Here are some local selections that have won various acclaim and awards from around the country for being great wines. Look into these the next time you're in search for a new bottle of wine.

Winery: Betz Family Winery
Location: Woodinville, WA
Wine: 2004 Clos de Betz Red Wine
Region: Columbia Valley
Price: $35.00

Awards/Accolades:
91 points - Wine Spectator

Industry Comments:
Pure, penetrating aromas of cherry, raspberry, slight vanilla, baking spice, with an overwhelming sense of berry. A great sense of harmony; supple and fine.

Winery: Baer Winery
Location: Woodinville, WA
Wine: 2004 Ursa Red Wine
Region: Columbia Valley
Price: $30.00

Awards/Accolades:
91 points - Wine Spectator

Industry Comments:
The 2004 Ursa continues the evolution of our signature wine. Ursa is designed as a more feminine expression of a red wine blend – beautifully aromatic with velvety tannins. This new vintage takes even further steps toward our definition of refined balance and mouthfeel. Blending lush, warm Merlot with seductively floral Cabernet Franc creates an elegant wine that pairs particularly well with food. Expressive and approachable, this is a fine wine that may be enjoyed now or cellared for up to 10 years.

Winery: Reininger Winery
Location: Walla Walla, WA
Wine: 2004 Helix Pomatia
Region: Columbia Valley
Price: $20

Awards/Accolades:
90 points - Wine Spectator

Industry Comments:
Lithe, supple and distinctive for the creamy chocolate and pepper overtones to the ripe plum and blackberry fruit. Finishes round and polished. Drink now through 2011. 672 cases made.

Winery: Owen Roe Winery
Location: Newberg, OR
Wine: 2005 Ex Umbris Syrah
Region: Columbia Valley
Price: $24

Awards/Accolades:
91 points - Wine Spectator

Industry Comments:
The Bruce Morford’s Slide Mountain Vineyard in western Yakima Valley has yielded a 2005 Syrah with tremendous richness, balancing the cooler, smoky Lewis Vineyard in The Dalles, while the Elerding in Alderdale, WA has provided unctuous fruitiness. A fabulously aromatic and full-bodied Syrah! 2005 was a first rate Syrah vintage and this exemplifies all the fragrance, texture, and deep plum/gamey characteristics of great Syrah.

Winery: Pepper Bridge Winery
Location: Walla Walla, WA
Wine: 2004 Merlot
Region: Columbia Valley
Price: $45.00

Awards/Accolades:
90 points - Wine & Spirits

Industry Comments:
Our 2004 Merlot is bright, featuring clean and luscious flavors of wild black cherries and dark plums with intriguing notes of whipped chocolate mousse, exotic spices and earth. Rich, layered and concentrated, this plush Merlot finishes with a smooth, refined elegance.

Winery: Amavi Cellars
Location: Walla Walla, WA
Wine: 2004 Syrah
Region: Columbia Valley
Price: $28.00

Awards/Accolades:
93 points - Wine & Spirits

Industry Comments:
This feels a bit tough when first poured, but with air the gaminess lifts and a beautiful wine emerges, ripe and savory, with hints of black cherry and smoked meat, brooding and dense. A fine wine for venison.

Winery: DeLille Cellars
Location: Woodinville, WA
Wine: 2004 D2 Red Blend
Region: Red Mountain
Price: $36.00

Awards/Accolades:
91 points - Wine Spectator

Industry Comments:
Ripe, firm and beautifully focused, a complex mouthful of currant, plum, cedar and autumn leaf flavors that glow enticingly through the long, long finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. -WS

Winery: Waterbrook Winery
Location: Walla Walla, WA
Wine: 2005 Syrah
Region: Columbia Valley
Price: $20.00

Awards/Accolades:
91 points - Wine Spectator

Industry Comments:
Crisp and juicy, this is almost preternaturally focused to show off its blueberry, plum, and blackberry fruit, shaded by hints of mineral and cream as the finish lingers effortlessly against light, crisp tannins.

NEXT PAGE >>