Wilridge Winery Looks Back at 35 Years of Being Washington’s Greenest Winery and a Mover of State Wine Regulations

Wilridge Winery is the first certified organic and Biodynamic vineyard and winery in Washington State. It was founded in 1988 by Paul Beveridge, who was pivotal in reforming the state’s alcohol laws.

Seattle, Washington, Nov. 21, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- With wine having such a rich heritage, there are numerous wineries in the US that have lasted through the decades, some even centuries. However, few can say that they have led the charge towards being more environmentally conscious while making an impact on state legislation, benefiting small, independent businesses.

Wilridge Winery, a family-owned vineyard, orchard, winery and distillery headquartered in Seattle, Washington, is marking its 35th year in business. As the first certified organic, Biodynamic vineyard and winery in the state, Wilridge lays claim to the title of Washington’s greenest winery. Founded in 1988 by former environmental lawyer Paul Beveridge, Wilridge has also contributed to changes in laws governing the sale of wine and alcoholic beverages in the State of Washington.

Beveridge inherited a taste for good food and wine from his father, an Episcopal priest. Even when working as an environmental lawyer, Beveridge remained passionate about food and drink, learning how to make wine, and eventually deciding to open a European-style bistro in Seattle. The plan was that he would produce the wines, while his then-wife Lysle would be the chef. However, Washington still had “tied house” laws that prohibited manufacturers of alcoholic beverages from owning retail outlets that sold wine. The regulation was a leftover from the Prohibition period in the early 20th century. The law had recently been repealed for beer, allowing brew pubs to operate, but it was still in place for wine.

With his knowledge of the law and his network, Beveridge led the campaign to have these laws changed, which took two years to finally be approved, allowing the bistro to begin selling Wilridge’s wine, which was well-received by customers.

Beveridge later became a founding member of an organization called Family Wineries of Washington State, which worked to further modernize the state’s alcohol laws. The organization tackled the government-enforced three-tier system of wine distribution, which kept manufacturers, distributors, and retailers separate in many states. However, Family Wineries of Washington State was able to successfully lobby for the repeal of this system in Washington.“All alcoholic beverages in the United States are about 25% more expensive than they should be because of that three-tier system where all alcohol was legally required to be sold through a middleman,” Beveridge says. “It’s a somewhat sad commentary on the system that my legal background was so important to the success of our winery and distillery, but the changes we spearheaded were eventually able to benefit so many other entrepreneurs throughout the state.”

Aside from creating a huge impact on the legal side, Wilridge Winery is also a trailblazer in environmentally conscious winemaking. In 2007, Wilridge planted its 84-acre certified organic and Biodynamic estate vineyard on Naches Heights near Yakima, Washington – the first such vineyard in the state. According to Beveridge, he decided to go organic to ensure the health and safety of his children and other visitors to the vineyard. This was aided by Eastern Washington having an ideal climate for agriculture, with Naches Heights being a perfect place to grow grapes and tree fruit. Wilridge plants 25 different varieties of grapes as well as apples, pears, apricots, plums, and quince. Wilridge grows more Italian varieties than any other vineyard in Washington State, including Sagrantino, a variety of grape that was previously very rare in the Pacific Northwest. Beveridge found a Sagrantino vine at UC Davis, mislabeled as a different variety. He then had it tested and proven as a Sagrantino, before propagating it. Today, all Sagrantino vines in the Pacific Northwest come from the cuttings Beveridge obtained.

Furthermore, Beveridge says that the best wines in the world are produced by Biodynamic vineyards and wineries. Aside from not using synthetic chemical fertilizers and pesticides, Biodynamic agriculture employs the methods developed by Johann Goethe and Rudolf Steiner. This includes following a planting calendar that depends on the phases of the moon and other astrological configurations, as well as treating the earth as a living and receptive organism, where everything is returned to the vineyard and the farmer doesn't rely on outside inputs.

“Biodynamics is about healing the earth through agriculture,” Beveridge says. “After World War I, Steiner saw all the pesticides that were being sprayed on farms and he realized that you can't promote life by spraying death, and he predicted all these problems linked to pesticides and herbicides. There have been many famous old vineyards that were destroyed by chemicals but were revitalized through Biodynamics. Biodynamics is a scientific discipline and a return to nature and the old knowledge, from the days before pesticides were invented. You can’t argue with the results, given the great quality of wines created Biodynamicaly worldwide.”

*Media contact:*

Name: Kim Aldridge

Email: Kim@wilridgewinery.com