enrolled in Northwest Wine Academy in South Seattle. “I still had no intention….” he says again, to which I laughed and told him, “I hate to tell ya Bill, but you have seriously failed at NOT becoming a winemaker!”.

After the academy, Bill started to dabble in small batch wine production at home, mostly to see what he could produce and make wines that he enjoyed drinking. Out of his first twenty barrels, eight had issues in the wine, but he was able to blend those barrels until their various defects cancelled each other out. “It made me a better early on, as I had to really understand what caused the issues and how to salvage the wine”. With a high-quality product and a desire to make it better, Bill partnered with some friends to share warehouse space and equipment, each person contributing what they had and for the first few years, they made their own wines under the same roof in Woodinville. What’s even more interesting about that is the friends who Bill partnered with ended up starting Lauren Ashton, Ancestry Cellars, and Truth Teller (3 of my favorite WA wineries).

While the 2014 Cab Reserve is Bill’s favorite of all his wines ever made, it’s the 4 labels he makes named after his grandchildren that really display his love for wine and family. Like me, Bill loves a strong red, with Cabernet and Merlot as his two favorites, and he continues to make wines that he enjoys, with high acids and tannins. “I like to keep the acids higher and balance the alcohol down to about 14%, common in French Bordeaux. It also allows the wine to age better.” Proper aging is necessary, as Bill ages all his wines 3-4 years in barrel before bottling, creating amazingly smooth and ready to drink vintages as soon as the cork is pulled. With grapes sourced from different AVAs over the years, Bill sources from Columbia Valley these days, utilizing the fruit that best expresses his vision and tastes.

Visiting a Wm Grassie tasting room is like walking into your favorite small-town tavern, with the immediate feeling of home and family. With 18 labels available to taste and purchase, there is something for everyone at Bill’s winery, ranging from crisp whites and a complex rosé to beautifully constructed Bordeaux blends, with right bank and left blank varietals for those partial to specific Bordeaux tastes. He also makes single varietal Syrah and Malbec, both perfect expressions of WA fruit but still in the style that Bill enjoys making. Kids are welcome in the tasting rooms, something important to Bill as family themes are always apparent in the winery. With musical entertainment coming in most weekend nights, there is nothing better on a crisp WA night than a delicious glass of wine, great music, and a hometown feel, especially when it’s already in your backyard!

With the aim of “delighting the customer”, I would say Bill, his family, and his awesome tasting room staff is living up to their motto, and if you are in Woodinville, Snoqualmie, or Duvall, this should be top of your list as your new favorite watering hole.

Check them out at https://www.wmgrassiewines.com/

SNOQUALMIE RIDGE

7802 Center Blvd SE, Suite A

Snoqualmie, WA 98065

Tasting Room Operating Hours:

Monday – Thursday 3:00 – 7:00 pm

Friday 3:00 – 9:00 pm

Saturday 1:00 – 9:00 pm

Sunday 1:00 – 7:00 pm

DUVALL

15705 Main Street NE

Duvall, WA 98019

Tasting Room Operating Hours:

Monday – Thursday 3:00 – 7:00 pm

Friday 3:00 – 8:00 pm

Saturday 1:00 – 9:00 pm

Sunday 1:00 – 6:00 pm