On Saturday night, it was raining terribly, plus dark out and sort of miserable. That didn’t stop us from going out to a wine tasting with a friend! Why sit home feeling sorry for ourselves when nearly 100 wine tasting rooms are a few minutes’ drive away?
We decided to stop by Tsillan Cellars – I’ve spent more than a few enjoyable Sunday afternoons at their Chelan tasting room and restaurant, so was eager to check out their tasting room in my own Woodinville neighborhood!
Tsillan Cellars has decorated festively for the holiday season. Hopefully the owners of these stockings will find a bottle of wine in them after Santa comes on Christmas Eve!
On really crowded days, guests can gather around Tsillan Cellars’ barrel bar table.
These cozy club chairs invite wine tasters to sit and chat, lingering over a glass of wine.
The videos showing gorgeous scenes from Lake Chelan made my boyfriend, Bob, wistful for summer to return. He really enjoyed visiting the lake and riding SeaDoos. Next time I’m dragging him to the big Tsillan tasting room in Chelan. It’s the first place I participated in a wine tasting, believe it or not!
We met the tasting room manager, Kevin, who invited us to sit and take our time enjoying the wines.
My friend Aimi moved to the Eastside about six months ago. She’s from London, and hasn’t been wine tasting very often. We enjoyed showing her around Woodinville that evening, taking her Christmas shopping at Molbak’s and out for burgers and fries at Teddy’s later on.
Aimi decided to try the Whites on the tasting menu and I went with the Reds. Her pours began with the Viognier, followed by the Nudo Chardonnay.
My boyfriend is a beer drinker and wasn’t interested in tasting any wines, though he would have politely participated if pressed. I was delighted to find that Tsillan offered Italian beer as an option. Bob was grateful to be able to sit and enjoy a beer (poured into a wine glass, naturally) while we ladies tasted wine.
After a small group of happy and festive ladies left, we had the tasting room all to ourselves.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have a full wine storage bookcase like this at home?
I explored the tasting room with a glass of Sinistra in one hand.
Aimi’s favorite was the Dolce Donna, and her second favorite was the Dry Riesling.
I’m not the world’s biggest syrah fan, but enjoyed their Syrah-Grenache blend.
We also tried the reserve syrah.
Kevin offered me a bonus pour of the Piccolo Rosso, which turned out to be my favorite. I knew I needed to purchase a couple bottles to take home and serve at my next party.
We were glad we braved the weather and bad drivers to venture out on this Saturday evening here in Woodinville! They’re currently open until 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays (check their website for seasonal hours).
RESOURCES:
Tsillan Cellars Woodinville Tasting Room
Tsillan Cellars Woodinville Tasting Room on Yelp
