Woodinville "Wine village" plan growing

[Sundodger]

Woodinville "Wine village" plan growing

Plans for the 640,000-square-foot Woodinville Village include 104,000 square feet of retail space, a gourmet grocer, a half-dozen restaurants, 275 condominiums, four wineries, a spa, a 100-plus-room hotel and more than 1,500 people living and working at the site daily. The wineries are DeLille Cellars, DiStefano Wines, Brian Carter Cellars and the Washington Wine Co.

The concept is to emulate Italian villages, with their mix of a public square and other gathering points, said co-developer Mike Raskin. The village design calls for buildings of one to four stories in a Tuscan motif, viewing the river and Mount Rainier and within walking distance of such other attractions as Chateau Ste. Michelle and Columbia wineries, Redhook Ale Brewery and the Sammamish River Trail.

Sounds really cool. The Woodinville area is the epicenter of wine making west of the Cascades. A project like this should cement that. Meanwhile east of the mountains:

Wineries plan development in Wash. state

Walla Walla and Red Mountain near Benton City are very hot wine locales:

WALLA WALLA NAMED BEST WINE DESTINATION OF THE YEAR

AT SUNSET MAGAZINE’S 2005 WESTERN WINE AWARDS

Walla Walla, Wash. – Walla Walla, Wash., has been selected the best Wine Destination of the Year by Sunset Magazine’s first-annual Western Wine Awards.

Criteria for the Wine Destination of the Year award included a location that offers more than a visit to a wine appellation. The selected destination should include luxurious hotels, restaurants, tasting rooms as well as an exclusive winemaking experience. Sunset Magazine’s 2005 Western Wine Awards included the top honor Wine Destination of the Year award, in addition to Red Mountain, the Up-and-Coming Wine Region, and Niebaum-Coppola in Napa Valley, the Best Tasting Room. The judging team was made up of national travel, wine and food editors and writers for Sunset Magazine.

Chicago Tribune: Wild for Walla Walla (pdf file)

Washington is wine country

Washington's wine appellations: