Food & Wine

Port of Olympia relaunches Swantown Marina Boatswap & Chowder Challenge

After a five-year hiatus, the Swantown Marina Boatswap & Chowder Challenge returns to Olympia on Saturday. Construction at and near the marina greatly reduced parking in the area and led to the cancellation of the 11-year-old event in 2008. But Saturday, a dozen local restaurants will again present their variations of the classic seafood soup alongside sales of boats and marine gear.

Seattle’s Rainier Wine delivers high quality at a low price

When Damian Davis launched Rainier Wine in 2005, his focus was on producing California wine. Now, the Florida native has created a label that showcases Washington and offers quality at a great value.

Savor flavors at Portland food carts

Circling an entire city block at Southwest 10th Avenue and Alder Street in downtown Portland is an outdoor food court like none other. About 60 tiny restaurants are scrunched together, offering diners four styles of falafel, Thai street food, fried Scottish fish, pierogi and dumplings.

Young Woodinville winery off to a solid start

If anything can be perceived by looking at Chris Peterson’s first releases for Avennia, then Washington wine lovers are in for a treat. Not that initial success guarantees the future, but Peterson has a much better-than-average opportunity at greatness.

Best-in-show wines deserve a spot in your cellar

The inaugural Great Northwest Wine Competition is in the books, and the results showed a delicious diversity of wines from across the Pacific Northwest.

Seattle winery embraces new frontier

Paul Beveridge’s story is one often told in the wine industry: He began making wine at home. Soon, his passion became his profession.

Blintzapalooza celebrates sweet world of kuchen

Kuchen can be just about anything sweet, delicious and cakey. Think of it as a coffee or a yeast cake. Common ingredients, no matter the cake style, are nuts, sugar and cinnamon.

Taste wine and chocolate at 6 local wineries this weekend

Wine grapes don't grow in Western Washington, but they do get fermented here. Six South Sound wineries put their creations in the spotlight with this weekend's South Sound Wine Trail Wine & Chocolate Passport event.

Dunham Cellars gains name with Washington reds, whites

It didn't take long for young Eric Dunham to gain fame as one of Washington's top winemakers. While still an assistant winemaker at L'Ecole No. 41 in the Walla Walla Valley town of Lowden, Dunham crafted 200 cases of cabernet sauvignon in 1995. At the time, there were fewer than 10 wineries in the valley (today, there are more than 150), and wine lovers quickly made Dunham's Cab highly collectible.

Oregon's Erath Winery thrives under Ste. Michelle ownership

In May 2006, Oregon pioneer Dick Erath shocked the Northwest wine world by selling his successful operation to Ste. Michelle Wine Estates. A half-decade later, Erath Winery is thriving, producing some of the state's greatest and most consistent red and white wines.