FEATURED WASHINGTON WINERY
STEVENS WINERY- WOODINVILLE,
WA
There are two main things
we look at when choosing a featured winery.
The first, of course is the wine. The second,
however is just as important, or maybe even
more. We are referring to “the experience”.
Two of our most enjoyable experiences with
this little venture we call “WineCOW”
have come from the same place, Stevens Winery
in Woodinville Washington. The first happened
by accident as we stumbled into this unknown
winery for their cabernet launch party (see
our article “The Winery Experience”).
The second was during our preparation for
this very feature, where a simple planned
interview turned into an amazing afternoon
of winemaking, drinking, talking, and lunch;
which included a surprise entrance of a
flambé cart. So, it only makes sense
to share the hospitality and greatness of
our new friends Tim and Paige Stevens of
Stevens Winery.
 You
see, with Stevens winery it’s all
about the experience. Whether it’s
the experience with their fantastic wine,
their modest but very comfortable tasting
room, or just a casual meal and conversation,
Tim and Paige make it memorable.
The whole experience for Tim Stevens, owner
and winemaker, has been one of playing it
by ear. That’s exactly what makes
Tim so likable and what makes his wines
so good. He reacts to the situation without
any preconceived notions or plan. One of
the things we were most inspired with was
the fact that Tim has no formal schooling
in winemaking. Instead he just jumped in
with his two hands and let the experience
of working knowledge lead him to the fantastic
wines he makes today; which is what Tim
and Paige shared with us one Sunday afternoon:
WineCOW: How did you get
into wine?
Stevens: “I actually
never used to like wine. Growing up, my
mother drank cheap boxed wine, which I never
liked. It was horrible. I could never get
into it.”
Tim was working as a commercial artist when
he decided to head back to school to study
English Literature. While going to school
he began working at Misty’s, a fine
dining restaurant in Bellevue, where he
had to taste and learn about the wine they
served. Through the restaurant’s wine
tastings, Tim was able to gain an understanding
and appreciation for quality wine, which
eventually grew into a love of fine wines.
That was “the place” that started
it all, says Tim. It was where he met his
wife Paige and through their mutual passion
for wine, which included excessive trips
to the wine store and tasting events, they
were also able to connect with several local
wine legends. These included Matt Loso of
Matthews Cellars, Scott Greer of Sheridan
Vineyards, and Mark McNeilly of Mark Ryan
Winery.
At the time Tim was home brewing beer and
decided to give winemaking a try by making
several berry wines, which he begrudgingly
referred to as “a blackberry/cranberry
juice with alcohol in it”. This little
experimentation in wine making eventually
grew into a larger desire to work with wine,
which led to his working with several winemakers
and vineyards around the state. Tim’s
first effort came when he left Misty’s
to work with Matthews Cellars as the assistant
winemaker in 1998. Eventually Matt (Matthew’s
owner/winemaker) offered Tim the opportunity
to make 2 barrels (~50 cases) of his own
wine, a merlot called “The Timley”.
The 50 or so cases of wine that were produced
from these barrels were only for friends
and personal use but it was a valuable learning
experience, which eventually led to Tim
opening up his own winery in 2002. Over
the past few years Stevens Winery has gone
from producing around 50 cases to about
1,000 cases this year.
WineCOW: Some people say
that making wine is art. As a commercial
artist, how do you approach the art of winemaking?
Stevens: “I start
with great fruit, because when you start
with great fruit you get great wine, so
we are really focused on the fruit.”
Most of Stevens’ grapes come from
Dineen and Sheridan Vineyards, which are
low yield areas (producing very rich fruit)
about 30 miles east of Yakima in Yakima
Valley. Both Tim and Paige enjoy visiting
the area, where they “love walking
the vineyards in the fall, chompin’
[grapes] as you’re walkin’ the
rows…the smell is life. The dirt,
the vines, the wild life.”
It’s this same free spirit attitude
and focus around the fruit that Stevens
incorporates into their wine and the winemaking
process. They use about 50% old and 50%
brand new barrels, so there is some essence
of toasted oak but not to the point where
it overpowers the natural flavor of the
wine/grapes. But of course when it comes
to making a new wine Tim remains flexible
and “plays the wine by ear”,
meaning he never has a set plan. Instead,
he consistently monitors how things are
going and reacts in order to guide the wine
throughout the creation process.
Through this progression of eb and flow
Tim creates wines that are very approachable.
“The stuff we do tends to be brighter
reds”, which are highly extracted
but very drinkable young. The resulting
wines don’t have huge tannins but
still have enough, enabling them to be around
and grow for a couple of years. This same
sense of free reign style is apparent in
their bottling as well. Tim says that “some
people deliberately bottle early or late,
or even on specific dates each year. I bottle
when the wine tastes great”. After
bottling they usually let the wine sit for
one year before releasing to the public,
which allows them to soften slightly, making
them more drinkable right away.
WineCOW: You create all
of the artwork for your labels yourself;
where do you get the inspiration for each
one?
Stevens: “It really
comes from whatever happens to inspire me
at that time. Things strike me at different
times in my life.”
Every year a new label, depicting different
artwork, is chosen for each wine. For example,
one label came from a lucky charm and another
came from the jacks (or stems) you pick
from the grapes during crush. Most of the
artwork is created specifically for that
wine but sometimes he uses art from older
projects. As Tim puts it, there is usually
an event or situation around the time he
is concepting new labels that will strike
his creativity and serve to drive the creation
of each label. It all just depends on that
“certain point in life…and what
grabs you at the time”.
Tim went on to share a funny story behind
one label’s inspiration, which featured
a wine thieve (a long, skinny glass tube
used to extract wine from barrels for tasting).
When the winery was just starting, and all
the barrels were stored at their house,
Tim would go down into the basement at night
to “thieve” the wine, tasting
its progress. From upstairs Paige would
yell down “stop drinking up our profits”.
So, Tim would walk back up the stairs, wine
thieve in hand, saying “you calling
me a thief?” That simple event turned
into a label featuring an engraved depiction
of the tips of wine thieves, as used on
their 2002 Yakima Valley Syrah, (which is
sold out by the way).
As you can see, this little winery came
from a passion that turned into a dream
and continues to build. Tim and Paige Stevens
are talented winemakers, terrific hosts,
and all around great people. Summing it
all up on a parting note from Paige: “It’s
all about living your dream. Life goes by
so fast and all these years go by and then
you find yourself saying what if? We never
wanted to say that.”
You can visit Steven’s Winery in Woodinville
Washington on Saturdays from 12:00pm to
4:30pm and by appointment…flambé
cart not included.
Steven’s
Winery
18510 142nd Ave. NE
Woodinville, WA 98072
p. 425-424-9463
info@stevenswinery.com
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