Washington State’s Boutique Wineries: A Look at Laurelhurst Cellars

Washington State is home to a thriving wine industry where over 500 wineries have opened since 2000, and many of these wineries are still rather unknown gems to the wine world.

One of those gems is Laurelhurst Cellars.

From left to right: Dave Halbgewachs, Greg Smallwood and Gabe Warner. Photo courtesy of the amazing WINO Magazine

Laurelhurst Cellars began as a side project in 2004 amongst 3 friends, Dave Halbgewachs, Greg Smallwood and Gabe Warner out of a garage in the Laurelhurst Neighborhood of Seattle.

Since then, they have torn through every wine making book they can get their hands on and are dedicated technicians to their craft.

Their longtime friendship, which dates as far back as high school, has allowed them to work together with a focused and cohesive vision, where a commitment to excellence is the foundation of their work.

Attention to detail. Laurelhurst blending trials 2005. Photo courtesy of Laurelhurst Cellars.

In fact, they will not release a wine to the public unless all three strongly agree on its quality- which certainly sets them apart.

A major element that Laurelhurst Cellars pride themselves on is the quality of fruit they source. As Micheal Mondavi will tell you, great wine starts in the vineyard and therefore the fruit often makes all the difference in the resulting product.

The privilege of buying the best fruit does not come easily, however. In fact, it is one of the more difficult things to accomplish when starting a successful winery.

I recently met up with Greg and Dave. When I asked them how they were able to establish buying relationships with Washington’s top growers, they both sat up a bit taller and had this to say:

Dick Boushey of Boushey Vineyards. Photo courtesy of wineloverspage.com.

“We had to convince Dick Boushey from Boushey Vineyards to sell us fruit,” said Greg. ”We drove out to Eastern Washington and showed up one day at his doorstep. It took some time for him to get to know us and he had to try the wine from our first vintage before he would allow us to buy from him.”

“After two years of using his fruit he finally gave us permission to put Boushey Vineyards on our label,” said Greg.

This is a major accomplishment in the wine industry because the top growers prefer to associate their fruit with only the best wine makers.

They also spoke about how intense- and rewarding- it was to partner with Patricia Gelles from Klipson Vineyards.

“She treated our first meeting like a job interview, and grilled us on all sorts of technical aspects of the wine making process,” said Dave.

Since these first meetings, both Dick Boushey and Patricia Gelles have proved to be incredible mentors for Laurelhurst Cellars.

Patricia Gelles, co-owner of Klipson Vineyard. Photo courtesy of winepeeps.com.

“They are solid, knowledgeable business people, and they truly understand how to make great wine,” asserted Greg several times through our conversation.

I’ve found that you can certainly tell the quality of someone by the people they choose to learn from. The gentlemen at Laurelhurst Cellars are likewise solid and knowledgeable wine makers, and they openly offer their understanding of wine to anyone wishing to learn.

In fact, they are part of South Seattle Artisan Wineries (SSAW), who collectively open their doors to the public every second Saturday of the month from 1 – 5pm, February through August.

I highly recommend paying them a visit, especially if you are interested in learning more about the technical side of wine making. Not only will you learn from three talented wine makers, you will also have the pleasure of trying outstanding wine.

They are currently selling their 2006 vintage, including a Boushey Vineyard Cabernet Franc and Syrah, as well as their Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. They are also currently featuring their 2006 Bordeaux Blend from Columbia Valley.

As for the future of Laurelhurst Cellars, “We want to max out at 5,000 to 6,000 cases per vintage in order to maintain our focus and control quality,” said Dave.

If you’re curious, here’s a list of the restaurants and retailers that carry Laurelhurst Cellars in Washington State:

Purple Wine Bar – Seattle
Branzino – Belltown
The Paragon Bar & Grill – Queen Anne
Impromptu Wine Bar – Madison Park
Stumbling Goat Bistro – Phinney
Spring Hill – West Seattle
North City Wine Bar – Shoreline
Jaks Grill – Laurelhurst, West Seattle, and Issaquah locations
Esquin Wine Merchants – Seattle
Leschi Market – Leschi
McCarthy & Schiering Wine Merchants – Queen Anne
Yarrow Bay Grill – Kirkland
QFC – Edmonds, Bellevue, Bothell, Laurelhurst locations
Grape Choice – Kirkland
Full Throttle Bottles – Seattle (Georgetown)
Cellar 46 – Mercer Island
Fine Wine and Cigars – Redmond
La Cantina – Bellevue
The Wine Alley – Renton
The Barking Frog – Woodinville
Rovers – Madison Park
Fremont Wine Warehouse – Fremont
Jack’s (Wine Shop) – North Seattle
Fortunatos Wine Shop – Woodinville
Madison Park Cafe – Madison Park
Portalis – Ballard
Sand Point Country Club – Seattle
Earth & Ocean (W Hotel Seattle)
All Things Wine – Renton
Ray’s Boathouse – Ballard
Daniel’s Broiler – Bellevue
Compass Wines – Anacortes