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Poberaj Wines
Jure Poberaj of Poberaj Wines Photos by Kelly Turso Jure Poberaj came to the United States when he was 6 years old. He was born in Slovenia not far from the Northeastern border of Italy. His family moved to Washington D C where he lived until pursuing a finance degree at Portland State University. The beauty and outdoor sports of the Columbia Gorge caused him to make the West Coast home, first in Hood River, OR and then in White Salmon, WA. He was a cook at Celilo Restaurant until he and his partner Nina opened a bakery in White Salmon. After several years making bread for the bakery, Jure decided the winemaking lifestyle was more to his liking. He went to Northeastern Italy to spend time with his pioneering winemaker uncle, Josko Gravner. After returning from Italy and completing a winemaking certificate from Cornell University, Jure launched his Poberaj Wines label in 2020. What Jure learned from his uncle was a winemaking style that predates
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Clyzm Wines
Austin Culver of Clyzm Wines Photos Courtest of Clyzm Wines The year Austin Culver was born, his father planted a small hobby Zinfandel vineyard. He did so, in part, to teach Austin the importance of work ethic, especially in the area of agriculture. So Austin was engaged in vineyard work at a very young age, but had no intention of becoming a winemaker. In fact, he went to college to major in biochemical engineering, but ended up graduating with a degree in biochemistry. Austin wasn’t your typical pre-med biochemistry major. His goal after graduating was to get a job to do with cannabis, beer or wine. Austin worked with cannabis, beer and urine samples before he eventually found his way back to grapes and wine. He worked two years for Cascade Cliffs Winery, before heading to New Zealand and eventually the Willamette Valley to work harvests. When he was ready to launch his own label, he returned to the Columbia Gorge. Austin s
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Cor Cellars
Luke Bradford of Cor Cellars Photos Courtesy of Cor Cellars A rock climbing trip in Italy changed the course of Luke Bradford’s life. When he finished the climbs, a family member invited Luke to his winery south of Siena in Tuscany. The rolling bucolic Tuscan countryside, thousand-year old buildings, and romantic lifestyle sucked him in until he was hooked. Luke took a job at the winery during harvest for his remaining years at Evergreen State College, cobbling together an independent study program in chemistry, winemaking, and working harvests in Italy. After graduating, he went back to Italy to work harvests for the family in Tuscany and Sicily. He returned to WA state in 2002 to search for a winery job, which he found fortuitously at Wind River Cellars in the Columbia Gorge. Another happy accident led him to property in Lyle, WA where he founded Cor Cellars in 2004. Today, Luke and his wife Meg are both fully involved in owning a
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Ruby Magdalena Vineyards
Marty Johnson of Ruby Magdalena Vineyards Photos Coutesy of Marty Johnson Montana is not typically associated with fine wine. But that is where Marty Johnson discovered his passion for wine in the 1970s. He was a forestry student at the University of Montana, and cultivated a friendship with the owner of a local wine shop. The shop was a source of affordable wines from around the world, and Marty tasted many, while also reading books on wine and wine history. The bottle that made him fall in love with wine is one he held on to for over 2 decades for a special occasion. It was a 1973 Veuve Cliquot La Grande Dame, and he can still remember how it tasted and felt in his mouth. In 2005, Marty and his wife Ryan moved to WA state where Marty worked for three different wineries, while also starting his own vineyard and label. Marty and Ryan planted their first grapes in 2007, and they received a winery license in 2014 for their Ruby Magdalena Vi
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Hyatt Vineyards
Samantha Mallery of Hyatt Vineyards Photos Courtesy of Hyatt Vineyards Hyatt Vineyards is one of Washington state’s pioneer wineries and vineyards. Founded by Leland and Lynda Hyatt, the winery today is among the largest producers in the Rattlesnake Hills AVA. Leland planted the first wine grapes in 1983, and received his winery license in 1986, with Wade Wolfe as his first winemaker. Within the past several years, Leland’s and Lynda’s children have assumed the reins at Hyatt Vineyards with the goal of continuing the Hyatt reputation for excellent and affordable wines. The winery remains family run and fully estate, with 78 acres under vine and planted with 11 different grape varieties. The iconic Hyatt windmill is a recognized landmark on spacious grounds offering stunning views of both Mount Rainier and Mount Adams. In January 2025, Samantha Mallery came on board as Hyatt’s winemaker. She was attracted to the job, in part, by the rich legacy and history
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Above the Curve Vineyard
Cindy & Mike Jacobsen of Above the Curve Vineyard Photos Courtesy of Above the Curve Mike and Cindy Jacobsen were school psychologists active in assessment in 6 different school districts on the Seattle side of Washington state. On Friday afternoons, they would go to wine tastings at their local QFC grocery store. Just as they were retiring, the Somm running the tastings decided to open a wine shop and bar in Enumclaw and was looking for investors. Mike and Cindy ended up investing and working in the wine shop. They sometimes went wine tasting in the Prosser area, and fell in love with the community. It wasn’t long before they purchased their dream property with a vineyard and right close to the Yakima River. It took two years for their house to be built, so they regularly came with their RV so they could monitor the house progress and work on the vineyard. Their property located between Prosser and Benton City contained some of the
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Dumas Station Wines
Jay DeWitt of Dumas Station Wines Photos Courtesy of Dumas Station Wines When 4th generation farmer Jay DeWitt was growing up in Walla Walla, he never imagined he would have a career in the wine industry. There was no wine or alcohol of any kind in the DeWitt household, except on New Year's Eve. It wasn’t until Jay was working as a crop consultant in CA that he had his first taste of wine. He remembers that first sip well. It was a 1976 Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon, and the experience changed his life. He had never tasted anything so good, and he has had a glass of wine every day of his life since that first sip. He and his wife moved back to Walla Walla, and Jay made hobby wine in their dining room, using a trash can as a fermentation vessel. In 2003, he and a friend decided to make wine commercially, and Dumas Station Wines was born. There’s a lot of history behind the brand name and the tasting room/winery site several miles south of Dayt
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The Wine Collaboration
Tim Hightower, Gina Adams and JJ Compeau of The Wine Collaboration Photos courtesy of The Wine Collaboration Before there was a collective space, there was a collective wine--a Bordeaux style blend with a bit of Syrah to be specific. During the pandemic when wineries were locked down and stressed out, Hightower Cellars, Wit Cellars and Narratif Wines were having fun making a friendship wine together. Over time, this collaborative wine morphed into a vision of a collaborative space and business. They just needed to find the right spot. That spot turned out to be a fascinating historic building in the small, charming mountain town of Roslyn, WA. The business is The Wine Collaboration , which opened in March 2025, after much renovation work on the building. Rather than three separate tasting rooms under one roof, The Wine Collaboration is a totally separate business—a wine bar and bottle shop where visitors can order flights, glasses and bottles of wine
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Wine Research in WA State
Julie Tarara of the WA State Wine Commission Photos courtesy of Julie Tarara and Melissa Hansen Julie Tarara grew up in New England never imagining she would have a job related to wine. Her interest was in specialty crops, and she went to France as an undergraduate student to explore these crops. She also had her first exposure to wine by sipping on some French Muscadet. Julie eventually received a PhD degree in Agronomy from Kansas State University. Fresh out of graduate school, a USDA job brought her to Prosser, WA where she worked for 16 years with juice and wine grapes. When she arrived in WA state, she did not know that Chardonnay was a white wine grape. She learned quickly about wine as well as grapevines, and eventually became a viticulturalist for Ste Michelle Wine Estates and a vineyard consulting company. In November 2025, she became the Research Program Manager for the WA State Wine Commission. In that capacity, Julie oversees
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Dineen Vineyards & Winery
Melissa Dineen and Brian Mackey of Dineen Vineyards and Winery Photos courtesy of Dineen Vineyards Although Pat Dineen pursued a career in banking, he had grown up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin. A love of the land and farming life was in his DNA. He and Lanie also loved wine, and visited many of the world’s wine regions. When Pat retired from banking, the idea of planting a vineyard seemed very attractive. The couple looked at property in California and Walla Walla before settling in 2001 on 12 acres in Zillah. They purchased 80 more acres the next year and today Dineen Vineyards has roughly 100 acres of vines, all in the Zillah area. In 2022, Pat and Lanie passed ownership of Dineen Vineyards on to their daughter Marissa, whose career in finance and time spent in Europe prepared her well for developing a wine brand. Under her leadership, Dineen is becoming known for its wines as well as its excellent fruit. Marissa Dineen is a force in th
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Auction of WA Wines
Katie Maltais, Executive Director of Auction of WA Wines Photos by Rick Duval—Duval Images and Curbow Photo When she majored in theatre arts and arts administration during her college years, Katie Maltais never imagined she would one day have a job involving wineries. Although her theatre program required her to perform on the stage, she knew this was not an appropriate career track for her. Spreadsheets and administration were much more to her liking, and so Katie has spent most of her career directing regional theatre companies. Most recently, she was Executive Director of the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle. But when she left that job and was trying to decide what to do next, a friend suggested she apply for the Executive Director position at the Auction of WA Wines, one of the largest wine charity auctions in the US. Although she knew nothing about wine except as a consumer, she did apply, and has now been in the position officially for nearly 6 months.
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Enodav Wine Co.
David Rodriguez of Enodav Wine Co. When David Rodriguez was growing up in Mexico, he never imagined a career in wine. In fact, he didn’t like chemistry and other science classes at all. Instead, he gravitated to the arts and humanities, studying music and law. It wasn’t until he started playing music with friends and colleagues that he was exposed to wine, as a lot was drunk after performances and during dinners. He eventually became more interested in wine than anything else, and started reading books about wine. After reading Karen Macneil’s The Wine Bible , David decided to pursue a career in wine and enrolled in a viticulture and enology program in Mendoza, Argentina. He came to Washington state in 2017 after falling in love with Washington wine, and enrolled in the Yakima Valley College Wine Program to learn about winegrowing in WA. Chance meetings and internships led to various jobs in wineries and vineyards in the Zillah area. Davi
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Metropolitan Grill Wine Program
Chris Lara, Director of the Wine Program at the Metropolitan Grill in Seattle - Grand Award Winner Since 2018 Photos by Andrew Valentine, except for the dining room interior by Suzi Pratt. When Chris Lara was growing up, he never imagined a career in fine dining restaurants. He thought he might want to become an actor. But the jobs he got were all in restaurants, and eventually he was hooked on a hospitality career. The job that cemented his career as a “wine guy” was at Crush Restaurant in the Seattle area. As the restaurant grew in popularity, the chef and owner no longer had time to tend to the wine list. Chris gradually took over and made a decision that sealed his fate as guardian of the list. He was introduced to a Bandol Rosé for the first time and decided to put it on the wine list as a glass pour. Doing so was a gamble because of the price, but guests couldn’t get enough of it. And Chris couldn’t get enough of wine related work.&
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Bon Somm Global Wine & Cheese Boutique
Kristine Miller of Bon Somm Global Wine & Cheese Boutique For this 200th milestone episode , I would like to thank all my guests over the past nearly 11 years. Your stories full of guts, passion, vision and determination have been truly inspirational. I would also like to thank my sponsors: Ellensburg Community Radio, Blind Renaissance, Ellensburg Travel, Northwest Portal, Canyon River Ranch, Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center, and Inn at Horse Heaven. Without your support, Lines on Wines would not be possible. When Kristine Miller was studying Organizational Leadership and Political Science at Central Washington University in the early 2000s, she never imagined a career in wine and hospitality. It was a junior-year internship at Disney and a particular bottle of white wine that ultimately changed her career trajectory. The internship involved her working in a premier restaurant with an award-winning wine list. She became so obsessed with wine and hospitality that, a
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Trothe & Sagebreaker Wines
Jeff Andrews and Ray McKee of Trothe and Sagebreaker Wines Jeff Andrews and Ray McKee both have deep family roots in the Washington wine industry. Jeff’s roots in the Horse Heaven Hills go back 4 generations to his great grandparents who were dryland wheat farmers. The discovery of water on the land in the 1950s enabled Jeff’s parents and grandparents to grow many different crops. In 1994, Jeff’s father planted the first Andrews Family Vineyard vines, and at its most extensive acreage the vineyard was 1300 acres with over two dozen different grape varieties. Ray’s parents, Joel and Pam Tefft, moved to Washington in the mid-1980s with the goal of planting a vineyard and starting a winery. Between 1987 and 1991, they transformed a Concord vineyard in the Yakima Valley into one with wine grapes, including such varieties as Chenin Blanc, Sangiovese, Nebbiolo and Syrah. In 1991, they made their first Tefft Cellars wines, and continued to grow production u
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Yakima Valley Vintners
Trent Ball and Annette Wattenbarger of Yakima Valley Vintners Student wines from Yakima Valley College’s wine program have won more prestigious Platinum Awards than wines from any other college program in the Pacific Northwest. The YVC program began in 2007, and is grounded in hands-on educational experiences that prepare students for a variety of jobs in the wine industry. Classes are held in the evening so that students can continue to hold full or part-time jobs during their studies. Students can pursue certificates in such things as wine sales, or Associate Degrees in Vineyard and Winery Technology. Facilities include an on-campus vineyard and winery at the Grandview campus, and tasting rooms at both the Grandview and Yakima campuses known as Yakima Valley Vintners . The Yakima tasting room is next door to the Larson Gallery, and the two often partner on events. Trent Ball was hired in 2006 to help design the facilities and curriculum. He is curr
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Locus Wines & A/Stir Restaurant
Rich Burton & Ton Yazici of Locus Wines & A/Stir Restaurant After spending years in the corporate world, Rich Burton and Ton Yacizi decided to pursue their passion for wine and food. They were known for lavish dinner parties in their private home, and this reputation eventually led to Rich becoming a winemaker and Ton a chef. Rich made his first wine in 2012, launching the Locus Wines brand. Ton eventually became general manager and executive chef at Locus, where you can order wine in a flight, glass or bottle, along with food pairings. The lovely tasting room is in Pioneer Square, and can be rented for events with full catering available. In 2023, the two men purchased the Capitol Cider Restaurant in the Capitol Hill area of Seattle, and rebranded it as A/Stir Restaurant , with a gluten free menu focused on Northern Mediterranean cuisine. Rich is partial to Rhone style wines for his reds and rosé, and Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon for his white wines
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Sigillo Cellars
Ryan Seal of Sigillo Cellars After college, Ryan Seal owned and operated a coffee business, and eventually spent 20 years selling medical devices. In 2005, his golf foursome started making wine in a garage to help one of the four learn about winemaking. That garage project became Sigillo Cellars in 2009, and they sold their first commercial wines the following year. Sigillo is an appropriate name for their winery, because it means seal in Italian. Ryan had a friend who offered them winemaking space in a huge old body shop in Snoqualmie, which became the winery and tasting room in 2010. Snoqualmie is an old logging town with a charming historic block, and the oldest continually operating train depot in the US. You can still take the train to North Bend and to the top of Snoqualmie Falls. Sigillo Cellars’ tag line is “Don’t taste wine, experience it.” Today the winery has tasting venues that allow visitors to do just that. In 2014, th
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WeatherEye Vineyard & MTN/ART Wines
Ryan Johnson of WeatherEye Vineyard & MTN/ART Wines Ryan Johnson grew up making mischief with his art supplies. He excelled in art at school, and ended up majoring in it while at community college. Although he eventually shifted to a pre-med track with the goal of becoming an eye doctor, he has always turned to art as a form of self-expression. Just before enrolling in his pre-med classes in anatomy and physiology, a phone call changed his life. The caller was Jim Holmes, owner of Ciel du Cheval Vineyard on Red Mountain. He invited Ryan for a tour of the vineyard, and after driving around, he stopped his truck and asked Ryan to be his vineyard manager. That was the start of Ryan’s career on Red Mountain, which now spans roughly 25 years and multiple premier vineyards. The most recent is WeatherEye Vineyard , which some have called the most ambitious vineyard in the United States. The idea for WeatherEye began in 2004 when Cameron Myhrvold start
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Prohibition Cellars
Sandor & Sabrina Faludi of Prohibition Cellars Sandor Faludi grew up in Southern Hungary where his grandfather owned a vineyard and made wine. He often helped out in the vineyard, and eventually studied enology and viticulture in Hungary’s Villány wine region. His wife Sabrina is from the US, and is first generation Hungarian-American. After spending her childhood summers in Hungary, Sabrina decided at the age of 18 to attend university there. It was during her freshman year that she met Sandor, and they have been together ever since. In 2010 they moved to CA where Sandor worked in the wine industry, but also made wine in their garage. They dreamed of owning their own winery some day with the name of Prohibition Cellars . A 2016 road trip took them to Washington state where they fell in love with the wine and the people. That same year they moved to Woodinville, and before long licensed their two-car garage as Prohibition Cellars.&n
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Samā Cellars
Chaz Bangur of Samā Cellars Growing up in India, Chaz Bangur did not drink wine or any other form of alcohol. It was taboo in many families. Graduate study for a PhD in Biochemistry first brought him to the US in 1993, specifically to Buffalo, New York. In 1999, he moved to Seattle where he worked in biotech on developing innovative cancer therapies. He also completed an MBA in technology management at the University of Washington, and eventually went to work for Microsoft. He developed friendships with people interested in wine, and they took him on trips to Woodinville and, eventually, to Eastern Washington vineyards and wineries. He fell in love not only with WA wine, but also with the winemaking process, which he discussed with all the winemakers he met. When his daughter went away to college, he decided to enroll in the Northwest Wine Academy to learn how to make wine on a commercial scale. Chaz’s first vintage was 2022, and he opened his
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Page Cellars
Todd Krivoshein of Page Cellars When Todd and Dee Krivoshein became club members at Page Cellar s founded in 2000 by Jim and Rothelle Page, they never imagined they would one day own the winery. Todd did have a love of winemaking kindled during his young years when he helped out at his uncle’s Walla Walla winery. He also helped Jim out in the cellar, so was very familiar with winery work. During covid he just happened to be looking for a new job at the same time Dee saw an ad for a winery up for sale. The description sounded a lot like Page Cellars so they inquired, and the rest is history. They became owners of Page Cellars in 2021 and Todd became the winemaker, with a lot of excellent mentoring from Jim. Todd and Dee continue the vision and traditions that have made Page Cellars successful from the beginning. A key aspect of that vision is a commitment to Red Mountain fruit for Page Cellars red wines. Todd spends time in the vines and s
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Aluvé Winery
JJ & Kelly Menozzi of Aluvé Winery Their Air Force Academy class had 1,000 students in it, 900 of them men. So it wasn’t until they pursued a Master’s degree in a smaller class setting that JJ and Kelly Menozzi met. They eventually became partners in life and in the sky, with JJ flying an F16 and Kelly a Boeing 707 fit with a device for refueling in the air. They travelled the world, moving 17 times during the 24 years they were in the Air Force. On weekends they visited wine regions wherever they were, and especially enjoyed the wines of Italy and Argentina. They also fell in love with the people, wine and town of Walla Walla while they were stationed in Idaho. When it came time to retire from the Air Force, the lure of Walla Walla convinced them to pursue winegrowing as a second career. In 2010, Kelly and JJ purchased 10 acres on the North side of the Mill Creek Valley, and had to start from scratch to turn the property into a home for themse
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Foolhardy Vintners
Jonathan Edelman and Dan Sogg of Foolhardy Vintners When Jonathan Edelman and Dan Sogg met years ago as freshmen at Bowdoin College in Maine, they never imagined they would one day own a winery together. Although they both grew up in wine drinking families, their path to owning their own winery was a long and twisted one. Jonathan became a Michelin restaurant chef, and also spent twenty years in the technology world. Dan worked at wineries in France, spent a decade writing for the Wine Spectator , and still works for a cooper in Burgundy. The first vintage of their own Foolhardy Vintners brand was 2016, and they opened a tasting room in downtown Walla Walla in March 2025. The tasting room is in the historic McDonald Seed and Stable building dating from 1905. Dan and Jonathan have spent their lives drinking mostly old-world wines, and this experience has influenced their palates and wine style. Their goal is to make food-friendly wines that are