“We’re young and people don’t have any expectations. This allows us a flexibility to do what we want,” says Andrew Gerow, co-owner of Tirriddis, the equally young sparkling wine house in Prosser, Wash. “Though,” he adds with a grin, “we try our best to do it right.”
Gerow and fellow Tirriddis co-owners Matthew Doutney and Gabriel Crowell are recent graduates of the Viticulture and Enology Program at Washington State University. After exams they used to get together to eat fried chicken and drink sparkling wine (a delicious pairing) and talk about their futures as winemakers. The seeds of Tirriddis were planted then.
“Tirriddis” is not something spelled backwards or a village in Middle Earth or an actual riddle to solve — it’s a shortening of three of the steps in the méthode champenoise: tirage, riddle and disgorge.
The Tirriddis “house style” is lean, bright and fresh. “The wine reflects on us as people — energetic, fun, approachable,” says Gerow.
Their Blanc de Blanc is 100% Chardonnay from Stonemark and McNary Vineyards in the Yakima Valley AVA. With 16 months on the lees and no dosage, it offers scents of early morning bakery followed by a dollop of lemon curd and notes of vanilla on the palate.
Though the grapes for the Blanc de Blanc were harvested in 2020, Tirriddis is choosing to categorize their wines as non-vintage (NV), anticipating that most of their wines will be so in the near future. Instead of marking the year, they are using the term “renditions” to keep track of early releases.
Their Brut Rosé from Columbia Valley — equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Chardonnay — is the second rendition of this sparkling wine. The color of a bleached penny, the rosé is bright and refreshingly tart with lots of red berries and a bit of creaminess (from its eight months on the lees).
The Tirriddis team is serious about sustainability and use green glass and unvarnished labels for all of their bottles (even the pretty Rosé), noting that it is better for the environment. Empty Tirriddis bottles can be returned to the winery for re-use.
“We have a raffle system,” Gerow explains. Patrons who bring back their empties have their name put into a (metaphorical) hat and every month, a name is drawn. The “winner” gets to purchase any current Tirriddis offering for just $1.
Also available at their Prosser tasting room are their Demi-Sec Blanc de Blanc, the 2020 Single Vineyard Blanc de Blanc from Stonemark Vineyards, and the barrel-fermented Blanc de Blanc. The latter — which has a pleasantly sour, earthy scent of cellar — started as a lark.
“Old champagne houses did it, so why not us?” says Gerow of experimenting with this old-world approach. They produced 45 cases for rendition #1 and sold out in two weeks. It’s now a “cult classic,” he jokes, saying that the current rendition is selling well.
The Tirriddis team has “millions of plans” beyond their current tasting room and wine shop, which opened in May 2021. They sell a selection of natural and traditional wines in addition to their own brand.
Planning for a future vineyard and estate, Gerow, Doutney, and Crowell are putting most of their revenue back into the business.
“We like to joke that you need time and money to run a winery, and that we are broke and impatient,” says Gerow. “We’re always trying to figure out how to reverse engineer it.”
Given their youth, enthusiasm, and business acumen, Tirriddis is just the beginning for this talented trio and their impact on the future of Washington wine.
2880 Lee Rd. Suite B
Prosser, WA 99350
www.tirriddis.com
