When it comes to wine, California is a Gulliver among the Lilliputians, producing far more than any other state. But Washington is No. 2 in premium-wine production, and growing fast.
The 2013 harvest in Washington’s vineyards set a record, and represented a 16 percent increase above the state’s previous record, established the year before. Growers are planting ever-increasing acres to wine grapes.
A 2012 report prepared for the Washington State Wine Commission pegged the industry’s statewide economic impact in 2009 at $8.6 billion.
While New York ranks higher than Washington in some accounts of production, Washington finishes ahead when the tally is limited to the more reputable European grape varieties that produce most wines familiar to consumers.
PHOTO: Washington State Wine Commission/Desert Wind Vineyard