Sampling the Goods: Alexandria Nicole Cellars and Novelty Hill • Januik Winery

In our Sampling the Goods posts, we describe the vineyards, wineries and tasting rooms we visit and our experiences therein.

Plans were made to head up to Mt. Vernon to visit some friends and enjoy the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival on Saturday, April 9. Having caught the very tail end of it last year, we thought going early might be better. Well, with the cold spring we've had out here in the Puget Sound area, there weren't many tulips to be seen. Luckily, the Tulip Festival website has an excellent map showing which fields are blooming (not many on that day), so we skipped the flowers. But we couldn't just clean the house during the day - plans were made! So, we made a quick stop in Woodinville on our way up north. It's on the way. We swear.

Alexandria Nicole Cellars

We went to Alexandria Nicole because we hadn't been there and because we wanted to stay away from the Walla Walla wineries that we'll be visiting in a few weeks for Spring Release. In addition, they were recently named 2011 Washington Winery of the Year by Wine Press Northwest, so we thought we should see what the hype was about.

Sampling the Goods: Patterson Cellars Tasting Room on the Pike Street Hill Climb and Market Cellar Winery

In our Sampling the Goods posts, we describe the vineyards, wineries and tasting rooms we visit and our experiences therein.

Patterson Cellars Tasting Room on the Pike Street Hill Climb

Saturday, January 29 saw the grand opening of Patterson Cellars' new tasting room on the Pike Street Hill Climb, a cluster of restaurant and retail stores fronting on a set of steps connecting the Pike Place Market to the waterfront. Always up to check out some new wines and a new space, we dropped by with some friends after a morning matinee.