Boutique wineries a welcome addition to state's growing wine industry

DAN RADIL

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The term "boutique winery" gets tossed around a lot these days, and it's a nice, almost fashionable, designation that smaller, start-up wineries like to use.

The irony is that most state wine commissions have no hard and fast rules as to what defines a boutique winery, so no one can really say what should or shouldn't fall into this category.

Based my experience, I've come up with my own guidelines for what I consider to be a boutique winery. They include:

? Total production is relatively small, usually fewer than 1,000 cases a year.

? Vineyard ownership, if any, is just a few acres. Grapes used in making the wines are nearly always purchased from outside vineyards.

? The winemaker and owner are one and the same, with lots of support from spouses, parents and other family members.

? The wines are self-distributed, making them a bit difficult to find in smaller markets such as the greater Bellingham area. (Note, however, that nearly all wineries have a Web site where wines can be ordered online for home delivery.)

In the friendly competition of winemaking, the boutique winery's best promotional tool is frequently a recommendation from another winery. When you call the number listed for the winery, chances are it's the cell phone of the winemaker, who will often enthusiastically meet with you on short notice.

Washington has scores of wineries that include themselves in the boutique category, and many of them are turning out some really nice wines. They have to, because their numbers continue to explode, which makes finding a niche among the state's 500-plus wineries a bit of a daunting task.

Since many of these wineries have been around for five years or less, developing consistency from vintage to vintage can be an early challenge; even for the state's talented pool of new winemakers.

But as time passes, they gain experience, make adjustments and improve quality, assuring a home for boutique wineries - regardless of definition - in the future marketplace.

Next week, I'll feature a couple of boutique wineries from Walla Walla.