SIP TRIP — Tasting Your Way Through the Day
Two hours southeast of Seattle, the Yakima Valley averages about 300 days of sunshine per year. It’s one of the few places in the Pacific Northwest where you can ski, bike, hike, and golf, all in the same day. Or, dedicate an entire day to tasting your way through one of the state’s most fertile wine regions.
A ONE-DAY VISIT
8:00 am Grab a quick breakfast downtown at Essencia Artisan Bakery in Yakima to start the day. A freshly baked croissant spread with locally made jam will help prepare you for tasting local wines, beers, and farmfresh cuisine.
9:00 am Head up to Wilridge Winery on Naches Heights and hike or bike the vineyard trail. Continue as far as you like along Cowiche Canyon’s 30 miles of scenic desert trails. When you get back, drop by the winery for a tasting.
11:30 am Stop at Treveri Cellars in Wapato and sample the sparkling wines. The winery’s award-winning bubbly has been served at White House State Department receptions and the James Beard Foundation in New York.
12:30 pm Since the Yakima Valley grows more than 75 percent of the nation’s hops, this area is a mecca for craft beer lovers. Want to sample a few hop varieties? Grab lunch at HopTown Wood Fired Pizza, where they sprinkle fresh hops on their mouth- watering pizzas! There’s also an exclusive selection of local beers, which are often used as an ingredient in the pizza dough.
2:30 pm Travel south to Prosser’s Vintner’s Village, home to more than a dozen wineries, all within walking distance.
5:00 pm Prosser is the birthplace of Washington State’s wine industry, and the Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center puts its history on display. Sample the best wines the region has to offer while strolling through interactive displays and learning what makes Washington wine so special.
7:00 pm Back in Yakima, grab dinner at Provisions Restaurant & Market. This chef-driven, Pacific Northwest-inspired restaurant is one of Yakima’s newest dining spots, and it has been making waves since they opened their doors. 9:00 pm Call it a night at The Hotel Maison. This beautifully restored boutique hotel in downtown Yakima was once a Masonic temple. Settle in and start dreaming about tomorrow’s Yakima Valley adventures.
Get more trip planning inspiration at visityakima.com