Eagle Creek Winery & Cottage

Note the name. It’s not simply Eagle Creek Winery. Rather, it’s Eagle Creek Winery & Cottage. Owners Ed and Pat Rutledge must have a penchant for the finer things in life. The cottage provides a homey atmosphere in which to relax and read by the fire or play or gaze outside at the vineyard adjacent to the property. There’s also a fully equipped kitchen for those who want to cook their own meals. The cottage also serves as a home base for outdoor activities or shopping in nearby Leavenworth. No need to worry about going to town for a bottle of wine, however. As a perk of your stay, you can choose a bottle of wine from the downstairs cellar. It’s one of many nice touches that cottage guests enjoy.

Winemaker Ed Rutledge produces about 4,000 cases annually of both red and white wines. Ed’s chardonnay comes from grapes grown in Eagle Creek’s own vineyard, but his other wines use grapes from the Columbia Valley. His red wines include cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, and Bordeaux-style blends. Ed employs a combination of American and Hungarian oak.

To sample Eagle Creek wines, visitors enter the downstairs tasting room at the rear of the building. The tight quarters lend a “cozy” feeling to the room making it easy to visit with others. You soon find yourself joining other visitors on a field trip to the barrel room and cellar adjacent to the tasting room. You realize that this is where guests of the cottage come to select their bottle of wine, and if you’re like this WineTrail adventurer, you find yourself turning a little green with envy.

P.S. If you can't make it to their winery/cottage, visit them in Leavenworth at d'Vinery, 617 Front Street.

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  Eagle Creek Winery & Cottage was featured in WineTrails of Washington as part of the Leavenworth-Peshastin WineTrail on page 206!