Owners Craig and Vicki Leuthold and winemaker Richard Batchelor lead Maryhill Winery in Goldendale. Maryhill has become one of Washington’s top producers in the past few years.

Owners Craig and Vicki Leuthold and winemaker Richard Batchelor lead Maryhill Winery in Goldendale. Maryhill has become one of Washington’s top producers in the past few years.

Maryhill’s gold medal wine efforts

It has been quite a run for Maryhill Winery, and it continues for the large, family-owned winery in Washington’s Columbia Gorge.

At last month’s fourth annual Cascadia Wine Competition, Maryhill earned three double gold medals, two best-of-class awards and five gold medals. This follows up a string of awards the past two years that puts the winery in rare company.

In 2014, Maryhill was hailed as the winery of the year at the prestigious San Francisco International Wine Competition. Later that year, its 2011 Marvell red blend was Great Northwest Wine’s 2014 wine of the year. Then a year ago, Wine Press Northwest magazine dubbed Maryhill its 2015 Pacific Northwest Winery of the Year.

This is the culmination of hard work by owners Craig and Vicki Leuthold, Spokane entrepreneurs who launched the winery with the 1999 vintage and later a 4,000-seat amphitheater. In 2009, they brought in Richard Batchelor as their head winemaker. The New Zealand native is showing his talents with wine grapes from across Washington’s vast Columbia Valley.

Here are some of Maryhill’s gold medal winners. While many will be found at better groceries and wine shops, some of them are available only by contacting the winery directly.

Maryhill Winery 2015 Rosé of Sangiovese, Columbia Valley, $16: Watermelon and strawberry aromas lead to flavor of the same fruits, plus a touch of red currants on the palate, all backed by juicy acidity. (12.9% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2012 Vintage Port, Columbia Valley, $20: Portuguese varieties, including Tinta Cão, Souzao and Touriga Naçional, went into this Port-style dessert wine with alluring aromas of dark chocolate, raspberry filling and sweet spices. On the palate, it unveils flavors of boysenberry syrup, dark molasses and golden raisin. (19.2% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2013 Art den Hoed Vineyard Petite Sirah, Columbia Valley, $32: Aromas open with deep blackberry fruit, black currants, black pepper and hints of moist earthiness. In the mouth, the same fruits shine, the pepper shows a little bite, and the minerality pops out amidst grippy tannins. Pair it with hearty foods, perhaps a cassoulet or sea salt-encrusted duck breast braised and roasted in a high-temperature oven. (14.5% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2013 Painted Hills Vineyard Tempranillo, Columbia Valley, $34: Another of Art den Hoed’s vineyards helps produce deep cherry aromas, a bit of mint and warm spices on the nose usher in dark cherries, blackberries and blueberries on the palate. Grippy tannins and juicy acidity close out its lengthy finish. (14.2% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2013 Rosso Granato, Columbia Valley, $36: This blend of Petite Sirah and Zinfandel reveals spice, cherry, blackberry and blueberry aromas and flavors that lead into grippy tannins and a long black fruit finish. (14.5% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2013 Proprietor’s Reserve Syrah, Columbia Valley, $38: Aromas of dark chocolate meld with blackberry pie and black pepper. Flavors of toasted oak, purple plum and toasted marshmallow are backed by pliable tannins and a nice hit of acidity on the finish. (14.5% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2013 Les Collines Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Walla Walla Valley, $40: Sweet herbs, dark cherries and blueberries greet the nose on this beautiful Cab, followed on the palate by blackberries, blueberries and chalky tannins that close with dark chocolate. (14.8% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2013 Proprietor’s Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, $40: This Cab provides a seamless array of aromas and flavors showing off black cherries, blackberries, blueberries and black currants. It finishes with expertly managed tannins and dark, sweet chocolate. (14.8% alc.)

Maryhill Winery 2013 Elephant Mountain Vineyards Marvell, Rattlesnake Hills, $44: This Rhône-style red blend made from 47 percent Syrah, 27 percent Mourvèdre and 26 percent Grenache results in a sophisticated wine with spice, blackberry, plum and blueberry aromas and flavors, plus some black pepper and black olive pit tannins in its mouth-filling finish. (14.4% alc.)

Eric Degerman and Andy Perdue run Great Northwest Wine, www.greatnorthwestwine.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

Sarah Jean Muncey-Gordon puts on some BITCHSTIX lip oil at Bandbox Beauty Supply on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Langley, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Bandbox Beauty was made for Whidbey Island locals, by an island local

Founder Sarah Muncey-Gordon said Langley is in a renaissance, and she’s proud to be a part of it.

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

Byrds co-founder Roger McGuinn, seen here in 2013, will perform April 20 in Edmonds. (Associated Press)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

R0ck ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer Roger McGuinn, frontman of The Byrds, plans a gig in Edmonds in April.

Mother giving in to the manipulation her daughter fake crying for candy
Can children be bribed into good behavior?

Only in the short term. What we want to do is promote good habits over the course of the child’s life.

Speech Bubble Puzzle and Discussion
When conflict flares, keep calm and stand your ground

Most adults don’t like dissension. They avoid it, try to get around it, under it, or over it.

The colorful Nyhavn neighborhood is the place to moor on a sunny day in Copenhagen. (Cameron Hewitt)
Rick Steves: Embrace hygge and save cash in Copenhagen

Where else would Hans Christian Andersen, a mermaid statue and lovingly decorated open-face sandwiches be the icons of a major capital?

Last Call is a festured artist at the 2024 DeMiero Jazz Festival: in Edmonds. (Photo provided by DeMiero Jazz Festival)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Jazz ensemble Last Call is one of the featured artists at the DeMiero Jazz Festival on March 7-9 in Edmonds.

Kim Helleren
Local children’s author to read at Edmonds Bookshop

Kim Helleren will read from one of her books for kids at the next monthly Story Time at Edmonds Bookshop on March 29.

Chris Elliott
Lyft surprises traveler with a $150 cleaning charge

Jared Hakimi finds a $150 charge on his credit card after a Lyft ride. Is that allowed? And will the charge stick?

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.