DeLille Cellars [July 2020]

I had always heard that the quaint little town of Woodinville had many wineries in which to choose from. Come to find out, the wine industry is what Woodinville is actually known for!! I’ve read that there are over 100 wineries, tasting rooms, breweries, and cideries along the river valley. I wasn’t really sure if they were all still open to the public, [I mean with it still being the year 2020] but I checked things out on a good old google search. I found that there were enough places still advertising as being open for tastings to make the hour or so drive worth our while.  

As I do with most everything, I made a preliminary itinerary. HA!! I started with the wineries that opened the earliest and went from there. It was a rainy Wednesday and we started out with DeLille Cellars. I walked in [Shawn decided to stay in the car and wait LOL] and they asked me if I had scheduled an appointment. This was news to me and even though no one else was even in the building, they wouldn’t let me in until I got online and scheduled a tasting. Done. It is no secret that I have been to A LOT of wineries and tastings rooms all over the place. However, I have to say this is the first place [and only place to date] that I almost felt out of place in.

I really felt like I was at an exclusive day spa resort or something. So, after I filled out the request for a wine tasting, they ushered me to an interesting looking table. [as seen in the picture below] They brought me a fancy menu, came back to take my order, and thankfully, wine is just as welcoming no matter where you are!! The pictured flight below, the row of delicious looking wine is what made me feel more at home. So, in 1990 four men got together [and I'm not a feminist or anything, but I wonder if maybe this place was missing that woman's touch??] to start a winery, and DeLille Cellars was born. Founded in 1992, by Greg Lill, his father Charles, and his two friends Chris Upchurch and Jay Soloff.

The “De” in DeLille does not stand for anything specific, but the name was chosen to honor the Lill’s family heritage. There is a distant relative by the name of Julius DeLille, when you look back into their ancestry. DeLille Cellars is the third oldest operating winery in Woodinville, and they are also one of Washington’s top producers of wine. They source their grapes in Red Mountain, from some of Washingtons most distinguished vineyards covering over 4,500 acres. In 2000 they planted their own little vineyard army of grapes in this region. Delille’s name is well known by top wine critics and influencers as a boutique artisan winery.

DeLille was one of first wineries to start blending red and white Bordeaux style wines. This ingenuity prompted a visit from Robert Parker, a now retired wine critic. Robert actually established the 100-point wine rating system that everyone is always boasting about. I’m drinking a Daou Cabernet Sauvignon right now, while I’m writing this weeks blog that has a 91-point rating. Haha!! It is said that Robert based his system along the same lines as the grading system of the American high school. Anyways, Robert visited DeLille and gave the winery a 5-star rating in excellence… one of the first wineries in Washing to achieve this high rating.

In 2022 DeLille Cellars celebrated their 30^th Anniversary. They do not believe that this is significant by industry standards, but they are proud of what they have created and maintained for three decades!! The founders know that they have the ability to grow something even bigger. They could share DeLille Cellars nationally and abroad, but they like the idea of keeping their world class wines and all that it takes to make them local to Washington. Maybe in their next 30 years, but as for now… they have well over a dozen Bordeaux style blends.

Speaking of blends, the founders of DeLille Cellars believe that “all good blends transcend the sum of their individual parts.” The meaning behind this is that each part of the blend is more favorable when they are presented together as a whole. Maybe I was intimidated, but I do not really remember if I liked any of the wines in my tasting. I do know that I did not buy any to take with me... things that make you go hmmmm!!

Whew... I didn't remember the feeling until I started writing, but I almost felt uncomfortable all over again just writing about DeLille. This may be the first winery I do not recommend. [that makes me feel sad] BUT.. come on back next week and Wine with Wixy will be visiting a fun looking tasting room, Patterson Cellars!!

Cheers to you my wine loving friends, and TTFN!!