Woodward Canyon Winery
Woodward Canyon Winery
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Located in the Walla Walla Valley appellation of Washington State, Woodward Canyon Winery was started in 1981 by Rick Small and his wife, Darcey Fugman-Small. They have since been joined by the second generation, Jordan Small and Sager Small. Since the beginning, the winery has consistently produced premium,age-worthy, award-winning cabernet sauvignons and merlots as well as chardonnays. Tasting is in our 1870s farmhouse, modern Reserve House or in our shady gardens. Conveniently located just off of the Lowden Exit on Highway 12, 13 miles west of Walla Walla.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
62 reviews
Excellent
41
Very good
15
Average
4
Poor
2
Terrible
0
Heindels
Atlanta, GA187 contributions
Jul 2023 • Couples
Exceeded expectations. The wines are delicious, even the pizza wine! Our server, Terry, was gracious and friendly. Probably the best wine tasting experience we’ve had thru the WallaWalla valley. We enjoyed hearing about the family history and the love that went into this family owed and run business. Both male servers took pride in their work and it really showed. We tasted 7 wines, and the pours were generous. We were seated outside in the beautiful garden surrounded by gorgeous flowers. ( Moms’ garden )
Purchased a bottle of Cab Franc to fly home with us to Georgia.
Purchased a bottle of Cab Franc to fly home with us to Georgia.
Written July 8, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
uncvcutraveller
Riverside, IA527 contributions
Sep 2021
Thoroughly enjoyed every single wine i tasted. I thought the best was the "pizza" wine which was made from local grapes but from diffrent parts of the wine region. The ambience, the hosts, and the guests made all the difference. What a way to end my wiine tasting trip!!!!! I am also impressed that they are able to sell its wine all the way to Georgia. That is awesome.
Written September 11, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
IKE48
Holland, MI735 contributions
Jul 2022
Expectations were blown away with the quality of the wine and excellent experience. Don't let the rating of 2 of 3 in Lowden fool you if you don't know the area. One of the top in the entire Walla Walla region. GREAT price points and offer FREE shipping on your order.
Written July 15, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Adventure65725253451
5 contributions
Sep 2022
This is a small locally owned winery and it is wonderful. The wines are amazing and the tasting was great. It was a beautiful spot for our picnic. We had a large group and they treated us great. The wines were so good that shipping home to NC occurred!
Written September 8, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Boiseagent4u
Idaho43 contributions
May 2022
My husband and I were in Walla Walla for just one day and only had time for 2 wineries. We had planned on a different winery but decided to give this one a try as we had never heard of it. I am not sure how we have never heard of this wonderful winery.
We ordered almost every wine on the offering. The white was wonderful as were the reds.
Don't miss this gem! It is worth the time.
We ordered almost every wine on the offering. The white was wonderful as were the reds.
Don't miss this gem! It is worth the time.
Written May 18, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
C C
Seattle, WA23 contributions
On our first wine tasting trip to Walla Walla, Woodward Canyon was our favorite. In our case, the tasting room worked out quite well -- we had wanted to try several of their wines for a number of years but did not know where to start and were reluctant simply to experiment due to the prices. Also, I think it is nice to experience new wines at the tasting room -- they are ideally presented and it creates a memorable experience. So we put off experimenting with their list until we could visit. After visiting, we were impressed and and have been enjoying various of their wines ever since.
Woodward Canyon is a famous winery in the Northwest. After winning a number of awards in the 1990s it was on the edge of becoming a cult wine, but decided instead to take a more relaxed and approachable path -- no allocations, no list, just top notch wines year after year. I find their best wines to be Cabernet Sauvignon and Cab blends, but they have a wide range of wines whose prices range from the $teens to $70s. They are also experimenting with a variety of red varietals such as Dolcetto and Barbera, which are very enjoyable.
The Cabernets (my favorites) are highly structured and nicely oaked. However, they tend to be very tight on release and typically benefit from several years' aging. Their 2002 Artist's Series (around $45) is starting to show nicely, while 2003 is tasty but needs significant air. In my opinion, it's still too early for their 2000 and later Old Vines series (their upper-end Cab, at around $70). But then this is a travel review, not a wine blog.
The tasting room is in a small house next door to the L'Ecole No. 41 schoolhouse, so it is very convenient to visit both wineries in a single stop. The tasting room is small and offers not only their main line wines (such as the Artist Series Cabernet) and more affordable second label (Nelms Road, around $20), but also tastes wines that are only available from the winery, such as a table red (under $20).
I'd regard it as a must-stop destination for any Walla Walla wine tasting trip. Even if it didn't fit your taste or pocketbook, it is a great benchmark for comparing other wines.
Woodward Canyon is a famous winery in the Northwest. After winning a number of awards in the 1990s it was on the edge of becoming a cult wine, but decided instead to take a more relaxed and approachable path -- no allocations, no list, just top notch wines year after year. I find their best wines to be Cabernet Sauvignon and Cab blends, but they have a wide range of wines whose prices range from the $teens to $70s. They are also experimenting with a variety of red varietals such as Dolcetto and Barbera, which are very enjoyable.
The Cabernets (my favorites) are highly structured and nicely oaked. However, they tend to be very tight on release and typically benefit from several years' aging. Their 2002 Artist's Series (around $45) is starting to show nicely, while 2003 is tasty but needs significant air. In my opinion, it's still too early for their 2000 and later Old Vines series (their upper-end Cab, at around $70). But then this is a travel review, not a wine blog.
The tasting room is in a small house next door to the L'Ecole No. 41 schoolhouse, so it is very convenient to visit both wineries in a single stop. The tasting room is small and offers not only their main line wines (such as the Artist Series Cabernet) and more affordable second label (Nelms Road, around $20), but also tastes wines that are only available from the winery, such as a table red (under $20).
I'd regard it as a must-stop destination for any Walla Walla wine tasting trip. Even if it didn't fit your taste or pocketbook, it is a great benchmark for comparing other wines.
Written July 5, 2007
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
tch4fun2019
6 contributions
Oct 2019
Our first stop was Woodward Canyon Winery and we enjoyed tasting their Estate Sauvignon Blanc and then moved on to four reds. You bet I bought a bottle or two! Terry was friendly, informative and didn't let our glass stay empty. It was wonderful!
Written October 15, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you! We have passed your kind comments on to Terry - he’s a gem.
Written October 18, 2019
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
busconi
Wenatchee, WA5,404 contributions
Apr 2018 • Couples
Right next door to L'Ecole is Woodward Canyon Winery. When we are driving into Walla Walla we always stop here in Lowden to visit both wineries. Woodward Canyon tasting room is in a small home...the atmosphere is laid back and quaint. Very nice wines and very knowledgeable staff. Definitely stop here.
Written May 7, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you! We look forward to your next visit.
Written May 8, 2018
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
bevgembr
Bozeman, MT73 contributions
Aug 2015
I enjoyed the back patio for my wine tasting. I had my dog with me. The server brought each tasting out to me. She was very knowledgable about each wine and friendly. Much appreciated! You can hear the freeway from the winery, but after a few tastes it blurred away.
Written August 22, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LuBabe
Wintergreen, VA160 contributions
Sep 2012 • Friends
Our Wine Guild made the mistake (based on other recommendations) to schedule a private tasting with cheese/crackers for $25 per person of their "fine wines" in their "reserve house". Fourteen of us went there with high expectations and we were sorely disappointed! They presented four wines with small pours and the food items were four crackers and four thin slices of cheese along with a couple nuts. The red wines were so young that were not drinkable and they had the audacity to charge up to $75 per bottle with no group discount!
Walla Walla has terrific wineries with outstanding wines; this is NOT one of them. Folks, save your money for an outstanding vineyard like Long Shadows or Rasa.
Walla Walla has terrific wineries with outstanding wines; this is NOT one of them. Folks, save your money for an outstanding vineyard like Long Shadows or Rasa.
Written September 12, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you for your feedback regarding your private tasting experience at Woodward Canyon. We are sorry that it did not meet your expectations.
We make every effort to communicate to our guests on our website and during the reservation process both the cost and that the experience is one of a guided hour long tasting with a light accompaniment. We apologize if that was not made clear.
While the current release wines were not to your liking, we hope that you did enjoy our 2008 Artist Series Library Selection. We were pleased that others in your group complemented our staff on the setting and wines. Wine is a very subjective thing and we understand that not everyone appreciates the same wines.
We regret that we did not deliver to your personal expectations, but we are pleased to see that you enjoyed other aspects of your visit to our beautiful Valley.
Written October 5, 2012
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
No questions have been asked about this experience