Eleganté Cellars

Doug Simmons, a native Walla Wallan, had a problem. In 2002 when he retired from teaching, Doug still had his health, an inquisitive mind, and a desire to start his own business. What’s more, after 30 years of teaching chemistry in the Walla Walla School District, he was left with a sense of emptiness, and he realized he wasn’t finished being a scientist. Doug had a serious case of “science deficit,” something that most people don’t experience. He clearly needed a lab in which to mix and match potions.

Doug’s résumé also includes a long stint of farming. For 49 summers, Doug stained his fingers red while working at a local Walla Walla institution, Klicker’s Strawberry Acres. He became intimate with the land and understood its climate. He appreciated that the ground is not simply dirt; it is soil. Moreover, he understood why farmers obsess over weather forecasts. Occasional frosts and dry summer days have a way of doing that.

Thus, when Doug retired from teaching high school, becoming a winemaker was a no-brainer solution to his life’s dilemma. The fact that Walla Walla Community College just happens to offer a superb enology and viticulture program helped to cement his career decision. He graduated from Walla Walla Community College with an A.A. degree in enology and viticulture. Soon thereafter, in 2007, he created Eleganté Cellars, following a practicum at Five Star Cellars. Now he just needed a name for his winery. Recalling that a fellow teacher in Walla Walla always said “elegant” when asked how his day was going, Doug added the “é”on the end of that word to give it a Euro feel. Thus, Eleganté Cellars was christened.

I met Doug in late January 2010 at his winery, located in the Walla Walla Airport Complex. His faithful Boston terrier, Bing, was at his side (it’s hard to find such loyal help these days!). Trim, with graying temples, Doug possesses a youthful look belying his 60-some years. Doug has the good fortune to know many nearby grape growers, whom he probably either went to school with or taught their kids. What got my attention were his sources: Seven Hills for his merlot and Les Collines for his cabernet sauvignon. It’s clear that Doug specializes in these Bordeaux beauties. However, for a nice treat to cap your tasting experience at Eleganté, be sure and check out his slightly sweet but lovely strawberry wine. There’s no doubt about the source of his strawberries — Klicker’s, of course.