There’s nothing quite as gorgeous as summer in the Pacific Northwest and one of my favorite summertime activities is outdoor concerts that go on till late at night. 

Sipping wine as the stars come out and moving in tune with a live performance is an unmatched experience. Legendary Woodinville winery, Chateau Ste. Michelle hosts a summer concert series and many other delightful events where you can sip and sway to your heart’s content. 

We started off with a tour of the winery and had a behind-the-scenes glimpse of winemaking. Fun fact: Chateau Ste. Michelle churns out 12,000 bottles of wine a day! We learned a lot about the history and heritage of the winery and saw the production process for ourselves. Then we headed off to blend our own wines at BLEND: Winemaker for a Day. This is a great hands-on experience for anyone looking to blend their own wine and learn about the art of winemaking. We tried several distinct wines and created our own blend from the ones we loved the most. There were experts to help us out and plenty of wine to taste, mix, and create our signature blends from.

After we blended and bottled our own custom wine, we headed off for some delicious snacks (and more wine!) before the concert. The concert was a full-house event, lively and groovy. You can bring your own blankets and lawn chairs. You can pack a yummy picnic basket or choose from the many food trucks there.

Counting Crows charted out some lovely nineties chartbusters including ‘Daylight Fading’ and ‘You Can’t Count On Me’ that had the crowd going wild. The evening ended with us walking through the moonlit vineyard as we winded down for the evening, finally homebound after all the fun and frolic. The events last through September and you should definitely check them out. Chateau Ste. Michelle offers several winery experiences to make the most of the rest of summer (and into early fall!).

You can learn more about all experiences online here.

Chateau Ste. Michelle – Winery Experiences

BLEND: Winemaker for a Day ($125 per person)

Available daily at 10:30 am and 2:30 pm (approx. 90 minutes)

Chateau Ste. Michelle’s experts guide you through making your own red wine blend while tasting different varietals and discovering their attributes. This unique, hands-on journey starts with exploring and mixing five different wines from our award-winning vineyards. Taste, blend, then do it all again, until you feel it’s just right. Complete your experience by creating your own custom label for your bottle, then take it home to share with family and friends. Guests can find more information and book reservations online here.

There’s a Riesling for Everything… ($65 per person)

Available Saturdays at 2:30 pm (approx. 75 minutes)

In this experience, you will taste six wines, a full spectrum of styles from dry to lusciously sweet, paired perfectly with four different types of cuisines prepared by our Chateau Kitchen. Crafted in partnership with the Dr. Loosen Estate in Germany, these wines are unlike any other. These food-friendly whites are made from Washington grapes, reflect an Old World influence and pair perfectly with almost anything you can dream up in the kitchen. You will leave in full agreement – there’s a Riesling for everything! Guests can find more information and book reservations online here.

Concerts

• Summer Concert Series (ongoing): Celebrating 35 years of live performances, Chateau Ste. Michelle’s Summer Concert Series has provided a stage to some of the best artists in jazz, rock, blues and contemporary music. More info on concerts and tickets can be found here.
  • Classic Rock meets Classic Country: Steve Miller Band and Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives (Aug. 31)
  • An Evening with Pink Martini with singer China Forbes (Sept 6)
  • Chris Isaak (Sept. 7)
  • Gary Clark Jr. with Los Coast (Sept. 11)
  • Diana Krall (Sept. 12)
  • The Australian Pink Floyd Show – All That You Love World Tour 2019 (Sept. 13)
  • An Evening with Mark Knopfler (Sept. 14)
  • An Evening with Mark Knopfler (Sept. 15)
  • Earth, Wind & Fire (Sept. 20)
  • Earth, Wind & Fire (Sept. 21)
• Chateau Tuesdays (Tuesdays, 5:30 – 8:00 p.m.)
  • Offered: June 26th, July 10th & 24th, Aug. 14th & 28th, and Sept. 11^th
  • Come spend the beautiful summer evenings at Chateau Ste. Michelle as they extend wine shop hours for Chateau Tuesdays. Listen to free live music on the front lawn from 5:30 – 7:30 pm while enjoying your favorite wine by the glass or bottle. Food trucks will also be around for food to purchase. More information can be found here.

Other upcoming winery events

• Labor Day Celebration (Sunday, Sept. 1, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm)
  • We will have music by the band, The Machine, on our front lawn all afternoon, food trucks, a Glassy Baby pop – up, fun lawn games for all to enjoy and, of course, wine. All ages welcome. More information can be found here.
• Beat the Geek Trivia (Wednesday, Sept. 18, 7:00 – 8:30 pm; doors open at 6 pm)
  • Chateau Ste. Michelle has partnered with Beat the Geek Trivia to challenge and surprise you. Bring your friends and come play on the third Wednesday of the month. Teams are maximum of 8 and prizes will be awarded. Wine and food will be available for purchase. More information can be found here.
• Return to Tuscany Chef Dinner (Saturday, Sept. 28, 7:00 – 10:00 pm)
  • Return to Tuscany with Chef Scott Harberts. When his culinary career started he was enamored with Italy, and the foods of Tuscany. Since then he has explored the cuisines of other cultures and learned about numerous other flavors. For this dinner, he decided to return to his roots and visit Tuscan fare once again. So, join him for a night of fun, food, and vino Italian style. More information can be found here.