Fit for Ceres: Dusted Valley Comes to Woodinville

Dusted Valley, Walla Walla's 52nd winery, has been making wine since 2003. Brothers-in-law Chad and Corey, originally from Wisconsin, decided to pursue their love of wine by moving to Walla Walla and are now making 4,000 cases yearly.

Dusted Valley recently changed labels with their 06/07 releases and in one man's opinion, this was a huge move in the right direction. I know it's what's in the bottle that counts, but marketing does matter and it would appear that given a lot of their recent moves, Dusted Valley has really got the marketing line down. There is a lot that's new with Dusted Valley: the newer labels, the most brilliantly named wine club in Washington, the Stained Tooth Society, as well as the new Woodinville location are making Dusted Valley a name and wine that should be on everyone's lips.

The Dusted Valley tasting room opened in Woodinville this past July, located in the small plaza with Purple Cafe, right off of the roundabout (behind Brian Carter and DeLille's tasting rooms).

The Dusted Valley space is a store front and is very well decorated on the inside. Their emphasis is on maximizing the space, meaning there's not a ton of wine on hand, but they've been able to have a cozy tasting room in the front of the shop, and a space that's large enough for small private events as well.

The wines are very well done and they showcase the Washington fruit very nicely. Dusted Valley makes wines out of Walla Walla, Columbia and Yakima Valley fruit. While Dusted Valley is a smaller operation, they make a variety that is enviable. The tasting room had on hand the 2006 Chardonnay, the 2007 Grenache, Cab Franc, Mouvedre, three different Syrahs, and the Barrel Thief Red, a Sangiovese and Tempranillo blend.

All of the wines were good. My favorites were the un-named Syrah ($27), the Grenache ($28) and the Barrel Thief Red ($26). The $8 tasting fee can be applied to a purchase (Dusted Valley waived my fee. Thanks, guys!)

Dusted Valley is "cork-free" on all of their wines which is not only about protecting their investment, but it also had to do with their commitment to sustainability and the impacts of cork harvesting.

Dusted Valley has an interesting barrel project in the works, using oak from the winemaker's home state of Wisconsin. If you're in Woodinville you should make the Dusted Valley tasting room a must do; they're open daily from 12 to 5pm.