2022 Adelia Cellars Pinot Grigio Yakima Valley Washington 750 ml

For Lexi Sells, the pull of home was too strong.

She was a Napa star on the rise: Just 27 years old and already enologist for the legendary Duckhorn Vineyards—where the 2019 Monitor Ledge Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon she oversaw would be named the Wine Enthusiast wine of the year.

But the Spokane native was all too aware of the potential of southwestern Washington’s winegrowing area—the high-desert climate that pairs warm baking days with cool air funneled down the Columbia river. So she moved to Yakima and started Adelia Wine Cellars to highlight exceptional terroir, and value, of the Columbia Valley. The label is named after Lexi’s grandmother, an homage to the generations of women in her family who have worked in agriculture.

2022 was a late-starting year, with a cold winter that kept vines dormant longer than usual. A warm late-spring and summer allowed for the vintage to get back on track, and provided perfect conditions to ripen beautifully aromatic white wines like this one. The Pacific Northwest was then rewarded with a brilliant fall, with warm—but not hot—weather extending well into October, allowing Sells to pick at her convenience.

Lexi’s 2022 Pinot Grigio is a strong argument that she made the right move: Bright and fresh, it’s a crisp example of the grape that thrives in the Yakima Valley—this is a Pinot Grigio with real drive and energy. Fresh tart pineapple and tomato leaf aromas join a mélange of crushed chalk, rosé petals, and lime zest, leading to a plate that is juicy and refreshing, with green apple and hints of crushed almond and grapefruit rind.