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February 4 , 2002

Seeing  Northstars in Walla Walla

Walla Walla, Wash. – The first shovel of dirt has been turned for construction of Northstar Winery, producer of ultra-premium Merlot from Washington State.

The winery will sit on a road lined with vineyards and have the Blue Mountains as a dramatic backdrop.  It is scheduled to open in time for the 2002 grape harvest beginning in September.

Each year, the winemakers create a Bordeaux-style Merlot by individually fermenting and aging dozens of small lots – the final blend is carefully selected to create a balanced wine of great richness and complexity.  Northstar produced its first wine in 1994. Quantities are limited.

The new winery will showcase the outstanding quality of wine made in the Walla Walla Valley, as well as give visitors the opportunity to experience first-hand one of the fastest growing premium wine regions in the world.  Talking with the winemaker and seeing the vineyards will add excitement and knowledge to the whole Northstar experience. 

“We are delighted to join the winemaking community of highly acclaimed wineries such as Leonetti, Pepperbridge, L’Ecole 41 and Woodward Canyon,“ said Ted Baseler, President and CEO of Stimson Lane, owner of Northstar. The oldest wine company in Washington State, Stimson Lane also owns the acclaimed Chateau Ste. Michelle and Columbia Crest wineries.

Baseler added: "Walla Walla will be a key part of what the Washington winemaking community envisions as a "winery loop" for tourists, taking them from Prosser in the Yakima Valley through Paterson, where Columbia Crest and Chateau Ste. Michelle-Canoe Ridge are located, to the Tri-Cities and on down to Walla Walla."

The new state-of-the-art winemaking and barrel aging facility being built for Northstar was designed by SCM architects, in Walla Walla.

 “Our goal was to design a winery that would capture the essence of the local community, and salute the outstanding quality of Northstar Merlot,” said Ed Luebben, project architect. 

The result is a rustic, craftsman-style winery that echoes the traditional turn-of-the-century homes of Walla Walla, with a color scheme to match the vineyards.  The tongue-in-groove woodwork on the ceilings will be stained to match the oak barrels, the red carpet and red trim on the gable roof symbolize the color of merlot, and the green roof represents the vineyards.

The drive leading up to winery will be lined with grapevines, various Merlot clones, of course.  Once inside the winery, large windows will show off a breathtaking panoramic view of the Blue Mountains that run east-south-east from Walla Walla.

In order to fully capture this view, architects had to rotate the building from its original design.  But to keep the marble Northstar emblem on the entry floor pointing North, the imbedded emblem could not be rotated.   The end result is an intentionally asymmetrical floor, with the emblem offset from center – not a design oversight.   

Construction management for the 14,000-square-foot facility will be handled by Apollo Inc., a Kennewick based firm. Jeff Winters, a Walla Walla builder will be the prime building contractor.

"We are pleased to be a part of the Northstar project, and it is great to see local vendors being used for this remarkable project," said Winters. "We look forward to building a new page in history for our beautiful Walla Walla community."

If you want to get a sneak peek at the new winery, you can navigate your way to the newest star of the Walla Walla valley by visiting the Website at www.northstar-merlot.com.  The Website will chronicle construction of the facility with weekly photographs.  The site also offers a computer-generated virtual winery tour based on architectural models and drawings of the finished plans.