Tefft Cellars: Closed its Doors

A sad note to tell that Tefft Cellars has closed its doors and ceased operation in its Woodinville location. This is a guest post from Richard Duval of Duval Images. I think it says it all. They will be missed.

I had to say goodbye to my good friends at Tefft Cellars which closed its doors over the weekend. Tefft was lovingly run by good people who gave me free access to their wall space to stage exhibits, try ideas, and even use the tasting room as a backdrop for photo shoots as well as an unofficial office. And I had free reign to photograph their beautiful vineyard in Rattlesnake Hills, which is now up for sale.

As my images reflect, it’s easy to see the wine business through mainly romantic eyes. Romance notwithstanding, it is nevertheless a business, which means it has failures and sometimes casualties. For every rock star winery in Washington, there are a dozen like Tefft Cellars — good wineries that reflect the passion of so many owner/winemakers with grape juice, a garage and a vision. That bottle of wine you enjoyed last night is often the end result of a fragile dream balanced on a very precarious ledge. And contrary to the image of owners strolling the vineyard bathed in the late day sun, the true picture is often much more stark, often much more a scene of blacks and reds long before they strike gold.

I will greatly miss Paul, Rhonda and Rachel and the classy tasting room staff who always complemented my work. Along with this image of the Tefft vineyard, I’ll post a few more from the hundreds of great images I’ve captured at Tefft these last three years. I thank them for the steadfast support. And a lot of good wines and good times.