A wine tasting trip to Willows Lodge in Woodinville Washington

In February I had cabin fever like one only really gets at sea. Terrible gloomy moods, boredom, irritability and all the stuff that just doesn't suit a girl about town very well. Needless to say, no sooner was D home from his month-long trip to India before I was forcing him back into the car for a much needed weekend getaway.

I found our hotel, the Willows Lodge on Jetsetter, the great thing about Jetsetter (aside from its affiliation with the droolworthy Gilt Groupe) is that their staff has actually stayed in all the hotels they feature, and they seem to have pretty good taste!
The Willows Lodge is also dog friendly! Here is my dog about town, Regen enjoying the fireplace in our room. All the rooms are rustic chic, with fireplaces and big soaking tubs. There is even a doggie turn down service, and dog treats on the room service menu. Look at the size of the bathtub! The staff was super friendly, and the hotel is perfectly located for wine tasting. And tasting we did!


The thing about Woodinville compared to Oregon wine country is they don't actually produce wines there. So the wineries are usually just tasting rooms. Unlike Oregon where they are very far apart and you have to designate a driver or hire a tour in Woodinville you can walk!


Next door to the Willows Lodge is the the Red Hook Brewery, a rather large "microbrew" where for only $1 you can take a beer tour, complete with your own Red Hook pint glass to keep, and if you answer the beer trivia questions right, they'll fill up your glass with more beer! In the summer Red Hook is usually hopping, with concerts, movies, and all kinds of fun events taking place on their grounds.

After a quick lunch at Red Hook we walked over to Novelty Hill/Januik. A beautiful ultra sleek and modern building, where we tasted wine as the snow fell on a courtyard featuring traditional stone bocce ball courts. Foursquare told me in the summer they have events and allow dining on the courtyard where they serve wood fired pizzas. We took home a bottle of the Novelty Hill Syrah.



From here we walked over to Chateau Ste. Michelle. Which happens to be the winery that introduced me to wine! The largest winery in Washington (I think) with a huge grounds, that is also absolutely beautiful and probably just as well known for their summer concert series as their Riesling. I don't recommend tasting at Chateau Ste. Michelle since their wines are widely available in most grocery stores, but we walked around the grounds and made a point to find the peacock

After walking Chateau Ste. Michelle we'd processed most of the wine we drank at Novelty Hill, so we headed to Mark Ryan, probably one of the most unique tasting rooms I've visited. Their website does absolutely no justice. They had a rock and roll theme with vintage and modern rock and roll posters and classic rock music playing. I was totally enamoured with those rock and roll posters and now I regularly fantasize about having posters like that in my house. The wines even had edgy names, like Black Love, and Long Haul. I think one of the best parts of this winery, (aside from that gorgeous yellow buffet) is the restored Indian motorcycles on display in the tasting room. I love brands that take two unexpected elements and combine them together to form their identity. The combination of "classy wine" meets edgy rock rebel is looking pretty good so far at Mark Ryan!

Across the parking lot from Mark Ryan is Alexandria Nicole, one of the 2011 Washington Wineries of the Year. Their tasting room is located in the cellar portion of a cool old schoolhouse, giving it a cave-like feel. Apparently Alexandria Nicole also sponsors "glamping" trips in their vineyards. Sneak peek at Glamping in a vineyard. Um, yes please.

If you're the type that likes to mix things up a little bit, you're in luck because Woodinville has a fledgling distillery industry as well. We made a quick pitstop at the Woodinville Whiskey Company. Currently all their whiskeys are still white dog, which means clear and unaged, so it's got a more mild and smooth taste. Great for non-whiskey drinkers.

I'd keep an eye on them. Not to mention, you can buy your own mini whiskey barrel for tabletop aging.

During this trip, we also ate some great food. I'll be sure to post about the restaurants we visited very soon. But in the meantime, check out Willows Lodge if you are looking for a destination hotel in the Seattle area!