Countdown to Catch the Crush October 8-9
It’s a beautiful time of year in Yakima Valley Wine Country, full of excitement for winemakers and wine lovers alike. Harvest is well underway throughout Valley vineyards with grapes on their way to local wineries. As crush begins, winemakers are ready to craft their next great vintage and you can feel the energy in the air! This is also a time when many wineries release new wines.
What better time to take a trip to wine country to share in the excitement of the season and find your next favorite Yakima Valley wine? It’s also a perfect time stock up on wine for the holiday season. Take a lovey drive through the vineyards beginning to take on stunning fall colors and enjoy fall sipping.
Catch the Crush
Annual Crush festivities commence October 8 and 9. Wineries around the Valley have special events on the calendar to celebrate graph crush. Find harvest and winemaking experiences, grape stomping, harvest parties, delicious food and fun all around the Valley. You can find the full Catch the Crush lineup on our calendar, but here’s a sampling!
Start Crush weekend early on Friday, October 7, with Owen Roe Winery’s First Friday: Harvest Edition. Enjoy an immersive evening learning about harvest, the 2022 vintage and how wine is crafted from wine to glass. Sample a vertical tasting along with bites from Abundant Table, facility tours and barrel sampling. Purchase tickets in advance.
The brand new Whitman Hill Winery opens their doors for Crush with a gourmet hot dog bar complete with a variety of sauces and toppings and a Between the Vines estate tour. Reserve your spot for the tour and learn about stewardship in their vineyards and winery, followed by private tasting. Test your wine knowledge with grape trivia for entries in a drawing and enjoy savings off six bottles and cases. Above all, enjoy their beautifully renovated winery and gorgeous grounds with cabanas and fire pits for your fall sipping. Just a week later, catch their grand opening and fall release.
Paradisos del Sol offers an immersive, hands-on micro-crush experience. Learn how to analyze grapes for ripeness and desired properties. Then crush and press grapes to create a glass of grape juice for analysis. Grapes, sieves, test tubes, centrifuge, refractometer, pH meter and glasses included, you provide the taste buds. As usual, they also offer small-plate, perfectly paired bites to accompany your tasting. Reservations for the micro-crush experience are highly recommended.
More festivities abound at wineries around the valley, with more added every day. Find more grape stomp experiences, live music, food and paired bites, costume contests, corn hole tournaments, free-run juice, games and more.
Harvest Flavors & Fun
Be sure to leave time for a stop or two at local restaurants showcasing the abundant fall harvest, artfully paired with Yakima Valley wines. In addition to elevated, Northwest dining options, sample seasonal woodfired pizza at Bron Yr Aur Brewing Co and HopTown Woodfired Pizza.
Be sure to check out the Downtown Yakima Farmers Market on Sunday morning of Catch the Crush weekend. Farm stands throughout the Valley are full of your favorite fall fruits and vegetables. Stop by to stock up on fall flavors and pick up gifts, wine country décor and locally made artisan goods at Johnson Orchards, Thompson’s Farm Market in Naches and Washington Fruit Place @ Barrett Orchards, where you’ll also find October Days festivities underway. Make the trip to Bill’s Berry Farm for the annual Pumpkin Festival, complete with family fun activities and handmade pumpkin doughnuts.
Categorized in: Food and Dining, Live Music, Wine Country
