Gilbert Cellars

Gilbert family history started in Yakima in 1897 when H.M. Gilbert arrived to buy land, build a home and bring his family out. Like many farming families, their list of crops eventually included wine grapes which were sold to others. Then the fifth generation of Gilberts, fueled by Sean Gilbert's passion for wine, began making wine commercially under the Gilbert Cellars label.

Fourth generation Gilberts Curtiss and Cragg run Gilbert Orchards which produces apples, pears, cherries, peaches, nectarines and apricots both conventionally and organically. In 2002, Curtiss purchased the Doc Stewart Vineyard from the Stewart family where vines had been planted in 1972. Curtiss has driven vineyard expansion on Wahluke Slope and Horse Heaven Hills. As his daughter Meg says, "Wine was dad's next step. During the first harvest, he put an ad in the paper to sell grapes. He created relationships with winemakers and then set some grapes aside to make his own private table wine."

Cragg's two sons, Sean and Nate, are behind Gilbert Cellars. Sean is one of the founders and was the GM until April of 2011. He now works primarily with Gilbert Orchards. Nate was the winemaker for the 2004-2006 vintages. Sean was inspired by a friend who sold wine in New York. Sean worked crush at Januik-Novelty Hill in Woodinville. Nate has a degree in geology, worked with mentors and had hands-on training at Desert Hills Winery in Yakima prior to their move to Prosser. He recently graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in architecture and has moved back to Yakima.

Justin Neufeld was hired as the head winemaker in 2007. He has a degree in molecular biology from the University of Washington, but the outdoors had a stronger pull than the lab. After meeting winemaker Doug Gore, he was hooked on winemaking, interning at Chateau Ste. Michelle, working as the enologist at Silver Lake and becoming the winemaker at Glen Fiona. Justin and his wife Brook also make wine for their own label, JB Neufeld.

The Gilbert girls Meg (right) and Laura (left) are intimately involved with the winery on a daily basis. Meg, daughter of Curtiss, is the director of sales and distribution. Laura Rankin, daughter of Ann who is Curtiss and Cragg's sister, is the tasting room manager. Both are refreshing in their love of family, land and community. Meg most recently returned from New Zealand and Laura from London where she attended graduate school. They both remember when they decided to come home. "It was Easter and we were on the phone and talking about meeting and traveling. We both felt this weird pull back to Yakima. Maybe neither of us would have come back by ourselves, but when we realized we both felt the same way, we had to come," Meg recalls. "We also felt we were needed for something; it's a good feeling to contribute to family and community."

Meg is an artist and ran an art gallery in Seattle for several years. Returning home, she turned the barrel room into "the cave" and landscaped the area. The cave is built into the hillside at the Sunrise Vineyard on The Hackett Ranch land; she has created the look of an old European winery with a rock wall front. A short basalt wall from a quarry down the road outlines the cave's patio. The sconces on the wall are made from old smudge pots from the orchards. Her repurposing of cast-off items is shown again inside where a metal barrel tie circles the mirror in the bathroom; a twisted, rusted metal pipe hangs on the wall; and a rusted window screen arts up another wall. Heliopsis and lavender along with other plants grow along the hill. Lavender grows above the cave as a sun barrier. Riesling, Gewürztraminer and some Chardonnay grapes grow near the cave. "This is one of the coolest growing regions in Eastern Washington," says Laura. "The red varietals we've planted haven't done well here, but it's great for certain whites." Meg adds, "If we ever have the energy, we'd love to work on getting this area defined as the Ahtanum Valley AVA. The soil is pre-Missoula flood."

The cave is home to wine events, wine dinners and Music in the Vines events. Down the road from the cave is an area populated with small cabins brought down from Camp Sunrise on Mt. Rainier by their great grandfather. Meg has brought them back to rustic but comfortable status. They're used by family, guests and artists in residence. The original Gilbert family home built by H.M. in 1898 was sold in 1951. The family repurchased it in 1982 and donated it to the Yakima Valley Museum.

In August 2008, the tasting room (at right) opened in downtown Yakima; Laura became tasting room manager in 2010. It's almost more wine bar than tasting room with tables and chairs along one side and counter seating on the other. Artistic renderings on the wall created by Barb Gilbert are of actual family letters. The large picture of a mountain peak is Curtiss Gilbert Peak, which Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas had renamed from Goats Peak for his hiking friend Curtiss after his death. The family has a long history of mountaineering and still holds their annual hike to the peak each summer. "In 1997, we had our 100^th family reunion in Yakima with over 200 family members," says Laura. Food items offered at the tasting room are primarily from local producers: Tieton Farm & Creamery, Gilbert Orchards, Essencia Artisan Bakery, honey from Moses Lake. A speakeasy-era basement below the tasting room hosts private events, salsa nights and rotates art mostly by local artists.

Gilbert Cellars wines have a lot to offer. Their Chardonnay is unoaked and done Chablis style. A Riesling is off-dry with 1.7 residual sugars. With just one ton per acre, the flavors are very concentrated. The Gewürztraminer, with 1.3 residual sugars, actually tastes sweeter. Their Allobroges Rhone-style blend of Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre is named after a Celtic tribe that taught the Romans about wine. "The Grenache and Mourvedre grapes are so good that we're releasing singular varietals in September," says Laura.

There's much to discover with Gilbert Cellars. And with generations of growing experience and the passion of the current Gilberts, much more to come.

Connie Adams/August-September 2011