James Suckling backs WA wines

James Suckling’s latest Washington coverage put Matthews and Tenor in front of the trade again, with praise focused on 2023 whites and textured reds from the Columbia Valley. (jamessuckling.com) Suckling’s Washington report, published March 31, 2025, said his team reviewed 738 wines after a 10-day trip and argued the state’s best bottles cannot be reduced to one style. The report highlighted both cabernet-led reds and chardonnay among Washington’s top performers. (jamessuckling.com) That matters for Matthews and Tenor because both brands sell a Columbia Valley identity from tasting rooms in Woodinville, west of the vineyards that supply much of Washington’s premium fruit. Matthews calls its lineup “Pure Columbia Valley wine,” while Tenor markets “The Dynamic Columbia Valley.” (matthewswinery.com, tenorwines.com) Washington’s producers have spent the past two years pushing that message harder as the state wine commission expanded trade events, media outreach and market programs in 2024 and 2025. The commission said those efforts included Taste Washington, WAugust, international promotion and a Miami trade seminar. (washingtonwine.org, washingtonwine.org) The backdrop is a wine industry that is large but still fights for shelf space and restaurant attention against California, Oregon and imports. The Washington State Wine Commission says Washington is the second-largest wine-producing state in the United States, with more than 1,000 wineries, more than 400 grape growers and more than 50,000 acres of wine grapes. (washingtonwine.org) Critic attention also lands after a bruising stretch for growers. In its March 5, 2024 Washington report, JamesSuckling.com described a run of shocks that included wildfire smoke in 2020, extreme heat in 2021, a cool 2022 season and a damaging January 2024 freeze. (jamessuckling.com) That 2024 report also pointed to commercial strain beyond the weather. JamesSuckling.com wrote that Washington growers were dealing with news of a 40 percent reduction in grower contracts by the state’s largest winery. (jamessuckling.com) Even with that pressure, Suckling’s recent Washington coverage has leaned heavily on quality gains. His 2024 report said 80 of the 669 wines tasted were rated 95 points or higher, and his 2025 report said top bottles showed Washington can excel in both Bordeaux-style reds and Rhône varieties, with chardonnay also drawing attention. (jamessuckling.com, jamessuckling.com) For Washington wineries, that is the immediate value of a Suckling mention: not a medal or a sales figure, but another data point that buyers and sommeliers can use when they decide which regions deserve space. In a state with more than $10.56 billion in annual in-state economic impact from wine, those signals travel well beyond one tasting room. (washingtonwine.org, wineamerica.org)