We drove from the Mercer family in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA past numerous vineyards on our way to the wineries in the Prosser area. The first stop was Snoqualmie Vineyards and then on to Pontin Del Roza. The afternoon had visits to Airfield Estates and Martinez & Martinez.

Snoqualmie is a large production facility making several hundred thousand cases. Grapes, sourced from the three regional AVA’s are used to make numerous wines. As trucks enter the facility a special machine measures the brix level of the grapes as well as the pH and TA. The winemaker immediately knows if the quality of the grapes based on those measures is up to par. We toured the facility and tried several of the wines. Although Snoqualmie is a large facility, the tasting room is small and has a personal appeal.

Our second stop for the day was at a smaller winery. Pontin Del Roza is owned and operated by the Pontin family where Scott is a third generation winemaker with family roots back to the Piedmont wine region of Italy. No wonder he has Italian varietal grapes growing on the 200 acres of vineyards. The modern interior of the wine tasting room has a pleasant fell including a fireplace with sofa and cushioned chairs.

Next we drove a few minutes to Airfield Estates on Merlot Drive in Vintner’s Village. This village is a community of wineries and tasting rooms and a wine traveler’s delight. Notice the model airplane built from wine barrels near the entrance to the Airfield Estates building. The tasting room is modern with an elegant appearance. There is plenty of room to spread out. Glass walls on one side of the tasting room provide visitors with views of two barrel storage rooms. One immediately gets the sense that wine is made here.

Our last wine stop was Martinez & Martinez located in the Winemakers Loft, a facility that houses several wineries. Martinez & Martinez occupies a small tasting room with the winery behind the tasting room. Visitors can taste wines crafted in small lots.  Ask about how the two Martinez families have made a dream come true.

Our first day was a delight. The wineries varied in size as did the tasting rooms and wines. We’re looking forward to a second day of discovering what the Prosser region can offer to wine travelers.

Cheers,

Terry