DeLille Cellars

The winery was founded in 1992 by Jay Soloff, winemaker Chris Upchurch, and Charles and Greg Lill.[10] For the few first years, Master of wine David Lake served as consulting enologist.[11]

In March 2019, DeLille Cellars moved all production and offices to the old Redhook Brewery site in Woodinville, where they opened a new three-story tasting room in December of 2019. In 2021 the winery opened The Restaurant at DeLille Cellars.[12]

For a full history and to view the 30th anniversary mini-documentary, please visit www.delillecellars.com/about/

The First Vintage: D2 & Chaleur Estate

1994 brought "a knockout first release" (Stephen Tanzer) of two DeLille Cellars classics: Chaleur Estate Red and D2 (1992 vintage). DeLille's inaugural wine, Chaleur Estate marks the foundation on which the winery has built its craft of blending Washington State fruit. The wine showcases, depth, complexity, focus and elegance that personifies the French word for warmth, chaleur. Following Bordeaux tradition, DeLille also produced a "Deuxieme," or second wine, called D2. The wine takes its name from the grand route du vin, or great wine road that travels through the historic wine region of Bordeaux. Today, D2 is the winery's most sought after label. Upon release, both Chaleur Estate and D2 received outstanding scores from Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, earning a 93 and 90, respectively. Robert Parker's Wine Advocate described Chaleur Estate as "one of the most impressive Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Cabernet Franc blends to emerge from Washington State"[13]

Harrison Hill

In 1994, DeLille Cellars was fortunate to acquire the rights to Harrison Hill vineyard in the Snipes Mountain AVA, which has the second oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vines in Washington State. Harrison Hill is a single vineyard, left bank-style red Bordeaux blend featuring Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. A solitary 4.9-acre site, Harrison Hill has been growing grapes for over 100 years. In 1958, the land was purchased and turned into one of the state's first premium vineyards (planted with Vinifera grapes) by Associated Vintners. AV planted Gewurztraminer and Cabernet Sauvignon. In 1987, AV sold the vineyard to the Newhouse family who still farms the land today. The Newhouse family sold their grapes to Chateau Ste. Michelle until 1994. Due to the overwhelming success of Chaleur Estate, DeLille Cellars wanted to increase production. Enter Master of Wine David Lake, DeLille’ s consultant. He encouraged DeLille to seek out this special planting of Cabernet Sauvignon at Harrison Hill. After DeLille acquired the rights to the fruit, they worked with the Newhouses to save the old vine Cabernet Sauvignon, but planted new Merlot and Cabernet Franc at the site. Over the past five decades, the state’s second oldest Cabernet vines have matured gracefully while producing progressively limited yields. This slow, elegant maturation is a compelling expression of what it means to be a terroir-driven wine.[14]

The Chateau

Although the winery is now located at the Old Redhook Brewery in Woodinville, we honor our formative years at the DeLille Cellars Chateau, now called Chateau Lill. Previously known as Cedar Ponds Farm before the winery began, late Founder Charles Lill affectionately referred to the property as his 'warm and cozy paradise' (later inspiring the name for Chaleur Estate, DeLille's founding wine, borrowing 'chaleur' from the French word for warmth). While on a trip to Bordeaux, Jay Soloff sent Charles Lill a postcard of Château Haut-Brion. At the partner's next meeting, Charles set the postcard on the table with a line drawn down half of it. He suggested building half of it, as that was all he could afford. The farmhouse was then expanded to the Chateau which would serve as the winery's home until 2019.

Chaleur Blanc: The First Vintage

Observing the Bordeaux tradition of blending varietals together, in 1995 the team at DeLille set out to make a barrel fermented blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon for our first white wine: DeLille's Chaleur Estate Blanc. From the first vintage, we achieved nuances of white flowers, sweet grass, honey suckle, creamy crème brûlée, and toasted almonds. Since the first vintage in 1995, Chaleur Estate Blanc (now Chaleur Blanc) has shown us all just how well a properly structured white wine can age. The beauty of Chaleur Blanc is its ability to be both richly textured and creamy, while remaining clean and crisp at the same time. In 2019, Stephen Tanzer visited DeLille and participated in a vertical tasting of 1995-2016 vintages and reported "over the past dozen years or so it has been, according to my ratings, the single finest white wine produced in Washington State. It is no exaggeration to compare this Sauvignon Blanc/Sémillon blend to the finest white Bordeaux bottlings made in oak.” Tanzer described the blend as an “utterly distinctive wine for Washington in terms of its texture, purity, complexity, savory character and ageability”. [15]

Planting Grand Ciel

Grand Ciel vineyard is DeLille's 'state of the art', no expense spared estate vineyard located in the Red Mountain AVA. Every aspect of it was meticulously designed by Chris Upchurch - from the orientation of the planting and clone selection to the trellising, every detail is intentional to yield the highest quality wine. Clones were diligently selected to harness the power and structure of Red Mountain terroir: Cabernet clones 191, 169, 2 and 8, and Syrah clones 174 and 383. Our Grand Ciel estate label wines (100% single clone Syrah, clone 383, or Cabernet Sauvignon, clone 191) are aged in French oak barrels, then aged for a full year in the bottle. Limited production coupled with long-term aging capabilities make this a highly desired label for wine enthusiasts and collectors alike. The additional fruit from this site is blended into wines such as D2 and our Four Flags Cabernet. [16]

First Syrah

In 1997, DeLille crafted its first Syrah, called Doyenne. The Doyenne name loosely translates to the female "dean" or matriarch in French. While vacationing in Aix-en-Provence, Chris and Thea Upchurch read an article about the “Doyenne” of Provence, the world’s oldest woman. In 2002 our Syrah was selected in Robert Parker's 15 Great Syrahs from Around the World. The name Doyenne has had a rich history here at DeLille. The name evolved into the brand for our Rhone-inspired wines until 2016, when we placed all wines under the DeLille Cellars name. Today, our Syrah is simply called “Signature Syrah” and we also produce a 100% Syrah from our estate vineyard, Grand Ciel. However, the Doyenne name still lives on as the namesake of our Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon blend.

Robert Parker

DeLille Cellars was one of the first four Washington State wineries to receive an “Outstanding, Five-Star” rating in Robert Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide. With the first vintage of Chaleur Estate receiving 90 points from Parker followed by this great achievement, the team at DeLille was further inspired to continue their passion for world-class winemaking that would help Washington achieve international acclaim as a premier wine region. “I met this new estate’s winemaker, Chris Upchurch, several years ago and was impressed by the man’s enthusiasm and commitment to producing high quality wine.” – Robert Parker, 1995. In 2005, Robert Parker was designated Honorary Chairman of the Auction of Washington Wines, benefitting Seattle Children’s Hospital. One of the auction lots that year was a “Dream Dinner for Eight with Robert Parker,” which included DeLille wines. During that trip DeLille was able to participate in an event where Parker tasted a variety of wines from Woodinville producers. “It was incredible to see the detailed dedication he had to every single wine he smelled and tasted,” reflected Jay Soloff. Later during the dream dinner, Robert Parker declared DeLille to be “The Lafite Rothschild of Washington State.”

Doyenne Label Launched

When DeLille decided to expand into more Rhone varietals beyond Syrah, the founders decided to take the name Doyenne, the name of their first Syrah, and turn this into a brand name for their Rhone portfolio. DeLille commissioned artist Z.Z Wei for the new brand Doyenne featuring Rhône-style blends. The art depicts Wei’s interpretation of our Grand Ciel Vineyard at Red Mountain, where Syrah is one of the varietals planted. The Doyenne brand name grew beyond Syrah with the addition of our Roussanne, Métier, Rosé, and AIX. In 2015 we retired the Doyenne brand name, placing our Rhône varietals under the DeLille Cellars brand. In the heartfelt effort to preserve the Doyenne legacy, we changed the name of AIX to Doyenne, which is our blend of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. Through the name changes, the art of Z.Z. Wei still remains on our Roussanne, Rose, Signature Syrah and Doyenne wines.

DeLille Cellars Makes Three Acclaimed Top 100 Lists (2007 – 2008)

In 2007, DeLille Cellars was recognized in multiple renowned Top 100 Lists, including Wine Enthusiast, Robb Report, and Wine Spectator.

Wine Spectator Top 100: 2004 D2, 92 pts “DeLille winemaker Chris Upchurch sourced fruit from 12 vineyards for the 2004 D2. A blend of 45 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 41 percent Merlot, 12 percent Cabernet Franc and 1 percent Petit Verdot, the wine has softer structure than DeLille's flagship offering, the Cabernet-dominated Chaleur Estate. Most of the D2 grapes come from Red Mountain, a district known for brawny tannins, but judicious irrigation practices encourage steady ripening and supple structure. 2,600 cases made.”

Robb Report Top 100: 2004 Harrison Hill “While DeLille makes several Rhône-style whites, its big, lusciously layered Bordeaux reds steal the show. The Harrison Hill is especially gratifying, with voluminous tannins, round black cherry, and smoky depth.”

Wine Enthusiast Top 100: 2005 Chaleur Blanc, 94 pts "A rich, golden, toasty, hedonistic wine. Ripe and loaded with gorgeous fruit: sweet citrus, pineapple, grapefruit, peach and stone fruit. As it moves through the palate it's laced with smoke and toast, while the fruit core expands into marmalade and tupelo honey, and the wine grows unctuous and creamy. Doesn't taste like a young wine, but it certainly will continue to round out and develop further in the bottle.”

Carriage House Tasting Room Opens

In 2009, DeLille Cellars rented space in a small building in the Hollywood District of Woodinville to open their first tasting room outside of the original Chateau site. Known as the “Carriage House,” DeLille expanded the tasting experience to include tented patios on both sides to accommodate the many visitors over its decade of operations.

Four Flags Named Seattle Times Wine of the Year

In 2011 DeLille Cellars crafted a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from four vineyards on Red Mountain: Grand Ciel, Ciel du Cheval, Upchurch and Klipsun. Named “Lot 1” Cabernet, it was sold only to Wine Club members. In 2011 DeLille named this blend “Four Flags,” and in 2014, the 2011 vintage was voted the number one wine of the year in the Seattle Times. “My wine of the year is a blend from four great vineyards on Red Mountain: Ciel du Cheval, Grand Ciel, Klipsun and Upchurch. I tasted this on four occasions, and it never failed to make a deep impression. This might just be DeLille’s finest effort to date — and that’s saying something.” - Andy Perdue, Seattle Times.[17]

Masterfully blended, Four Flags is a harmonious and complex representation of the incomparable terroir of Red Mountain and a tribute to our steadfast commitment to this respected viticultural area. Four Flags is crafted from the idea of blending Cabernet Sauvignon from four renowned vineyards on Red Mountain: Grand Ciel, Ciel du Cheval, Klipsun, and Upchurch vineyards.

Jason Gorski Joins DeLille

Jason Gorski joined DeLille Cellars in 2011 as lead winemaker under Chris Upchurch. In 2019, Jason took over all winemaking and vineyard operations as Director of Winemaking and Viticulture. Jason has been instrumental in DeLille Cellars’ success, expanding production and improving quality, including the achievement of numerous Top 100 ratings. [18]

Founding Winemaker and Founding Partner Chris Upchurch has led the winery with a passion for traditional winemaking methods that showcase the terroir of the state. Guiding the winery's operations, Director of Winemaking Jason Gorski has been key to the winery's growth and continued lineup of accolades since 2011.[19]

DeLille Cellars has a portfolio of over a dozen Bordeaux and Rhône style blends true to the terroir of Washington State.

Grand Ciel Cabernet Sauvignon, Chaleur Estate, D2, Harrison Hill, Four Flags Cabernet Sauvignon and Chaleur Blanc are the Bordeaux style labels. Rhone-style blends include Signature Syrah, Rhône-styled Syrah, produced from grapes grown in Boushey Vineyard,[20] Métier (a Châteauneuf-du-Pape style red, and Doyenne (a Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon blend. DeLille Cellars also makes a Roussanne and a traditional Rosé.

The winery sources its grapes primarily in the Red Mountain AVA in Eastern Washington and utilizes 100% French oak barrels.[10] The winery has an estate vineyard on Red Mountain, Grand Ciel Vineyard.

At the 2001 San Francisco International Wine Competition, DeLille Cellars won "Best in Show" in the Premium red blend category for its 1998 Yakima Valley D2.[21]

• Woodinville wine country

• DeLille Cellars Official Page

47°43′54″N 122°8′29″W