Throughout the month of March, Washington winemakers, retailers and restaurants will all offer specials to celebrate Taste Washington Wine Month, with the namesake event happening March 28-31. There’s everything from wine tastings to dinners and parties that any wine enthusiast is guaranteed to be excited about. Here are a few that got us excited about drinking #WAWine this month.
Root for the Planet: A Sustainable Wine Dinner Party
March 15
Treat yourself to a five-course meal at Seattle’s The Collective — a members-only, “basecamp” where they encourage members to adventure. This event will feature a discussion led by Paul Beveridge, founder of Wilridge Winery, on sustainability and biodiversity of making wine. Wilridge aims to be the greenest vineyard, winery and distillery in the state. Each course will be made with sustainable ingredients and paired with one of Wilridge’s wines.
Debuts & Discoveries
March 16
Find your next favorite drink at this event held at Seattle’s Magnuson Park. Fifteen Washington wineries will bring their newest releases to debut so that you can be the first to try them. Take in the views that you get from the park while you sip on wine and listen to live music. There will also be food available to keep your hunger at bay. If the person you’re going with isn’t much of a wine drinker then they will be glad to hear that a few distilleries, cideries and breweries will also be in attendance.
Yoga & Wine at Elsom Cellars
March 23
If you’re someone who finds themselves hard-pressed to visit the gym, let alone a yoga studio, then maybe this event will lure you off the couch. Head to Elsom Cellars in Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood for a yoga session that focuses on strength, self-exploration and relaxation. Once you’ve got your blood flowing and are all relaxed, grab a glass of wine or a quick tasting that comes with the price of the session. You’ll be left wondering why you don’t do yoga more often after this wine-centric session.
Women Stars of Food & Wine
March 24
This month is also all about celebrating women — Friday, March 8 is International Women’s Day and the rest of the month is dedicated to remembering women and their accomplishments throughout history. Which makes the Northwest Women Stars of Food & Wine event all the more fitting. The evening will feature top female chefs and winemakers at The Sanctuary to raise money for VITAL, a nonprofit Washington winery which donates profits to SOS clinic, a free, urgent care facility in Walla Walla that services uninsured migrant workers. Grab a bite of the chefs’ offerings and try a new wine all in the name of helping a worthy cause.
Taste Washington Grand Tasting
March 30-31
The culminating event for the month-long celebration of Washington wine ends with a huge weekend of wine. More than 235 wineries and 65 restaurants will be present for foodies and oenophiles to delight in at CenturyLink Field Event Center in Seattle. Watch highly touted chefs do their thing and then vote for the “Best Bite” award while sipping offerings rarely seen outside the cellar at this unparalleled festival. It’s impossible to try everything you’ll want to in one day so it’s a good thing that you’ll be able to go back for more on the second day if you choose to buy that option. Regardless you’ll be one happy — and full — camper by the end of March.
