The Wine Knows

Nearly a quarter-century ago, the Columbia Valley American Viticultural Area was approved by the federal government. But there's a little-known story that was recounted to me Sunday by one of the people primarily responsible for Washington's second appellation (after the Yakima Valley).

Wade Wolfe and I were driving through the Horse Heaven Hills when I asked him about his involvement in establishing the 11-million-acre Columbia Valley AVA. He recounted this story:

Dr. Walter Clore, known as the "father of Washington wine," wrote the first application at the request of Allen Shoup, then CEO of Stimson Lane (now Ste. Michelle Wine Estates). Wolfe, who worked for Ste. Michelle, helped edit the document before it was submitted to the federal government for approval.

On the first go-round, the Columbia Valley was to be entirely within Washington state, and it followed the Columbia River from around The Dalles and the state line south of Walla Walla. During the commenting period, several people pointed out that the state line was an arbitrary border and the soil and weather profiles south of the border were similar to those to the north.

The application was rejected by the government, at which point Wolfe took over the project. Wolfe, who later became general manager of Hogue Cellars and has been winemaker/co-owner of Thurston Wolfe in Prosser since 1987, rewrote the proposal to include parts of Oregon in the Columbia Valley, including The Dalles in the west and the area around Milton-Freewater in what later would become the Walla Walla Valley.

After these changes, the application was approved and the Columbia Valley became official.