Yakima Wine Country Picnics

Treveri Cellars - Yakima Valley

Yakima Wine Country Picnics

May 22, 2019

It’s picnic weather! Soak up the sunshine and take in the vineyard vistas with picnic lunch at one of more than 100 wineries in the Yakima Valley. Many offer food selections to pair with their wines, or you can fill your own picnic basket from a local farm-to-table marketplace, bistro or bakery.

Yakima Area Wineries

  • Gilbert Cellars  Spend time enjoying these locally made wines paired with a gourmet cheese plate featuring Tieton Farm & Creamery hand-made cheeses.
  • Wilridge Vineyards, Winery and Distillery Charcuterie boards are offered daily and food trucks serve tasty fare on live music days and event days. You can always bring your own picnic to enjoy on their sweeping lawn overlooking the vineyard above Cowiche Canyon.
  • Treveri Cellars Choose from election of small plates, gourmet flatbreads, charcuterie boards and more to accompany your bubbly. Enjoy special event menus for Spring Barrel weekend and Mother’s Day Sunday brunch. Don’t miss Happy Hour Fridays and live music, all with food for purchase. Outside food is not allowed.
  • Freehand Cellars  OPENING SUMMER 2019! This winery sits on the top of the hill with stunning views of the Valley and Mt. Adams. Soak up the sunshine and taste their fine wines on the deck. For dining, choose from gourmet spanakopita bites, herbed hummus crostini, a charcuterie plate, antipasto skewers and mini snack bowls of fruit and nuts. Visitors may bring their own picnic foods. 

Zillah Area Wineries

  • Bonair Winery Shop the “Bonair Mini Mart” and snack on a selection of cheeses, salamis, crackers, chips, jerky, treats, pop, cold wine and more. Enjoy your picnic on the outside patio overlooking the duck pond.
  • Dineen Vineyards  Guerra’s Gourmet serves up delicious, gourmet, wood-fired pizza using fresh, local ingredients on Saturdays. Share a pizza and sip fantastic wines on the beautiful covered patio with a great view of the vineyards, surrounding hills and Mt. Adams.
  • J. Bell Cellars and Lavender  After sipping through a J. Bell Cellars wine flight, kick back in the scenic courtyard with a glass of wine and some farm fresh cuisine made to order from their brick oven. The menu is always as fresh as the ingredients and there will always be something new to try! The oven is fired up every Saturday and Sunday, 11 am to 4:30 pm. The menu is posted on the website weekly. While you’re there, entice your senses with the aroma of lavender filling the air.
  • VanArnam Vineyards The Tin Roof Grill at VanArnamis open Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 5pm. Enjoy fresh items off the grill offered in their beautiful courtyard overlooking the Yakima Valley. The menu varies and includes fresh grilled sandwiches and salads using ingredients sourced locally. Vegan options are available. You can always bring your own basket of goodies.

Prosser Wineries

  • Milbrandt Winery Share charcuterie plates as you sit on their patio or in the beautiful tasting room. Small plates are available year-round.
  • Mckinley Springs  Pair charcuterie plates and McKinley Springs wine for a great combination. Find food trucks on event or live music weekends.
  • Mercer Estate Cheese plates are available for purchase, but you can bring your own picnic to enjoy on their outside seating. You’ll also find a retail space full of delightful gifts and gourmet food products to add to your picnic.
  • Alexandria Nicole Cellars They offer breads and cheese to pair with your wine tasting.
  • Walter Clore Center A tasting menu is availableFriday, Saturday and Sunday from 11:30 am to 4:30 pm. When we say “tasting menu” at the Clore Center, we don’t meanwine tasting! We’re talking about delicious small portions of food made with local ingredients, designed to pair with wine. The Tasting Menu (or as the French call it, “Menu Dégustation”) rose to modern popularity in the 1990s, but the concept has been around in some form for centuries. The idea is to provide small portions of multiple options to allow guests to try a variety of menu items in one sitting. You can have one or two, or have the whole menu to make a more complete meal, or share with friends! Stop in and savor the tasting menu, designed by Chef Nena to showcase local ingredients, while you sip expertly paired Washington wines. Bon Appétit!
  • Desert Wind Winery Jade’s British Girl Treats, the in-winery chocolate shop, offers delicious gourmet chocolates and baked goods that are the perfect complement to your wine country experience at Desert Wind Winery. Jade Visser is the local, acclaimed chef behind this incredible addition to the winery. Chocolates and bakery are open daily from 11am to 5 pm. Lunch service, offering mouth-watering sandwiches crafted on freshly baked bread is available Thursday through Saturday from 11 am 4 pm.
  • Columbia Crest Winery Picnic on their beautifully landscaped grounds and pick up some deli items, cheese and crackers in the tasting room.

Red Mountain Wineries

Hedges Family Estate offers a refrigerated selection of gourmet salami, cheeses, olives and crackers to enjoy on the beautiful terrace in front of the French chateau overlooking the Red Mountain vineyards.

Tour & Lunch

  • Owen Roe Winery offers a Winery Tour and seated tasting, which includes a charcuterie board for lunch. This is available by appointment Friday through Sunday at 12 pm. Receive a private tasting of their signature wines for up to eight guests and learn about Owen Roe’s winemaking, history and dedication to providing handcrafted wines from the estate and partnering vineyards. This tasting is paired with a cheese and charcuterie board. Please plan for a two-hour visit. This experience is complimentary to Wine Club Members and is $40 per person for non-members. Sign up online for this unique experience.
  • Columbia Crest Enjoy their Wine & Food Pairing Experience. Enrich your food and wine pairing knowledge with a guided wine and small food bites tasting experience. Held in a private setting, you will enjoy unique gourmet bites selected to bring out the best in their award-winning Columbia Crest wines. This experience lasts approximately 45 minutes and is $25 per person or $20 per person for wine club members.
  • Desert Wind Winery Make time for their Vineyard to Glass Tour and Seated Tasting experience led by one of Desert Wind’s wine educators. Guests will receive a behind-the-scenes look at winery operations, including a walk through the vineyards where you’ll learn about the history of the Columbia Valley, the Wahluke Slope and our viticulture practices. Next, you’ll enjoy a full, seated tasting where your wine educator will lead you through a flight of their small lot wines, each expertly paired with a fine selection of hors d’oeuvres. From vineyard to glass, this experience will broaden your knowledge of Washington wine and provide you with valuable tools for pairing Desert Wind wines in your own kitchen. They welcome groups of 2-8 people for this tasting experience; groups smaller than eight may be combined with other tasters, but the total group size will not exceed eight guests. The experience lasts approximately 90 minutes and costs $40 per guest. Available times are 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. Please call 509.786.7277 to reserve your experience.

Where to fill your picnic basket!

  • Provisions Marketplace. This farm-to-table restaurant has everything you need to fill a gourmet picnic basket, from cheeses to salami, fruits and assorted crackers, salads, sandwiches and chocolates.
  • Essencia Bakery. Pick up a gourmet sandwich and baked goodness to take winetasting from this locally owned bakery in Downtown Yakima.
  • Panera Bread Choose from the extensive menu of soups, salads and sandwiches to pack in your basket. Best of all, order online and avoid the line. Grab your bag from the Rapid Pick-Up shelf and you’re on your way!
  • Bon Vino’s Bistro: Pick up panini sandwiches, salads, pastas, deli sandwiches and more. Located in Sunnyside, they’re open from 6 am to 11am for breakfast and from 11am to 3 pm for lunch. Please have a look at the online menu, and order ahead by phone 509.837.3936.

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