The Embassy Suites Portland Hotel
- Washington Square / Tigard is located in the heart of Washington
County offering virtually everything you need for a relaxing
visit to Washington County Wine Country
The first wine grapes were planted in Washington by the Hudson
Bay Company in 1825. By 1910, French, German, and Italian
immigrants had planted vineyards in every corner of the state.
In 1903, large-scale irrigation projects made it possible
to plant vineyards in the volcanic soils and desert-like climate
of the east.
Prohibition put an end to the nascent wine industry, but,
paradoxically, sparked interest in home winemaking. After
Repeal, the Washington wine scene re-emerged, with the state
boasting over 40 wineries by 1938, but it was not until the
1960s that the modern era of winemaking began.
The large-scale commercial plantings and well-funded, modern
new wineries that emerged during the 1960s led to a rapid
expansion of the Washington wine industry in the 1970s. Now,
a new winery opens in Washington every few weeks. The Washington
wine industry has endless promise, with over 10 million unplanted
acres in Columbia Valley beckoning to vintners.
The quality of Washington wines are superb, the promise of
new varietals endless, the volume of recognition and praise
growing, and the enthusiasm of winemakers abundant. Washington
will undoubtedly continue to enhance its reputation as one
of the premier wine producing regions in the United States
and the world.
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