Spoiled Dog Winery [September 2020]

Ok guys, dig deep now… do you remember when my sister, Lisa was visiting last year and we did that epic loop drive that included a wine tasting at Holmes Harbor Cellars on Whitbey Island?? Well, I am pretty sure that on the very same trip was when I first saw a sign for the Spoiled Dog Winery. I do not think they were open at the time we were there, but we did not have time to stop anyway. I can’t believe it took me almost a whole year to make it back. This time I had Shawn and my sweet, precious, baby angel, Parker with me.  

Spoiled Dog Winery was opened in 2003 by Jack and Karen Krug. They initially wanted to name the winery after themselves, you know like as in their family name, but there already several companies with the registered trademark. They decided to go with "Spoiled Dog Winery" in honor of their very spoiled dogs!! I totally love it!! Sami and Brix, a pair of Australian Shepards, are the resident spoiled dogs. The puppies have various jobs around the winery: official welcoming committee, guarding the grape vines, lounging in the tasting room and around the vineyards, and begging for belly rubs from patrons. Haha!!

Becoming a winemaker is Karen’s third career, she started in the workforce as an international lawyer, then went on to become an engineer. It was the applied science and chemistry of her second career that brought her into the world of wine. Add her love of tasting and pairing wine from all over the world, with her adventurous spirit and determination and you have a winning combination for success. The Krug’s, originally from Colorado, took a sailboat excursion around the Washington islands and saw firsthand what the small coastal towns had to offer. They fell for Whidbey Island.

They found a beautiful twenty-five-acre farm and wanted to grow Pinot Noir grapes, which are not known as an easy grape to grow in Washington. You see, Karen had a passion for Pinot Noir in particular. She did extensive research on Pinot grapes, including the best weather for growth, and the cloning process. [A grape clone is a genetically identical cutting taken from a "mother vine" and propagated to reproduce a vine with specific desirable traits, such as disease resistance, berry size, or ripening patterns.] Who knew this was even a thing!? She was ready to tackle the challenge.

Parker was such a good girl, and the best travel companion, along with Shawn and Steele. [I guess I'll include them.. Haha!!] I still miss her terribly and I’m so happy to have this memory with her in it. She was the ultimate “spoiled dog” so obviously we had to take her when we went to the winery!! There were a lot of doggies running around when we got to the “tasting yard” and Parker was a perfect little angle. You can see from the below photo that she was very interested in my tasting flight. Haha!!

Spoiled Dog Winery became a family run business with their son, Jake moving to the Island with his wife Lindsay and their two children. Jake and Lindsay brought a fresh perspective but more importantly, they also brought their French Bulldogs, Murphy and Winnie to the winery with them!! The Krugs didn’t just make wine from grapes, they made an apple pear wine from the fruit trees on the farm. They called it Pomo di Moro [meaning apple of love] The family was having such a blast working together that in 2017 they decided to open Driftwood Hard Cider.

The Krug family mission… “whether you are local or a visitor, Spoiled Dog Winery will become a regular destination to "wine down" and experience the joie de vivre [which translates to the “joy of living”] of Whidbey Island.

Next week Wine with Wixy will be back in Arizona!! Come on out and join us as we have found a real life and actual vineyard in the desert!! [Yes, I still have a lot to learn about wineries and vineyards.. LOL]

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