Craving a vacation but don’t have the time to fly to a different state or country? Fear not! Just a two-and-a-half hour drive south from Seattle, Vancouver offers a relaxing midweek or weekend getaway.
Vancouver offers many appealing options for visitors, from hikes to art to historic sites. All of that can be thirsty work, creating the perfect excuse to kick back and enjoy the many wines and craft beers the city has to offer. From waterfront wineries with stunning views to festivals, here’s your guide to local libations in Vancouver.
Clark County Wine Trail
The best way to sample a variety of wines from multiple tasting rooms is the Clark County Wine Trail. Be sure to download the mobile pass (it’s free!) to get discounts and even be entered to win prizes as you tour the trail.
Participants include sprawling vineyards in Ridgefield, like 14 Acres and Windy Hills Winery, to sleek waterfront wine tasting rooms, like Airfield Estates and Amavi Cellars and Pepper Bridge Winery. Downtown Vancouver spots include Burnt Bridge and SuLei Cellars, or try the cozy Emanar Cellars in Battle Ground.
“We’ve participated in the Clark County Wine Trail the last couple years and we’re thrilled at how popular it’s gotten,” says Jeremy Parker, Vancouver tasting room hospitality and sales manager at Airfield Estates Winery. “Being a part of the wine trail is incredible because it offers people who are either new to wine, or haven’t been to our winery before, an opportunity to experience everything we have to offer.”
Parker says the winery prides itself on offering something for everyone — from sweet whites to bold reds to their hugely popular frosé, all at reasonable price points. He credits this as one of the reasons they’ve become one of the most popular stops on the trail. In fact, Airfield has received the most check-ins from the Clark County Wine Trail pass since its launch June 1, 2022.
Wineries on the waterfront
It doesn’t get much better than enjoying a glass of your favorite wine — or a flight — with a gorgeous view of Vancouver’s waterfront.
“What’s really nice about the waterfront wineries is most of them come from Eastern Washington,” says Richard Meyerhoefer, president of the Southwest Washington Winery Association and co-owner of Emanar Cellars. “The waterfront in and of itself is a destination because of the tasting rooms and wineries. It’s the perfect place to go to taste eight or nine different wineries without having to go to Eastern Washington.”
Lori Stevens, co-owner of Airfield Estates Winery, says when they toured the waterfront in 2019 looking for a spot to open a tasting room, it was love at first sight. After looking for the right place in Vancouver for a long time, Stevens says they immediately knew the waterfront was where they wanted to open their doors.
Despite opening in March 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic slowed business everywhere dramatically, the tasting room managed to not only survive but thrive — and today, business is booming. “Everyone is really enjoying the wine and the atmosphere,” says Stevens. “The whole experience has just been great.”
What’s special about Vancouver wines
Vancouver wines and wineries are a major draw for visitors from all over the state and country for a number of reasons.
First and foremost is, of course, the quality of the wines themselves. Meyerhoefer explains that in the Vancouver area of southwest Washington, there’s a diverse mixture of state-grown grapes (known as cool-weather grapes) and grapes from Walla Walla and Eastern Washington. “So within this very small area, you can get a combination of high quality heavy reds, lighter reds, and whites. In a lot of areas, they’re not bringing grapes in from other AVAs.”
Southwest Washington’s wines are so highly respected that a new AVA (American Viticulture Area) application has been submitted for the area. This is an esteemed federal designation of a region in recognition of its potential to grow high-quality wine grapes. This distinction has been given to the likes of Napa and Sonoma, while its European equivalent has been bestowed on famous wine-tasting destinations including Burgundy, Champagne and Bordeaux in France. The Mount St. Helens AVA is slated to cover over 2,100 square miles of southwest Washington if it’s approved.
People are also drawn to Vancouver’s local wine scene because the vast majority of the wineries are family-run rather than corporate-owned, giving the experience a more personal feel.
“People really enjoy talking to the winemaker and talking to the owners,” says Meyerhoefer. “In our business it makes a big difference. It really does provide that feeling of being very involved when you’re talking to the owners and you get to hear their stories of how they make their wines and what they’re doing in the process.”
Stevens says that at Airfield Estates, visitors are especially interested in the winery’s rich history, which dates back to the early 1900s in Prosser, Washington. The founder was not only instrumental in the construction of the area’s irrigation canal, but the winery’s grounds also functioned as a military training site during World War II. Over 600 Army Air Corps pilots were trained on the property, and several of the original airplane hangars remain at Airfield Estates’ production facility to this day. “We like to share our history and our history of growing wine grapes,” says Stevens. “There’s all sorts of different elements and you might not touch on every single part of our history in one conversation, but each time someone comes back they might learn a new tidbit.”
Festivals with a kick
The 10th Craft Beer & Wine Fest will be held July 28-30 this year — so if you’re looking to sample a wide variety of wines, beers and cocktails, you’ll definitely want to make sure you’re in town. The festival offers over 60 craft beers and 100 craft wines, in addition to delicious local cuisine and cocktails.
If cocktails are your drink of choice, be sure to hit up happy hour from 5-7 p.m. July 28 to get a deal. As there is every year, there will be a brand-new craft cocktail menu.
The festival is held in beautiful Esther Short Park and you can sip your libation of choice while listening to live music from the likes of Quiet Riot and Great White.
For more music but with a focus on wine, don’t miss the Vancouver Wine & Jazz Festival. Held Aug. 25-27 this year, it’s a great way to cap off a summer of fun. Enjoy a variety of music, from local bands to New Orleans jazz to headliner Spyro Gyra. Plus a curated selection of wines and beer with plenty of delicious food options to help keep up your strength. Grab a snack, raise a glass in toast to summer, and dance the night away!
Visit Vancouver WA is the official destination marketing organization for Vancouver, Washington and greater Clark County. Learn more and start planning your trip at www.visitvancouverwa.com.