{"id":12,"name":"itä wines","image_url":"https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/p/AF1QipN9WnLeNfOj7biC80qn44sCqCxyOg1rQBO_9LNz=w408-h612-k-no","district":"Airport","hours":"Fri - Sat 11am – 4pm","hours_type":"limited","dog_friendly":true,"red_wine":true,"white_wine":true,"bubbles":false,"brewery":false,"woman_owned":true,"year_established":2019,"winemaker":"Kelsey Ivey","website":"https://itawinery.com/","phone":"+1 509-593-9055","address":"600 Piper Ave, Walla Walla, WA 99362, United States","description":"Winemaker Kelsey Albro Itämeri showcases Walla Walla’s eastern hills with restrained, hillside‑grown varietals; each bottle expresses delicate terroir with finesse","lat":46.0925686,"lng":-118.263167,"appt_url":"https://itawinery.com/visit/","walk_in":false,"tasting_fee":"$30 per person waived with wine purchase.","explorer_tags":["white/rose"],"profile":"# itä Wines – Winery Knowledge Profile\n\n## Founding Story\n\nitä wines was founded in 2019 by Kelsey Albro Itämeri in Walla Walla, Washington. The winery was established with a singular focus: to craft wines that express the beauty and finesse of the foothills of the Blue Mountains. The winery's name is drawn directly from the founder's own surname, Itämeri, reflecting a deeply personal connection to the project. From its inception, itä wines has operated as a woman-owned and woman-made venture, with an emphasis on low-intervention winemaking that allows the purity of fruit to shine through. The winery describes its wines as delicious, lower-alcohol, higher-acidity expressions that the founder loves sharing with friends, family, and wine lovers alike.\n\n## Winemaker\n\nKelsey Albro Itämeri is the founder, winemaker, and sole operator of itä wines. Her winemaking philosophy centers on high-elevation sourcing and low-intervention techniques, with the goal of producing wines that genuinely reflect their place of origin in the Blue Mountain foothills. She describes her operation candidly and without pretension — noting on the tasting room page that \"it's just me over here\" — which speaks to her hands-on, intimate approach to every aspect of the winery. Her style favors lower alcohol levels and higher acidity, prioritizing freshness and fruit purity over extraction or heavy winemaking influence.\n\n## Vineyard Sources\n\nWhile specific vineyard names are not detailed in the available web content, itä wines emphasizes high-elevation sourcing from the foothills of the Blue Mountains as a defining characteristic of its fruit. This is highlighted prominently in the winery's tagline — **\"High Elevation. Low Intervention. Woman-Made. Woman-Owned.\"** — signaling that elevation is a foundational element of their wine identity and likely a key contributor to the higher acidity and lower alcohol profiles found across their portfolio.\n\n## Signature Wines & Tasting Notes\n\nitä wines produces a focused portfolio of current releases that reflect both varietal range and an approachable, expressive style:\n\n- **2025 Rosé** – Described as a \"joyous rosé\" with hints of **watermelon and lime zest**, suggesting a bright, fruit-forward, and refreshing style.\n- **2024 Chardonnay** – Characterized as \"classic like a crisp white T and blue jeans,\" this wine is fermented and aged in **neutral French oak barrels**, preserving freshness and avoiding heavy oak influence. The language suggests a clean, food-friendly style.\n- **2025 Carbonic Zinfandel** – Described as a \"crushable light-bodied red wine,\" the use of **carbonic maceration** is a notably unconventional choice for Zinfandel, producing a softer, more aromatic, and lower-tannin expression of the variety.\n\nAcross all three wines, the tasting language emphasizes approachability, freshness, and drinkability — consistent with the winery's stated philosophy of lower alcohol and higher acidity.\n\n## Wine Club\n\nitä wines offers a tiered wine club with three membership levels, each shipping twice per year in fall and spring. All tiers feature **fully customizable allocations**, complimentary tastings, **$15 flat-rate shipping** on orders of six or more bottles, and access to **member-only pickup parties in both Seattle and Walla Walla**. Members also receive **first access to limited wines** that sell out annually.\n\n- **3 Bottle Club** – Six bottles per year (two shipments of three); 10% off all purchases, 15% off purchases of six or more bottles, 20% off case purchases.\n- **6 Bottle Club** – Twelve bottles per year (two shipments of six); 15% off all purchases, 20% off case purchases.\n- **12 Bottle Club** – Twenty-four bottles per year (two shipments of twelve); 20% off all purchases.\n\n## Tasting Room\n\nitä wines is located in Walla Walla's **Airport District**, within the winery incubators — a short drive from downtown. The tasting room is housed in a working production facility, which shapes the visitor experience into something the winery describes as \"unpretentious, intimate, and honestly pretty fun.\" Walk-in hours are **Friday and Saturday, 11am–4pm**, with **Monday through Thursday available by appointment**, which must be booked at least **48 hours in advance**. The tasting fee is **$30, waived with a bottle purchase**. Groups of seven or more are asked to reach out in advance via email.\n\n## Winery Character\n\nitä wines occupies a distinctive niche in the Walla Walla wine scene as a one-person, woman-owned operation with a clear and consistent identity: high-elevation fruit, minimal intervention, and wines built for pleasure rather than prestige. The winery's aesthetic is refreshingly candid and personal — from the founder's self-aware humor in the tasting room description to the approachable language used across all wine descriptions. The deliberate focus on lower alcohol, higher acidity, and techniques like carbonic maceration for Zinfandel signals a winemaker willing to challenge regional conventions in pursuit of freshness and drinkability. itä wines has also earned press recognition, noted on the website, further affirming its presence as a standout small producer in the Walla Walla Valley.","somm_notes":[{"title":"Patti's notes on itä","content":"This small, women-owned winery is one to watch. Kelsey is crafting some truly beautiful wines, and you've got to try her side-by-side Semillon blends-one barrel-fermented, the other in stainless steel. Such a fun and delicious comparison!"}],"wines":[{"name":"Carbonic Zinfandel","vintage":"2025","variety":"Zinfandel","price":"$30"},{"name":"Rosé","vintage":"2025","variety":"Rosé","price":"$28"},{"name":"Sémillon","vintage":"2024","variety":"Sémillon","price":"$28"},{"name":"Cabernet Franc","vintage":"2024","variety":"Cabernet Franc","price":"$36"},{"name":"Chardonnay","vintage":"2024","variety":"Chardonnay","price":"$34"},{"name":"Sémillon","vintage":"2023","variety":"Sémillon","price":"$28"},{"name":"Syrah","vintage":"2022","variety":"Syrah","price":"$48"}],"patti":null,"visitor_ratings":[{"source":"google","rating":4.9,"count":20}],"sample_reviews":[],"critic_scores":[],"community_scores":[{"wine_name":"2 of 2 Sémillon","vintage":null,"score":90,"source":"Vivino","critic":null,"tasting_note":"Vivino community: 4.0/5 (50 ratings)"},{"wine_name":"Rosé of Primitivo","vintage":null,"score":90,"source":"Vivino","critic":null,"tasting_note":"Vivino community: 4.0/5 (30 ratings)"},{"wine_name":"1 of 2 Sémillon","vintage":null,"score":87,"source":"Vivino","critic":null,"tasting_note":"Vivino community: 3.7/5 (28 ratings)"}],"events":[]}