1889 Washington's Magazine | December/January 2018

Washington’s Magazine

TRIP PLANNER: OLYMPIA PG. 78

Dining on Dungeness

The Seattle Clemency Project

Cranberry Orange Moonshine Margarita

December | January 2018

A Very

HOLIDAY TRADITIONS | GIFT GUIDE

Washington Winter

50+

WASHINGTON-MADE

GIFT IDEAS

SEASONAL TRADITIONS AROUND THE STATE

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December | January

volume 12

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DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

Molten Magic photography by Cameron Zegers At the Seattle Glassblowing Studio, anyone can learn glassmaking techniques. The interactive art gallery and creative studio offers classes ranging from fifteen minutes to six weeks and has been around since 1991. (pg. 64)

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 3

FEATURES DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018 • volume 12

60 Unwrapping the Holidays Like all states, Washington has some special holiday traditions.

We scoured the state for winter events that keep us warm, if only in our hearts.

Visit Seattle/Alabastro Photography

written by Sheila G. Miller

64

47

Heart of Glass

1889’s Washington-Made Gift Guide

Learn the art of glassblowing with Seattle Glassblowing Studio & Gallery, where all ages and skill levels can get in on the fun. photography by Cameron Zegers

Whether you’re doing some last-minute shopping or trying to decide how to spend cash from gift returns, we’ve got Washington-made treats that are just right. photography by Whitney Whitehouse

With 5 ski resorts within 90 minutes, you have time to shred them all.

Check out VisitSpokane.com for more ski information.

DEPARTMENTS

LIVE 14 SAY WA?

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018 • volume 12

Washington artists’ best 2018 albums, best last-minute gifts, and a book to cozy up to the fire with—we’ve got it all waiting for you.

18 FOOD + DRINK

14

Learn to make a margarita with a holiday twist, then grab pastries and bread or a rustic Italian dish from this issue’s gastronomy and dining spots. Finally, start your day right with top picks for breakfast around the state.

22 FARM TO TABLE

We Pacific Northwesterners are the lucky ones who know the joy of Dungeness crab. Learn more, including how to incorporate crab into a variety of meals.

26 HOME + DESIGN

John Froschauer

Bathrooms don’t have to be big to be beautiful—two bathroom remodels in Seattle prove it.

41

42

32 MIND + BODY

Pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in the nation. We caught up with one of the men behind the craze.

34 ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Washougal resident John Furniss may be sightless, but his woodworking is profoundly insightful.

THINK 38 STARTUP

Stay Alfred, started in Spokane, is changing the face of vacation rentals again.

40 WHAT’S GOING UP

Senior living gets an upgrade in three cities around the state.

41 WHAT I’M WORKING ON

Tumwater was once a key brewing post in Washington. Now, it hopes to get back in the game.

42 MY WORKSPACE Winston O’Neil

Ebbets Field Flannels believes in the power of authenticity. We all benefit.

10 11 86 88

Editor’s Letter 1889 Online Map of Washington Until Next Time

44 GAME CHANGER

The Seattle Clemency Project has set its sights on prison reform, starting with those imprisoned by Washington’s three-strikes law.

EXPLORE 72 TRAVEL SPOTLIGHT

Washington’s coast has lots of holiday traditions, including a crab pot Christmas tree.

74 ADVENTURE

Washington is home to some incredible trees—our writer set out to find and document them.

77 LODGING

Posthotel Leavenworth proves the city is more than just a holiday destination.

78 TRIP PLANNER COVER

photo by Katheryn Moran, of Pine River Ranch near Leavenworth (see Unwrapping the Holidays, pg. 60)

Olympia is an unassuming city on the I-5 corridor that will have you wondering why more people don’t make it a destination.

82 NORTHWEST DESTINATION

The Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge is a wine lover’s delight.

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where every moment is picture perfect

CONTRIBUTORS

BEAU EASTES Writer My Workspace

WHITNEY WHITEHOUSE Photographer Washington-Made Gift Guide

CHAD WALSH Writer Game Changer

INGRID MCQUIVEY Photographer Artist in Residence

Having long been a baseball history geek, profiling Ebbets Field Flannels had been on my bucket list for a while. While I’d always been impressed with its style and appreciation of Negro League teams, I was blown away by its dedication to historical detail. If Ebbets Field Flannels can’t find the right material to replicate a 1950 Walla Walla Bears cap, it’ll hunt down the manufacturing plant responsible for producing the textiles that initially created that classic Bears hat more than a half century ago. The pieces truly are living, breathing art and history. (pg. 42)

As a native of the Pacific Northwest, I loved shooting 1889’s Washington-Made Gift Guide because I was able to see a ton of really special items from around the state.

The collection of gifts was an inspiration to shop local this upcoming holiday season.

We’re surrounded by so many talented artists and creators, what a great way to appreciate their hard work and passion! (pg. 47)

Of all the problems we’re collectively trying to solve at the local, state and even national level, one of the most important is criminal justice reform. One of the issues baked into the reform is finding ways around a three strikes law that essentially sends Washingtonians to prison for life with no chance of parole, because the state doesn’t have parole. History will judge us, but I’m glad that organizations like the Seattle Clemency Project are trying to help right historic wrongs. (pg. 44)

When I stepped out of the car with my camera in front of John Furniss’—The Blind Woodsman—workshop in Washougal, he and his wife, Anni, extended their hands and offered me a glass of water. I connected with their warmth and hospitality. As I lifted my lens to capture John’s sense of touch along the spinning grain of exotic hardwoods, his simple act inspired me. Like the hardwood he uses for his craft, his life started rough and raw, but he endured and shaped his challenges into artistic beauty. (pg. 34)

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DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

EDITOR Kevin Max

MANAGING EDITOR Sheila G. Miller CREATIVE Allison Bye MARKETING + DIGITAL MANAGER Kelly Rogers

WEB MANAGER

OFFICE MANAGER

DIRECTOR OF SALES

Aaron Opsahl Cindy Miskowiec Jenny Kamprath

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Cindy Guthrie Jennifer McCammon Jenn Redd

BEERVANA COLUMNIST

Jackie Dodd

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Laura Cherau, Melissa Dalton, Beau Eastes, Viki Eierdam, Catie Joyce-Bulay, Bethany Marcel, Ben Salmon, Ethan Shaw, Cara Strickland, Naomi Tomky, Chad Walsh, Corinne Whiting

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Ingrid McQuivey, Katheryn Moran, Winston O’Neil, Jason Redmond, Whitney Whitehouse, Cameron Zegers

Statehood Media Mailing Address

Portland Address

70 SW Century Dr. Suite 100-218 Bend, Oregon 97702

1801 NW Upshur St. Suite 100 Portland, Oregon 97209

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All rights reserved. No part of this publiCation may be reproduCed or transmitted in any form or by any means, eleCtroniCally or meChaniCally, inCluding photoCopy, reCording or any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of Statehood Media. ArtiCles and photographs appearing in 1889 Washington’s Magazine may not be reproduCed in whole or in part without the express written Consent of the publisher. 1889 Washington’s Magazine and Statehood Media are not responsible for the return of unsoliCited materials. The views and opinions expressed in these artiCles are not neCessarily those of 1889 Washington’s Magazine, Statehood Media or its employees, staff or management.

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 9

FROM THE EDITOR LET’S SAY YOU didn’t jump the gun and do all of your holiday shopping on Black Friday. Let’s say you’re more of a procrastinating shopper, like me. The early bird gets the worm, but not the benefit of our annual curated Washingtonmade gift guide. We select from dozens of goods and services made in Washington, cull a targeted portfolio for our readers and hope that you will shop locally to give your community an economic gift as well as a gift to your loved ones. Turn to page 47 and dig into our 2018 Gift Guide.

In Farm to Table, we turn to the ocean.

Dungeness crab is synonymous with Washington and part of its DNA. We delve the waters of the Sound to find some of the state’s best festivals around this crustacean and recipes such as crab toast and tagliatelle with Dungeness, fennel and chive. Feeling crabby? Turn directly to page 22.

The new year is almost here and with it your resolve to do the home projects that got away from you in 2018. In Home + Design, we look at two stunning bathroom remodels in Seattle.

These homes are adorned with statement tiles that don’t overpower the overall décor. Begin gawking on page 26.

As the new year begins, we want the stories that bring hope to the world on a local level. John Furniss makes incredibly beautiful wooden bowls from a lathe in his garage. He has been blind since age 16 after a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Read his story on page 34.

Backwater, no more. Tumwater is embarking on an ambitious program to become a competitive craft brewing epicenter by leveraging public and private funding to restore the historic Olympia Brewing Company building as a center for brewing excellence. Go to What I’m Working On, page 41. Better yet, take a trip to the nearby state capital and use our Trip Planner on page 78 as your guide.

On the business side of hope, have a look at what’s happening with this Spokane startup. Stay Alfred in October took a large

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DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

stride into the big leagues with a second round of financing that came in at $47 million. The upscale urban Airbnb-like lodging rental company now has apartments, lofts and condos in twenty-eight major cities and expects to scale this concept globally. See Startup on page 38.

Of course, the best gift of all is travel. Get away to the cozy environs of the Hood River area. Our Northwest Destination on page 82 takes you into the southwest corner of the massive Columbia Valley AVA and on both sides of the river. We ambled into the Gorge with no expectations and left with new favorite wines and experiences from an unsung piece of terroir.

Happy holidays from the 1889 team!

1889 ONLINE More ways to connect with your favorite Washington content www.1889mag.com | #1889washington | @1889washington

washington: in focus Have a photo that captures your Washington experience? Share it with us by filling out the Washington: In Focus form on our website. If chosen, you’ll be published here. www.1889mag.com/ in-focus

photo by Carl Johanesen

Enchantment Park in Leavenworth.

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DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 11

SAY WA? 14 FOOD + DRINK 18 FARM TO TABLE 22 HOME + DESIGN 26 MIND + BODY 32

pg. 20 Breadfarm, in Edison, has legions of loyal followers.

Gabriel Boone Photography

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 34

1002 W Riverside, Spokane WA Spokaneclub.org

say wa?

Tidbits & To-dos

Whimsical Winter Travel Tumbler Rumpl and MiiR have teamed up to release a limited edition holiday collection for the winter season.

The Whimsical Winter 12-ounce travel tumbler is the perfect gift for an outdoor adventure seeker.

The companies have also created a puffy blanket with matching design to keep you cozy while sipping your favorite hot drink.

Point Defiance Tacoma Zoolights

www.miir.com/products/rumpl-travel-tumbler

www.pdza.org

Spiceologist Set The Spiceologist makes experimenting with herbs and spices fun with this ideal gift set that’s perfect for the home cook or to help you round out your own spice rack. You’ll love these basic essentials, with a few fun extras, to try in your next savory dish. www.spiceologist.com

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DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

Now through January 6, Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma invites you to experience the zoo at night, with more than 700,000 lights and 3-D animal displays. Other activities include camel and vintage carousel rides, hot cocoa and treats.

r ou ar y k d ar m en

ca

l

say wa?

Metamorphic Gear Metamorphic Gear was created with the environment in mind, making upcycled bags from recycled sails.

Each product is designed in a variety of colors and styles perfect for everyday use. www.metamorphicgear.com

ca mark le you nd r ar

Belgian Fest

Every year, Washington State University produces a famed collection of 30-ounce canned cheeses in nine assorted flavors. This deliciously smooth cheese is available year round but is just right for the holidays.

The ninth annual Belgian Fest is coming up on February 2 at the Seattle Center’s Fisher Pavilion. The festival will feature more than 100 brews made in Washington using Belgian yeast.

Admission includes ten tasting tokens and a commemorative glass.

http://cougarcheese.wsu.edu

www.washingtonbeer.com

Cougar Gold

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 15

say wa?

Musician

2018’s Best Tunes Washington albums you need to hear written by Ben Salmon Bill Frisell, Music IS | Seattle

Bad Luck, Four | Seattle On the “about” page of Bad Luck’s Facebook profile, the Seattle duo’s genre is listed, simply, as “music.” More telling is this phrase under “band interests”: “trying to not get kicked out of jazz clubs.” Saxophonist Neil Welch and percussionist Chris Icasiano met a decade ago at jazz school, then spent years playing traditional free jazz. But for Four, the two recorded with Randall Dunn (producer of murky acts like Sunn O))) and Earth) and explored a more compact form. What came out is heavy, dark electro-jazz that’s both strident and thrilling.

Big Bite, Big Bite | Seattle Other styles have made inroads, but ultimately, Seattle is known for its guitars. The city’s musical history hums with the sound of six strummed strings, from Jimi Hendrix to Kurt Cobain to Fleet Foxes. Add to that list up-and-comers Big Bite, whose self-titled 2018 album is a bracing blast of grimy pop-rock that sounds like a cross between seminal Northwest punks the Wipers and grunge faves Dinosaur Jr. On Big Bite, drums thunder, guitars shiver and churn, and melodies snarl through the din. The results are glorious … and best played loud.

Brandi Carlile, By The Way, I Forgive You | Seattle For more than a decade, Brandi Carlile has been one of the region’s finest songwriters, fiercest performers and fastest rising stars. She has a handful of solid albums to her name and a sizable, intensely loyal fan base behind her. And she’s not done. By The Way, I Forgive You is Carlile’s best collection of songs yet, performed with deep conviction and pristinely recorded. It’s like a trip into the center of Carlile’s soul and back—and what an incredible trip that is.

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Monica Frisell

Guitar genius Bill Frisell spends so much of his time playing in combos, collaborating with others and fusing disparate genres that it can be easy to forget he is one of the most skilled and inventive six-string slingers on Earth. Even on Music IS—his first solo guitar album in years—he isn’t exactly showy. Instead, Frisell plays a handful of original compositions with incredible feel and agility, sometimes accompanied by a looped recording of himself. From top to bottom, Music IS is consistently confident and inventive, lovely and lighter than air.

Mount Eerie, Now Only | Anacortes Phil Elverum was already indie-folk-rock royalty, but his 2017 album, A Crow Looked At Me—a harrowingly honest meditation on death recorded after Elverum’s wife succumbed to cancer—is one of the 21st century’s most affecting works of art. Now Only continues that album’s basic theme, with Elverum unspooling raw streams of consciousness, accompanied mostly by acoustic guitar and little else. But where Crow was a self-contained grey-world of devastation, on Now Only, you can hear bits of light and hope beginning to flicker.

Perry Porter, Channel Surfing | Tacoma In recent years, a wave of young rappers has significantly expanded the range of acceptable vocal styles in mainstream hip-hop. Gone are the days of only scowling MCs—in their place are squeaky voices, speak-singing and wobbly melodies.

Washington’s representative in this movement is Tacoma’s Perry Porter, who fills his excellent Channel Surfing LP with sly vocal gymnastics and a selection of fresh, left-of-center beats.

Like his vocal antecedent Danny Brown, Porter is proof you can be engaging and hard-hitting at the same time.

Water Monster, Tensus | Spokane Max Harnishfeger may be best known around Spokane as a member of popular local partyrockin’ supergroup Super Sparkle, but his best work of 2018 is under his electronic alias, Water Monster. On Tensus, he performs every sound you hear except for some electric guitar, which may be why the album’s slinky, sparkly grooves sound so seamless. Across ten tracks, Harnishfeger crafts an experience that’s tense and beautiful by pairing rumbling synths with digital soul and melodies that soar.

say wa?

Bibliophile

A Ticking Time Bomb Novel blends mysticism with harsh realities of Hanford interview by Sheila G. Miller

A YOUNG WOMAN from a small Washington town takes a secretarial job at Hanford in the 1940s. One problem—she has visions of the future, and sees the environmental and humanitarian destruction to come from the work being done there.

In her new novel, The Cassandra, Spokane native Sharma Shields explores the scientific marvel and the tragedy of the Manhattan Project.

Shields, who won the 2016 Washington State Book Award in fiction for her previous novel, The Sasquatch Hunter’s Almanac, talks to 1889 about the magic realism of her novel and why the book gets so dark.

You grew up in Washington. Did you learn about Hanford in school? How did you decide to write about the site and the Manhattan Project?

We didn’t learn about it, and I heard just kind of random things about it that I never really understood growing up.

When I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis six years ago, sometimes when I’d tell people about the diagnosis they would say, ‘We have a huge incidence of that here because we’re downwind of Hanford.’ I never really knew what to make of that.

I was writing a mad scientist novel, a sort of modern retelling of Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein set in the Northwest, and it occurred to me when I heard about Hanford that it would be an awesome place for this mad scientist to work.

Then I realized the history was really fascinating and instead I wrote a historical novel. I never really intended to do that.

This book is heavy on history—how did you research it?

Until August, I worked for the Spokane County Library District, so my research started on Proquest and the databases there. There was also a book I repeatedly checked out over and over, Atomic Frontier Days. And then there was this incredible website I still look up,

Sharma Shields blends magic realism with Washington history in her new novel, The Cassandra.

called Voices of the Manhattan Project (www.manhattanprojectvoices.org).

But probably the most helpful thing was when they made the B Reactor a national park. I booked a tour months in advance, and I went over there and I got to explore the reactor, take a bus tour of the entire Hanford site. That really helped me ground the novel in this physical place that I couldn’t even imagine before visiting.

There is a lot of bad male behavior in this novel, and it is not nostalgic—it gets very dark.

It became really important because of a quote I read by one of the women working there—“I look back now and realize this was a free country but we were living behind barbed wire at Hanford, all to protect womanhood.

I know that where women were concerned, Hanford could either make you or break you.” When I started reading about the rapes that were taking place there and how they had to put up barbed wire, it became really important to me because of things that happened to me and to the women I cherish in my life. It was a way of really trying to bring to light how damaging that sort of chauvinistic thinking is in our country, not just at Hanford but around our country. I started writing this book

five years ago, and I was not expecting it to be as timely as it has been. It’s a huge disappointment to me that we’re making steps forward but it still feels like, especially where our government is concerned and the patriarchy at play, women have an uphill battle. We’re still silenced and still told that the brutal experiences we’ve endured don’t matter compared to the experiences of men.

There’s a real thread of mysticism in this book, even as it’s set in the real world. Why was that important to you?

I wanted the narrator to be both really vulnerable and also really exceptionally powerful. When I was thinking about the secrecy at Hanford, and then I was thinking about the Cassandra Myth and her ability to see things, I thought, ‘How cool would it be to have a character who does know what’s going on at Hanford?’ An everyday worker, not a high-end physicist or a general working on the project, who does understand everything that could possibly happen there. I love how the fantastic can really heighten the very emotional reality of a piece. Also I love how fun it is to write and can make it kind of fun to read, and it might even add a little levity to something that is filled with dread and despair like this book is.

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 17

food + drink

Cocktail Card recipe courtesy of Bad Dog Distillery

Cranberry Orange Moonshine Margarita 2 ounces Grandpa’s Likker 2 ½ ounces cranberry juice ½ ounce orange juice 1 ounce fresh lime juice ½ tablespoon sugar, optional

Beervana

Hop Shopping with the Pros written and photographed by Jackie Dodd

Run a lime slice along the glass’s rim to hold sugar in place, then rim glass with sugar.

Combine ingredients in shaker, add ice and shake until combined.

Pour into glass and garnish with cranberries and orange slice.

To make it a blended margarita: Add ingredients and a handful of ice to a blender and blend until well mixed.

18 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE

Founders Brewing brewmaster Jeremy Kosmicki selects centennial hops for next year’s beers.

IT’S A MECCA of sorts for every brewer in the country, hallowed ground that’s been trampled by every important beer maker in the world— and it just so happens to be in our own backyard. Yakima isn’t necessarily a top travel destination for most, but for the true 1 percent of the beer community, it ranks well above Munich during Oktoberfest. Traversing the valley during harvest behind the brewers from Founders Brewing, I felt the indelible weight of touching the bines, smelling the crushed, fresh leaves in my hand, drinking a pint made with a hop I might never taste again, and doing it all next to the most important brewers alive today.

We drove toward the back of a hop field, its remaining bines being stripped from the wires. Rowdy brewers and hop growers, loudly chatting just minutes ago, were suddenly silent with reverence and respect as we walked inside,. A small back room, lit by overhead fluorescent lights, held a table front and center.

Hops sat in small cylindrical containers, as if on a stage waiting for their moment of judgment. If they were capable of emotion, they’d be nervous.

Only the brewers sat. Each brewer looked down, shutting the rest of the world out, assessing the piles of hops— all different lots of the same variety. The brewers were here to choose—not the type of hops, that was already decided— but which of the centennial hops, all meticulously grown in different parts of the Pacific Northwest, like deciding

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

which Granny Smith apple to bake with, the ones grown in Yakima, Hermiston or Idaho. To the average beer drinker, the difference between each pile isn’t even perceivable—all have the same size, shape, color and basic aroma. But to these experts, the difference can make or break next year’s beer. The decision is crucial.

As the spectators waited, the churning of thoughts, senses, and indefinable gut feelings was palpable. The brewers rubbed the hops into oblivion between their hands, pressing their faces into their palms, closing their eyes and inhaling deeply at each pile. The room remained silent—you don’t talk in a man’s backswing.

When it was over, the room instantly felt lighter. The brewers returned to the present and compared notes. Smiles returned to their faces and for a second you could see a flicker of doubt—did they get it right? When everyone came to the same conclusion, doubt was replaced by satisfaction.

When it was over, we ate, leaving the space to make room for the next crew and shaking hands with the owner of Sierra Nevada. Heading to the restaurant we passed other celebrities of the beer world. We all stayed at the same two hotels, ate at the same restaurants, and drank at the same bars.

It was like Craft Beer Summer Camp. If there was ever a time before this when I felt lucky to live in Washington, this beat it by a mile.

A L E G E N D IN T HE BA KING

KEEP IT REAL. KEEP IT WASHINGTON. Indulge in real, fresh, delicious butter and cream from Washington. The reasons the holidays taste like the holidays.

W A D A I R Y. O R G

14620-12_Whipsquatch_1889.indd 1

10/29/18 5:15 PM

food + drink

Gabriel Boone Photography

CRAVINGS PIZZA This college-town pizza joint is using a special wheat to create its pizza dough. It’s called soft durum—a new kind of wheat from the lab at Washington State University.

Topped with fresh ingredients, it’s light and soft.

200 NE KAMIAKAN PULLMAN www.porchlightpizza.com

BARBECUE The smell will hit you before you walk in the door. Don’t miss Porter’s slow-cooked brisket (and you might need some banana pudding to go with it).

705 THE PARKWAY RICHLAND 1022 N COLUMBIA CENTER BLVD KENNEWICK www.portersrealbbq.com

OYSTERS Breadfarm handcrafts pastries that are sold in select retail stores and farmers markets.

Gastronomy

Breadfarm written by Cara Strickland IF YOU’RE NOT paying close attention, you might miss the Edison-Bow community, a gem nestled in the Skagit Valley. One of the stars of the area is Breadfarm, an artisan bakery that has been making bread with wild yeasts, cookies, pastries, and other delights since 2003. All the bread is made fresh daily, and sells out fast. Though you can’t go wrong with any of the options, be sure to try a sour cherry lemon bread if you can. Check in often to see what new pastries and cookies are popping up seasonally, because they won’t last long. Keep in mind, the shop only accepts cash or checks. If you can’t make it to Edison, you can catch Breadfarm at the Everett, Anacortes and Bellingham farmers markets, and at a few select retail locations listed on its website.

5766 CAINS COURT EDISON www.breadfarm.com

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At Chelsea Farms, there’s always a varied selection of oysters fresh out of the sea to enjoy on the half-shell, depending on the season. The clam chowder makes a great accompaniment, especially for a cold day.

222 CAPITOL WAY N OLYMPIA www.chelseafarms.net/oyster-bar

HARD CIDER Cider isn’t just sweet anymore!

Let Tieton introduce you to the craft cider world with a variety of styles, including dry and hopped ciders, fruit ciders like apricot and cherry, and reserve ciders ready to tempt the most discerning palate.

619 WEST J STREET YAKIMA www.tietonciderworks.com

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

food + drink

BEST PLACES FOR

BREAKFAST CATKIN CAFE You’ll find this quirky breakfast and lunch spot in the Artworks Gallery on Orcas Island. Choose from an assortment of housemade pastries like the rhubarb scone, or choose a satisfying entrée like baked eggs in eggplant, zucchini and tomato.

WALLA WALLA BREAD COMPANY The heavenly smells from this place will hit you a block away. All of the baked goods are made in house, including a deeply indulgent cinnamon roll. If you’re looking for something with a little protein, try a classic steak and eggs or corned beef hash with housemade brisket.

Mark VanDonge

11 PT. LAWRENCE ROAD OLGA www.catkincafe.com

Jackie Greisen

201 EAST MAIN STREET WALLA WALLA www.w2breadco.com

THE WANDERING GOOSE Heather Earnhardt’s North Carolina roots inspire this thirty-seat cafe in North Capitol Hill. Try a biscuit sandwich—the Sawmill has gravy and fried chicken. No matter what you try, you’ll get it with a Southern twist.

Dining

403 15TH AVENUE EAST SEATTLE www.thewanderinggoose.com

written by Cara Strickland

CHAPS This eclectic cafe always has a line outside on the weekends—once you get inside, you’ll see why. Try the baked french toast from owner Celeste Shaw’s grandmother’s recipe and be sure to get some thick-cut bacon. Pro tip: go during the week to avoid long waits.

4237 SOUTH CHENEY SPOKANE ROAD SPOKANE www.chapsgirl.com

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Passatempo’s modern dining area. The restaurant serves rustic Italian dishes. The bar has a long wine and beer list.

Passatempo Taverna A NEWCOMER on the Walla Walla food scene, Passatempo opened in 2016.

The name is an Italian nod to the former occupants of the space, the historic Pastime Cafe. With craft cocktails by the talented Jim German, handmade fresh pasta and a carefully curated selection of seasonally rotating entrees in an Italian rustic style, there are many reasons to make a reservation. The restaurant currently takes them up to the three months in advance, and in the busy seasons, you’ll need them. Of course, you can’t forget about wine in Walla Walla. Owner Mike Martin also happens to be the founder of The Walls Vineyards, which specializes in interesting and elegant red, white and rosé blends. While you can find the wines available at Passatempo, there are plenty of other treasures to discover on both the wine and beer lists.

215 W MAIN STREET WALLA WALLA www.passatempowallawalla.com

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 21

Photos: Pacific Seafood

farm to table

Farm to Table

Cracking Good Meals Dungeness delicacies come out of their shells written by Corinne Whiting

Dungeness crab can be eaten with just butter and lemon, or in complicated recipes.

SOME MIGHT ARGUE—if you haven’t feasted on Dungeness crab, you haven’t visited the Pacific Northwest at all.

Depending on whom you speak to, the delightful delicacy (a hard-shelled, six-legged crustacean found in chilly waters off North America’s west coast) should be enjoyed in a specific way. The general consensus, however, is that this food item— named after a small fishing village in Washington—should never be overlooked. And according to local restaurants’ menus, thankfully, it rarely is.

“Dungeness is quite versatile. If I’m at home, I snack on it cold. Crack at it, with some cocktail sauce and salt-and-pepper potato chips,” chef Carolynn Spence of Seattle’s Shaker + Spear, explained. “At the restaurant, we constantly change it up.” The number one brunch seller at the bustling downtown venue?

The Dungeness crab cake benedict with ham and avocado.

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Dan Obradovich, processing sales manager of Pacific Seafood, said while his mom makes a mean Crab Louie, he takes a simpler approach in order to truly savor the “rich, distinctive flavors.” “From a purist standpoint, there’s something about sitting down and cracking the shell that makes it more of an event,” he said. At home, Obradovich prefers it straight out of the shell, accompanied by melted butter with garlic and a little sautéed onion—and enjoyed alongside bread and a glass of wine. Chef Paul Duncan of Ray’s Boathouse enjoys preparation methods from French court bouillon to Tom Ka-style.

The Dungeness crab is so revered in this corner of the country that every October, thousands of hungry visitors convene in Port Angeles to enjoy up to 8 tons of fresh-caught crab. Last year, around 15,000 folks came from twenty-eight states and Canada to enjoy the delicacy. This year, the Olympic Peninsula’s

farm to table

free Dungeness Crab & Seafood Festival welcomed new head chef Chris Wagnon, who had volunteered in years past.

Wagnon most appreciates that the crabs served have been sourced locally and that they feature “so much juicy meat.”

“I believe Dungeness has the sweetest and best assortment of textures,” he said. “I love that after we put so much love into preparing the Dungeness crab, the customer will put in an equal amount of love to eat it.”

The festival evolves as crowds grow—this year’s “crab central tent” expands to 17,000 square feet. Throughout festival grounds, attendees now find fifteen food booths, a cornucopia of vendors, stages for live music and cooking demos, plus anticipated events like the Grab-a-Crab Derby and Sunday Chowder Cook-Off. “The best part about all of this is the diversity of people—the amazing family from Wisconsin that helped us shuck corn for three hours, the international students from Peninsula College having their first interaction with food production, the random local who has never seen a crab cleaned and the little kids getting to hold a live crab,” Wagnon said.

Companies like Pacific Seafood say they’ve been harvesting and processing some of the region’s highest-quality and best-tasting seafood, from a variety of coldwater shrimp and wild salmon to Columbia River steelhead and Dungeness crab, for more than seventy years. Since its beginnings in 1941, the company has grown to thirty-five facilities in seven states, though the team remains family-owned and dedicated to sustainable fishing practices. Its Washington headquarters are located in Mukilteo, and Tacoma diners enjoy its just-caught goods at The Fish Peddler Restaurant & Retail Market on Dock Street.

Once an “insider’s secret” among Pacific Northwest chefs, Dungeness crab has now gained popularity around the globe. In Puget Sound, Dungeness crab tends to be most abundant north of Seattle, in Hood Canal and near the Pacific coastline. The opening of crabbing season, usually in November or December, fluctuates dependent on the quality and condition of the crab, as well as the absence of any marine biotoxins. Thanks to a 1994 federal court ruling, the “Rafeedie Decision,” harvest of Dungeness crab is shared between treaty Indian tribes and nontribal fishers as an attempt to allow equal access.

To determine what portion of the Dungeness crab population can be sustainably harvested, fishery managers use the “3-S strategy”—size (crabs must be 6¼ inches or larger), sex (no female crabs can be harvested) and season (no fishing is allowed during molting, allowing crabs to grow into their new shells).

The folks at Pacific Seafood stock the best crab during the months of July, January and February. Obradovich admitted, however, “We’re a little spoiled here since we almost always have access to good crab.” It seems serendipitous, especially for retailers, that prime availability syncs up with holiday feasts that unite diners around a table—think Christmas, the Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day. AT RIGHT, FROM TOP Pacific Seafood harvests Dungeness crab and has facilities in seven states. The crab harvest has many sustainability requirements.

farm to table

Washington Recipes

Hot Coriander Dungeness Crab

Sink Your Claws into Crabs Tagliatelle with Dungeness Crab, Fennel and Chive

Coarse black pepper Salt Pasta water

SEATTLE / Le Messe Brian Clevenger SERVES 2

10 ounces fresh pasta 3 ounces Dungeness crab ½ fennel bulb, diced ½ ounce chives, cut small 1 fresh lemon 1 tablespoon crème fraiche 1 tablespoon Plugra butter (unsalted)

Dungeness Crab Toast

SEATTLE / Ray’s Boathouse SERVES 2 1 slice bread ¼ cup avocado spread 3 ounces Dungeness crab 2 tablespoons garlic aioli ½ serrano pepper, seeded and julienned 1 tablespoon pickled red onion, minced 4 cherry tomatoes, cut in half 2 tablespoons butter FOR AVOCADO SPREAD 1 avocado 1 lime Pinch of salt FOR GARLIC AIOLI 1 egg yolk ¼ cup roasted garlic 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon Champagne vinegar 1 cup canola oil 3 teaspoons salt Ice water, for thinning FOR PICKLED RED ONION 1 onion, sliced thin 3 cups rice wine vinegar 1 cup water ½ cup sugar ½ cup salt

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Boil salted water in a large pot. Add pasta and cook for 2 minutes. In a separate pan on medium, heat butter.

Once melted, sauté diced fennel. Add pasta and 2 ounces pasta water and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes on high heat. Stir in the crab, zest of entire lemon, crème fraiche and chives. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Toast bread in butter in a hot pan over medium heat. Once bread is golden, transfer to a cutting board. Apply ¼ cup avocado spread evenly to the toast. Next, mix crab with garlic aioli.

Once thoroughly mixed, spread evenly atop avocado spread. Top with minced pickled red onion, serrano peppers and cherry tomatoes. Slice in two.

FOR AVOCADO SPREAD Mash whole avocado with the juice of one lime until smooth. Season with a pinch of salt.

FOR GARLIC AIOLI (YIELDS 1½ CUPS) Add all ingredients, except the oil, into a blender or a food processor. Turn on food processor and begin to slowly add in the oil. As the aioli begins to thicken, add a splash of ice water to thin it out ever so slightly. You want the aioli to be spreadable and not too thick. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and lemon juice if necessary.

FOR PICKLED RED ONION Mix vinegar, water, sugar and salt in a pot and bring to a simmer, just to dissolve the salt and sugar. Cool immediately, and only use pickling solution cold.

Once cold, submerge sliced red onions in pickling solution overnight.

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

SEATTLE / Shaker + Spear Carolynn Spence SERVES 6

3 live, 2 ½-pound Dungeness crabs ⅓ cup lime juice 1 cup green onion, fine dice FOR CORIANDER CRAB SAUCE ½ cup olive oil 1 cup garlic, sliced thin on mandoline 1 cup ginger, fine julienne 1 cup coriander, toasted and ground 3 cups vegetable stock ¾ cup pickled red fresno chili liquid ½ cup pickled red fresno chili Crab “butter,” pureed and strained Salt to taste FOR PICKLED RED FRESNOS 2 pounds red fresno peppers, sliced into thin rounds 2 cups white vinegar 2 cups water 2 tablespoons salt 1 tablespoon sugar In salted boiling water, boil each whole crab for 15 minutes, then shock in ice water. Pull off and lightly crack all legs with mallet or back of knife. You can cover with plastic wrap while you crack it. Carefully open top shell and pull out any “crab butter” and set aside in bowl for sauce later. Cut off the gills’ “dead man’s fingers” and discard. Cut the main body meat into four portions. Smashing the legs and cutting up the body of the crab will allow for sauce to permeate crab meat.

Over high heat, sauté crab parts in olive oil, add sauce and cook quickly until almost dry.

Toss with green onion and lime juice, and serve piping hot.

FOR CORIANDER CRAB SAUCE In a pot over medium heat, add oil and sauté garlic until lightly golden brown. Add ginger and coriander, toasting for 3 minutes, then deglaze with vegetable stock. Simmer and season with salt to taste. Add crab butter liquid, chili liquid and pickles, then simmer for 5 minutes.

FOR PICKLED RED FRESNOS After cutting chilis, put into container of cold water and move around with a spoon. The seeds will sink, making it easier to separate them from the pepper rounds. Strain out peppers and place in new container. Then boil water, vinegar, sugar and salt. Pour the liquid over the chilis. Once cooled, refrigerate.

farm to table

Hot Coriander Dungeness Crab from Seattle’s Shaker + Spear.

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

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home + design

Statement Makers

These two Seattle bathrooms “wow” with their tile treatments written by Melissa Dalton

THIS 1912 COTTAGE in the Fremont neighborhood had endured one slapdash renovation after another over the course of its long life. In 2016, the owners, a couple who have lived there for decades, decided to intervene. “They have a real eye for contemporary design and love to cook and entertain,” said architect Forrest Murphy, principal of CAST Architecture, who worked with the owners on the revamp. “They also have extended family that lives overseas who would come for long visits, but the house didn’t accommodate any of those things.”

The ensuing overhaul led by contractor Model Remodel left no square inch untouched—the basement became separate quarters for visiting family, the main floor is an open-concept living hub, and a second-story addition now captures views of the Aurora Bridge and hosts a private bedroom suite. “The downstairs is very active and very social—it’s one giant room,” Murphy said. “So, the upstairs master suite is where they go to get away from it all.”

The couple’s wishlist for the principle bathroom was not very long. It included a soaking tub, walk-in shower and “to see the view while sitting in the bath,” Murphy said. However, the room’s footprint was limited to a 6-foot by 16-foot rectangle. “We wanted to get this luxurious, tranquil, serene bathroom into a relatively long and narrow space,” Murphy said. To get it, he positioned a generous walk-in shower so it doubles as circulation space to access the tub at the far end. “That was the trick to making it all work,” Murphy said. Nearby, a wallmounted vanity with a bleached oak veneer “sits up off the floor” so as not to take up too much visual weight in the scheme.

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Cindy Apple Photography

Fremont: A starry personal getaway

This bathroom remodel added a soaking tub and starry tiles.

Visit the island you can drive to!

anacortes.org | 360.293.3832

To avoid thunderous crashing waves, wildlife sightings and secluded beaches, don’t visit us in the winter.

cannonbeach.org

Upon entry, all eyes are on the striking tile in the shower. “The idea was to define the two walls of the shower with this very strong and graphic look,” said Murphy, who chose brilliant blue “Star Hex” cement tiles from Popham Design for that purpose.

Since the pigment is rubbed into each tile by hand, “they end up with all this really fabulous natural variation in the color,” he said. A removable ipe deck at the shower floor complements the tile’s vivid hue and creates a sensory experience. “That’s really there for that sensual feel of standing on the wood boards as you’re showering,” Murphy said. “There’s also something unique in having the water disappear rather than run down a drain.”

Discerning tweaks get the finished look just right, from the shower slats flush with the rest of the floor to the perfect grid of the subway tile surrounding the tub to the recessed shade that disappears in the window frame over the bath. Murphy even laid out the cement tile by hand on the floor prior to install, so that the star pattern flowed down the wall just right. “It was a game of, not even inches, but quarter-inches and eighths of an inch, to get all of the things that we wanted to get into this bathroom,” he said, “to line them up in a pleasing way and all within a very tight space.”

Phinney Ridge: A traditional, yet modern, makeover “Location, location, location” goes the real estate maxim. But snagging an old house in a desirable neighborhood can mean long stretches of renovation work to get it up to snuff. Such was the case for Stephanie Rothfuss, a community college professor, and her husband when they found their dated 1909 bungalow in Phinney Ridge.

They decided to prioritize their punchlist and put the master bedroom suite at the top, tapping interior designers Lauren Hockema and Kelly Lyons, co-owners of the Seattlebased K&L Interiors, for help. “They bought the house because it was in a great location, but it was kind of rundown and hadn’t been updated in a while,” Hockema said.

By starting with the master bedroom suite, the couple would always have a comfortable refuge, no matter future construction plans.

28 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE

The most logical location for the principal suite was the attic. “It was technically finished, although not very well,” Hockema said of its stick-on flooring and thin drywall. The long, narrow layout had two bedrooms that book-ended an unused area at the top of the stairs. Rather than squeeze in a bathroom, the designers suggested converting the entire floor into a private suite that incorporated not just a bedroom and bath but a generous closet and flex space for an office or nursery. “I was so on board with that,” Rothfuss said.

“It just made so much sense.” After checking with her Realtor that it wouldn’t ding the home’s overall value, the team, including Ainslie-Davis Construction, got to work transforming one of the bedrooms into a luxe 120-square-foot bath.

Rothfuss knew from the beginning what she didn’t want—white floors, and not only because, as she put it, “we’re a family of darkhaired people and we have a black dog.” She’d seen previous projects from the designers and liked the look of an eye-catching floor.

The top choice was a cement tile with an ornate pattern in black, white and gray. “We thought it would be fun to bring that in there to add a little something extra to the space, in order to make it pop,” Hockema said.

Other elements foster subtle stylistic tension. “I would describe the style as transitional,” Hockema said. “It’s mostly a modern-looking space, but then it has a few places where we added a traditional flair to it.” To that end, the custom rift-sawn white oak vanity and the elongated subway tile sheathing the shower read contemporary, while the traditionally detailed plumbing fixtures and floor tile edge into classic territory. A brass star-shaped ceiling light also plays with the juxtaposition, with its “old-world look” interpreted in “a modern way,” Hockema said.

Functional considerations, like a builtin shower bench and heated floors, make everyday living luxurious for the homeowners, who found out during the renovation that they would be parents. “It’s worked out really well, especially when we brought our daughter home,” said Rothfuss of the finished suite, which now includes a nursery nook. “It’s really nice to have that space to retreat.”

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

Michael Duryea

home + design

home + design

An eye-catching floor, elongated subway tile and a star-shaped ceiling light define this space.

“I would describe the style as transitional.

It’s mostly a modern-looking space, but then it has a few places where we added a traditional flair to it.”

— Lauren Hockema, K&L Interiors co-owner/ interior designer

Michael Duryea

home + design

DIY: Luxurious Upgrades IF YOU’RE NOT planning a total bathroom renovation anytime soon, try one of these simple ways to ante up the luxe factor.

1 CHANGE OUT CABINET HARDWARE

This suggestion isn’t just about looks, as good design engages all the senses. Substitute flimsy cabinet hardware with pulls or handles made of more substantial metal and it will feel good every time they’re touched.

2

EXCHANGE OFF-THE-SHELF LIGHTING

Just as in hardware, lighting matters. If there’s a runof-the-mill fixture at the ceiling, trade it out for one with more character, like the star-shaped flush mount picked for the Phinney Ridge bathroom.

SWAP THE VANITY

For the Phinney Ridge project, K&L Interiors made sure the vanity had drawers instead of the more commonly found doors, in order to eke out more streamlined storage and increase functionality. “Drawers give you more space to store things,” Hockema said.

4

MOUNT A HEATED TOWEL RACK

Do you have a GFCI outlet and free expanse of wall? Consider affixing an electric towel warmer in the empty space or go with a free-standing model.

Nothing beats pulling a toasty towel off the rail when it’s time to dry off.

5

INSTALL A HAND SHOWER

The designers at K&L Interiors like to recommend handheld showerheads to their clients, especially models that include a slide bar. With it, the spray can be adjusted for the heights of every member of the family. Handheld showerheads also make cleaning a snap, whether you’re rinsing off the grout or a wriggling pup.

CARVE OUT A NICHE

Small changes can make a big difference, such as a vanity with drawers as in the Phinney Ridge bathroom.

Countertop clutter is a surefire way to make a space feel less luxe. Try recessing shelves in a niche between the wall studs to create more artful display instead.

home + design

Showstopping Décor Make a statement with one of these chic pieces

The attention-grabbing flushmounted star fixture from Visual Comfort & Co. is made of handrubbed brass that will patina over time.

Need a more contemporary finish?

Check out the versions in polished nickel, antiqued silver and inky bronze. www.visualcomfortlightinglights.com

According to architect Forrest Murphy, Popham Design was formed when an American couple “bought a traditional tile factory in Morocco,” he said. “They took this traditional operation and started making extremely contemporary designs.”

The collections have patterns galore, and tiles are available in a wide range of shapes and colors across the spectrum. www.pophamdesign.com

Don’t let a boring mirror be a lost opportunity. The Infinity Round Mirror from Room & Board is a generous 3 feet in diameter and the slim metal frame comes powder-coated in an inspiring variety of colors, from bubble-gum pink to a moody deep teal. www.roomandboard.com

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 31

mind + body

In a Pickle

Roger BelAir extols the virtues of pickleball written by Chad Walsh photography by Jason Redmond

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mind + body

FROM LEFT People play pickleball at the Bitter Lake Community Center in Seattle. Pickleball, a game invented on Bainbridge Island in 1965, is said to be the country’s fastest growing sport.

LET’S FACE IT—many of us spend our days with our noses buried in our phones so we don’t have to engage with other strangers who (again, let’s face it) are probably doing the same thing. You might even be reading this on your phone. At a time when our best leaders are asking us to leave our news silos and political echo chambers and reach out to one another, there seems to be no clear path to do so.

So how do we get out of this pickle?

That’s where Seattleite Roger BelAir comes in. BelAir is a banker-turned-investorturned-author-turned-public speaker. It’s safe to say he could also be considered the Mayor of Pickleball, a game invented as a lark on Bainbridge Island in 1965, now said to be the country’s fastest growing sport.

For the uninitiated, pickleball is sort of like mini-tennis, incorporating elements of doubles tennis, table tennis and badminton. The courts are smaller, the rules are many but easy to learn, and the equipment—oversized table tennis rackets and one plastic Wiffle ball—is affordable. And it’s arguably more fun than the three sports that birthed it.

BelAir points out that in 2003 the game was played on only thirty-nine courts.

Today, more than 3 million people are playing on more than 6,000 courts around the United States. And while BelAir emphasizes that playing pickleball is good for our health, he argues it’s also good for our collective mental health.

“I don’t know of any sport more social that this,” BelAir said. “Most people go to the courts by themselves and sit on the sidelines until it’s their time in

the rotation to play. You play a twelveminute game, go to the back of the line and wait your turn for another match.

It’s common to play with and against fifteen strangers on a given day. It’s only natural that relationships are built. Those relationships can evolve into friendships, and sometimes friendships can turn into very good friendships.”

While the recreational game is popular among Arizona retirees and Seattle millennials, it’s now reaching new populations who’ve come to embrace its small joys.

After watching a 60 Minutes report documenting the grim conditions at Chicago’s Cook County Jail, BelAir reached out to the jail’s weary warden, who agreed to let him introduce the game to even more weary inmates. After a few short lessons, BelAir said “guys who don’t have much to do besides play cards, watch TV and get in each other’s faces” were laughing like children during the jail’s new pickleball tournaments. They were quick converts, BelAir said. Playing pickleball grants those inmates a small respite while they await trial on very serious charges.

BelAir said he would love to see every able-bodied person interested in pickleball give it a shot. He has taught more than 700 people how to play since he picked up his own racket.

But his ultimate goal is to show people that playing the game with strangers (and maybe soon-to-be friends) is good for our mental health, which can in turn improve the collective emotional health of our own communities.

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

Roger BelAir

Pickleball Enthusiast Age: 72 Born: Kennewick, Washington Residence: Edmonds, Washington

WORKOUT Roger plays pickleball five days a week and meditates every day.

“Both activities nourish my soul.”

NUTRITION Roger eats a primarily plant-based, whole-food diet. “I call myself a ‘vegan who cheats.’”

INSPIRATION 98 percent of all inmates eventually are released. If we can make them better people while they are on the inside, it’s safer for all of us once they return to society. Pickleball can help play a role in developing positive life skills like learning from mistakes, thinking about consequences and being a good teammate.

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artist in residence

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP John Furniss uses a table saw at his workshop in Washougal to cut the corners off a large block of wood—the beginning of a future bowl—made of black walnut, sapele and African padauk. A few of Furniss’ finished pieces. Furniss was blinded in a suicide attempt. Furniss places his hand on a piece of wood spinning on a lathe. “I have to feel the piece as it changes,” he said. “You are not supposed to put your hand on the lathe, but if I didn’t, it would look like a blind guy made it.”

The Blind Woodsman Sightlessness doesn’t stop John Furniss from carving his own future written by Viki Eierdam photography by Ingrid McQuivey

artist in residence

IN A DIMLY LIT studio in Washougal, John Furniss turns exotic woods like padauk and bubinga on a lathe. Every session begins with a known endgame—a salad bowl, vase or multi-tiered jewelry stand—but the design is an unspoken conversation between Furniss and the wood. Each groove, bulge and taper is how the wood reveals its strengths and weaknesses and, for this blind woodworker, he skillfully unlocks beauty where others see flaws.

Born with sight, Furniss worked on cars, dabbled in wood framing and took school art classes from a young age. It was not until he became completely blind at the age of 16 that the world of wood opened up to him in vivid shapes and colors.

“Something that happens with sighted people who have gone blind is phantom visions,” Furniss said. “I have a full color field of vision.

It’s like I have a CAD (computer-aided design) program in my mind.”

At 16, when adulthood seemed far away and the challenges of youth weighed heavy, Furniss raised a gun to his left temple and shot himself.

He describes his survival as “a miracle” and says the doctors who worked on him for six and a half hours were the “best surgeons you could hope for.”

While total vision loss could turn some people sour, Furniss describes it as a moment that “set things right” for him. At a vocational rehabilitation school in Utah, Furniss met Chris Hathaway, a legally blind woodworking instructor. Over the next several years, Hathaway taught all he knew to an eager Furniss.

Hathaway also spent hours describing different woods to Furniss out of a comprehensive wood dictionary. That time narrowed Furniss’s interest to more exotic woods like maple, cherry, black walnut, ash, apple and bloodwood. Although Furniss is careful to work with sustainable woods, some are locally sourced, courtesy of supporters from his newly adopted county.

Growing up in small towns in Wyoming, Colorado and Utah, Furniss was surrounded by family, but the communities were not large enough to support a burgeoning artist.

Hathaway told Furniss about the now-defunct Emil Fries School of Piano Technology for the Blind in Vancouver and so, in 2011, he made his first trip to the Pacific Northwest.

After studying for two years, he ran a piano rebuild business with friend and colleague,

Rick Patten. But the tedium of each piano requiring 1,400 separate, precise adjustments sent Furniss yearning for the meditative flow of wood. Insight from a special lady was the encouragement he needed.

While attending the School of Piano Technology, Furniss met fellow artist, Anni Becker, who happened to be hand-painting a piano for a Vancouver-area event. The two struck up a friendship that turned into romance and, later, marriage.

“I was broke as a joke, and she called me and wanted to go out,” Furniss said. “I had a garden plot at the Marshall Center, and I had a giant patch of peas.”

He asked her if she’d like to pick peas in his garden, and Anni described it as the most romantic first date she had ever been on, complete with moonlight. Three years later, in September 2015, they were married in that garden space.

Anni bought Furniss his first lathe and now organizes his woods by color, so he can pick from the stacks. After that, it’s all Furniss. In the shop, safety is his first priority. When he makes a cut, he checks where his hand will be and where the blade will be. He performs a test pass before any equipment is turned on. When he sets his tools, they are always unplugged until the actual cut and, although he does use a table saw, it is with no music on and always as a last resort.

Furniss’s unfettered warmth and enthusiasm make him an unlikely face of suicide survival, but that is an undeniable part of his journey.

Today, he is happy to share his story with individuals if he thinks it will help them, but he prefers to be defined by the man he is now rather than the teen he once was. At 36 years old, Furniss sells canister sets, cups, plates, hors d’oeuvres trays and more at area markets and festivals.

“I found I have a knack for it,” Furniss said.

“I’m better at woodworking than anything else I’ve tried.”

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 35

STARTUP 38 WHAT’S GOING UP 40 WHAT I’M WORKING ON 41 MY WORKSPACE 42

Winston O’Neil

GAME CHANGER 44

pg. 42 Ebbets Field Flannels is America’s pastime and a time capsule all in one.

startup

On The Rise

Spokane startup Stay Alfred is redefining travel accommodations written by Kevin Max

IN OCTOBER, travel accommodation rental upstart Stay Alfred raised $47 million in a second round of financing, propelling it into a growth category few Spokane-based startups have ever seen. Its first round of $15 million came in 2017.

Stay Alfred, much like its larger brethren, Airbnb, is a webdriven accommodation rental business, but instead of taking on all-comers in its rental portfolio it prefers urban areas with high-end accommodations in nicely furnished new lofts, condos and apartments. Unlike some Airbnb properties, there is no owner on site. Today, Stay Alfred has blocks of rentals in buildings from Austin to Boston and San Diego to Seattle.

The concept of living like a local in an upscale downtown property challenges the traditional short-stay hotel model and samples the Airbnb model. It lives in the growing space at the intersection of technology and short-term rentals along with Airbnb, Vacasa, HomeAway and Domicile.

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“While people love the lifestyle amenities and local exposure vacation rentals provide, you never really know what you’re going to get when you’re booking,” said Stay Alfred founder, Jordan Allen, 36. “It’s sort of like online dating. The pictures don’t always match reality.”

A strong economy is the leading factor behind the growing lodging industry. Occupancy and revenue per room rates at hotels have been steadily growing and outpacing the expectations of industry data analysts STR and Tourism Economics. In their joint forecast for 2019, in fact, these entities found unusual strength and revised upwardly their forecast for average daily rates for hotels in mid-year 2018.

Private equity and venture capital have pounced on these trends. Seattle-based startup Domicile, for example, got $5 million in seed funding in September, Washington, D.C.based Upside closed $50 million in 2017 and Vacasa raised $103 million in October.

startup

FAR LEFT An example of a Stay Alfred rental, this one in Nashville. ABOVE, FROM LEFT Stay Alfred on Carondelet Street in New Orleans is a 10-minute walk from the French Quarter. Stay Alfred CEO Jordan Allen entered the high-end lodging rental business from the more spartan digs of the United States military.

“As the industry continues to grow, it is easier for investors to understand the importance of a product like ours,” Allen said. “Being able to show investors that we have and can do it at scale only further solidifies the fiscal strength of our concept.”

Though tech startups of this size often come from the bigger hub cities where Stay Alfred has properties, they are increasingly coming from outside of the Silicon Valley matrix where the cost of capital is lower, housing is more affordable and talent pools are growing from those increasingly drawn to a new lifestyle paradigm.

Allen grew up in the suburban Spokane Valley and dreamed of one day playing professional football. He entertained that dream as far as college, where, at his first football practice at Portland State University, he realized football was not his future. It was then that he discovered a new culture and committed to a new team—the United States Army, by way of ROTC. “From day one, I was hooked,” Allen recalled. “The focus on training, leadership and responsibility was perfect for me. It started a many-year career in the military as an Army Ranger.”

After college, Allen moved quickly into his new life with a short stint in Alaska for Airborne and Ranger School, followed by multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, he said. The Army taught him the importance of humility, the multiplier effect of collaboration and the power of motivation.

When you think of military and accommodations, however, you think more of cots in spartan barracks than luxury downtown apartments. Nonetheless, it was during a fifteenmonth deployment on a special forces base in Afghanistan that led to the idea of Stay Alfred.

While on leave from his deployment, Allen made plans to meet his brother in Denver for a Colorado Rockies baseball game. As more of their friends signed on for this trip, they found it difficult to find suitable accommodations for their group. “I was aware of the lack of product consistency that can exist in the vacation rental space,” he said. “It was from this concept of marrying the quality and consistency consumers understand you get from a hotel with the convenience and ‘local experience’ of a vacation rental that Stay Alfred was born.”

Allen left the Army as a captain and took with him foundational principles that would translate into Stay Alfred. With his savings, he started the company in 2011 and tested it in his home market of Spokane. The test market proved the concept, and Stay Alfred began to expand to new markets. “Our concept was to combine the lifestyle benefits of a vacation rental with the quality and consistency of high-end hotel and only do it in the best downtown neighborhoods, and we wanted to do it at scale,” Allen said.

At this time, Stay Alfred had amassed 2,000 rentals in twentyeight major cities across the United States, with approximately 500,000 guests since inception.

Ultimately, Allen said, he wants Stay Alfred to become a household name for travelers who want more from the places they stay. With investor expectations behind a fresh infusion of cash and increased competition, Stay Alfred will be tested in its ability to scale its model.

“Scaling that fast presents its issues, believe me,” Allen said.

“There are risks, challenges and no recipe for success. Which means every day is assessing and reassessing if there is a new and better way to do what we do. But, hell, if it gets really bad at the office I remind myself, at least I’m not getting shot at.”

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 39

what’s going up?

New Options For Seniors

Upgrades coming to all parts of Washington written by Sheila G. Miller NEW HOUSING OPTIONS for senior citizens continue to go up around the state, and they each seem to have more and better amenities. Gone are the days of hospital smells and soft foods— check out these options for active seniors around Washington.

In Vancouver, Bonaventure of Vancouver joins a nearby Bonaventure facility in Salmon Creek. The facility includes retirement, assisted living and memory care suites and studios, and it also includes a variety of extras, like a bowling alley, a billiards room and a pub.

Aegis of Mercer Island, slated to open in summer 2019, will have seventy-three assisted living apartments and sixteen memory care apartments. In addition to the typical amenities, this spot has a private wine tasting lounge as well as a cascading water wall on an outdoor terrace.

Fieldstone Memory Care will open in Spokane in fall 2019. The memory care facility is designed to have a neighborhood feel, with a common area that looks like a town square with a movie theater and ’50s-style diner.

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FROM TOP Aegis of Mercer Island will open in summer 2019.

Bonaventure of Vancouver has a bowling alley and pub.

What I’m Working On

Bringing Brewing Back Tumwater plans to ignite the local economy by drawing from its brewing past interview by Catie Joyce-Bulay

HEIDI BEHRENDS CERNIWEY, Tumwater’s assistant city administrator and brewery project manager, shares how the city is working to become a “center of excellence” for craft brewers, distillers and cidermakers.

What is Tumwater’s brewing history?

Tumwater is the original home of Olympia beer. The Olympia Brewing Company was the major private employer of the community for decades, so our identity was really built around … all of the generations of people that worked there.

Leopold Schmitt was the founder of Olympia Beer. He started his brewing company in 1896 as Capital Brewing Company and rebranded in 1902.

Our town really developed around the brewery.

How will the Olympia Brewery be brought back to life?

The high-level answer to that is, “How do you eat an elephant?

One bite at a time.” It’s a historic property. The original brewery is part of the National Historic Register and the post-prohibition brewery is a huge industrial complex. Reusing historic and industrial complexes is a big challenge.

The property owner donated the six-story brewhouse tower to the city.

This last year we put on a roof and window covering to stop erosion with primarily donated labor and services.

We also received a state matching grant from the Heritage Capital Projects program that will help get a permanent roof on and complete brick work.

It’s been a long journey of us, breaking this up into pieces and then trying to leverage those pieces one little bit at a time. That’s really where the Craft Brewing and Distilling Center came from.

What is the vision for the Craft Brewing and Distilling Center?

The craft brewing movement is just growing by leaps and bounds in Washington. … The state just blossomed with distilleries since [the laws changed in 2008] and craft cider has been another booming industry.

We hired a consultant to study craft industries and identify how we can help them simultaneously grow and revitalize our community.

We’re working with our Washington State University extension program, the local economic development agency, South Puget Sound Community College, and our local brewers, distillers and cidermakers to make sure that we have a strong local industry.

FROM TOP Brewery workers at Olympia Beer in the early 1900s. Heidi Behrends Cerniwey is Tumwater’s assistant city administrator.

[The college] hired a director and they’ll have their first cohort this fall starting the brewing and distilling program.

What does the city hope to gain by becoming a craft-brewing hub for the region?

We truly hope to grow the industry for the state and beyond … and what we are looking for is a revitalized community.

Communities reinvent themselves often, and this is an opportunity for us, one to hopefully redevelop our brewery, but also to develop a strong local economy.

It’s that symbiotic relationship—we want to help grow our community while we help grow the industry.

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my workspace

With $500 from the sale of his wife’s car and a zeal for uniforms from baseball’s colorful past, Jerry Cohen established Ebbets Field Flannels out of his Seattle apartment in 1988. Two of his first reproductions were ballcaps from the old San Francisco Seals and Seattle Rainiers of the Pacific Coast League. Ebbets Field Flannels now sports a flagship store in the heart of Seattle’s SoDo district, just a few blocks from Safeco Field.

My Workspace

Play Ball!

Ebbets Field Flannels makes replica jerseys of teams gone by written by Beau Eastes photography by Winston O’Neil

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Meticulously researched, Ebbets Field Flannels reproductions highlight legendary squads like Satchel Paige’s Kansas City Monarchs and Josh Gibson’s Homestead Grays, as well as more pedestrian teams such as the semi-pro 1950 Walla Walla Bears or the 1940 Idaho Falls Russets. In addition to Negro League and minor league gear, Ebbets Field Flannels has a lineup of vintage Japanese, Cuban, Latin American, military, collegiate and fictional—the New York Knights hat is gorgeous—baseball caps, jerseys, jackets, sweatshirts, T-shirts and even replica grounds crew windbreakers. And while best known for its baseball gear, Ebbets Field Flannels also produces historic football and hockey clothing.

my workspace

Even if you’re just now discovering Ebbets Field Flannels, there’s a good chance you’ve seen its work before.

The company re-created all the minor league and Negro League uniforms for the Jackie Robinson biopic 42, as well as the Tour of Japan baseball uniforms in the recent Paul Rudd film, The Catcher Was a Spy.

Celebrities such as Spike Lee, David Letterman and Ashton Kutcher have all sported Ebbets Field Flannels.

Letterman is such a fan he had throwback Late Show gear designed and created by the company. But no one has embraced the nostalgia of Ebbets Field Flannels quite like ESPN’s Keith Olbermann, who is now a minority owner. A noted baseball historian—Olbermann drops Federal League references like they’re going out of style—Olbermann oftens gives shoutouts to his Ebbets Field Flannel gear on Twitter and in interviews.

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game changer

Shannon Carpenter/This Aperture

Dwight Griffin was released from prison in August 2018 after serving twentyfour years of a life sentence on a three strikes case. He is shown here with his pro bono lawyer, Jennifer Horwitz. SCP matched Griffin with Horwitz in 2016.

Small Mercies

How the Seattle Clemency Project is trying to reform criminal justice written by Chad Walsh FOR ALL Gary Johnson knew, he was going to die in prison.

Before he was an inmate and a ward of Washington, Johnson was an artist. He’d also been an addict. To pay for his heroin addiction, he robbed a store in the 1970s. He did it again in the 1980s. He was caught—and sentenced—both times.

In 1998, Johnson’s addiction was so severe that he spent a week robbing banks—without a disguise and without a weapon. But something had happened between that second robbery and his last string of robberies—the voters of Washington became the first collective community to adopt a “three strikes” law. Johnson’s third felony essentially sentenced him to die in prison, because, unlike California, which passed a similar law the following year, Washington doesn’t have parole.

Washington does, however, have a clemency and pardoning board. That’s why, in 2016, Johnson penned a last-ditch letter to Seattle criminal defense attorney Jon Zulauf.

Zulauf was moved by Johnson’s story. In prison, Johnson kicked his habit. He also returned to art, painting a mural at the prison that jailed him. Visiting wardens admired the work so much that Johnson was frequently farmed out to other wardens throughout the state to paint murals for their prisons.

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Johnson was seemingly rehabilitated. He’d served two decades. He was 70 years old. He walked with a cane. Why, Zulauf thought, should he remain a prisoner?

Zulauf was mulling over Johnson’s story at a downtown cafe near his office when his friend and colleague, attorney Jennifer Smith, dropped by for a quick caffeine boost. He shared the letter. She shared his sentiments. Soon, the two decided they would not only take on Johnson as a pro bono client, but they’d do the same for others who’d been given de facto life sentences because of that three-strikes law—and they’d do so under the banner of the Seattle Clemency Project, an attorney-led, volunteer-run organization designed to help all the nonviolent lifers the system gobbled up.

According to Smith, the Seattle Clemency Project has matched eighty-four clemency applicants with volunteer lawyers. So far, thirty-two clemency petitions have been filed.

Six people have been granted early release. Three are presently free, including Kenny Wyatt, who now sits on the project’s board, and Dwight Griffin, who was released in August.

But Johnson was the first to win his freedom, when Governor Jay Inslee granted him clemency on December 21, 2017.

According to Emily Zulauf, the project’s original co-executive director, current board member and Zulauf ’s niece, Johnson is doing well. He lives at a drug treatment facility in Seattle and has just completed his first months of residency, which means he’s been granted outside privileges.

And he has support, Emily Zulauf said. He’s using an old friend’s garage as an art studio. Just this summer, Circa, a restaurant in the Admiral District, became the first local business to showcase Johnson’s artwork.

Dream big.

Plan ahead.

Washington College Savings Plans can help you start saving towards a brighter future.

Explore your options at wastate529.wa.gov

GET and DreamAhead are qualified tuition programs sponsored and distributed by the State of Washington.

The Committee on Advanced Tuition Payment and College Savings administers and the Washington Student Achievement Council supports the plans. DreamAhead investment returns are not guaranteed and you could lose money by investing in the plan. If in-state tuition decreases in the future, GET tuition units may lose value.

NO DISAPPOINTMENT HERE.

Cape Disappointment Lighthouse as seen from Waikiki Beach in Cape Disappointment State Park

VisitLongBeachPeninsula.com

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’s

Washington-Made

written by 1889 Washington’s Magazine staff photography by Whitney Whitehouse illustration by Allison Bye

Whether you’re still shopping for gifts or planning how to replace your post-holiday gift returns, we’ve got Washington-made ideas for everyone on your list (or just yourself).

From leather goods to breakfast treats, we have your winter holidays covered.

FOR THE

OUTDOOR ADVENTURER

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1. TIM + APRIL MOUNT RAINIER TOPOGRAPHIC ART PRINT www.timplusapril.com { $24 }

4. FEATHERED FRIENDS OSPREY 30 YF SLEEPING BAG www.featheredfriends.com { $379 }

2. RITE IN THE RAIN TOP-SPIRAL NOTEBOOKS www.riteintherain.com { $3.95 }

5. FRECKLED FOX & THE HUNGRY HEN PNW MUG www.etsy.com/shop/ freckledfoxhungryhen { $10 }

3. FIVE PLY DESIGN URBAN BIRD HOME www.fiveplydesign.com { $130 }

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

6. CAMPFIRE STORIES: TALES FROM AMERICA’S NATIONAL PARKS www.mountaineers.org { $21.95 }

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FOR THE

ENTERTAINER 1. 112 JAMES STREET ORGANIC CLOTH NAPKINS www.112jamesstreet.com { $7.50 each }

5. FIVE PLY DESIGN TABLE TRIVETS, THE PETAL SET www.fiveplydesign.com { $48 }

2. GLASS EYE STUDIO CLASSIC ORNAMENTS www.glasseye.com { $25.99 each }

6. ANTICA FARMACISTA PROSECCO RED HOLIDAY COLLECTION DIFFUSER www.anticafarmacista.com { $66 }

3. MADISONWARE CHEESE STONE & OLIVE DISH www.tracymadisoncreative.com { $170 } 4. FREE PUBLIC WHITE BLEND THREE-PACK www.freepublicwines.com { $14.99 }

7. ANTICA FARMACISTA PROSECCO RED HOLIDAY COLLECTION SCENTED CANDLE www.anticafarmacista.com { $46 }

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8. IMPWEAR VINTAGE TABLECLOTH www.impwearhome.com { from $52.99 }

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FOR THE

THINKER

1. THE WILD LINES OF JEREMY COLLINS 2019 CALENDAR www.mountaineers.org { $24.95 }

4. EIGHTH GENERATION ARTISAN PHONE CASES www.eighthgeneration.com { $38-$58 }

2. TOM BIHN MAKER’S BAG www.tombihn.com { $130 }

5. NO THANK YOU, EVIL! BOARD GAME www.montecookgames.com { $39.99 }

3. SEATTLENESS: A CULTURAL ATLAS www.indiebound.org { $24.95 }

6. PAPER HAMMER ONE GOOD IDEA NOTEBOOK www.paper-hammer.com { $15 }

FOR THE

FOODIE

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1. SAN JUAN ISLAND SEA SALT CO. SWEET, SALTY, SMOKY SET www.sanjuanislandseasalt.com { $50 }

7. CASCADE SHRUB FARM THREE-PACK www.mauishrubfarm.com { $22.99 }

2. GIRL MEETS DIRT JAM CLUB www.girlmeetsdirt.com { from $120 }

8. PIKE PLACE MARKET RECIPES BY JESS THOMPSON www.indiebound.org { $24.95 }

3. ALCHEMY GOODS AD BAG www.alchemygoods.com { $35 } 4. WOODINVILLE WHISKEY BARREL-AGED MAPLE SYRUP www.woodinvillewhiskeyco.com { $19.95 } 5. JONBOY CARAMELS 4-OUNCE BOX www.jonboycaramels.com { $9.99 each } 6. JONBOY CARAMELS CARAMEL SAUCE www.jonboycaramels.com { $10.99 }

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

9. COOKING FROM SCRATCH FROM PCC COMMUNITY MARKETS www.indiebound.org { $24.95 } 10. PASTA, PRETTY PLEASE

BY LINDA MILLER NICHOLSON www.indiebound.org { $28.50 } 11. TWO SNOOTY CHEFS NORTHWEST TRIO www.twosnootychefs.com { $23.99 }

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FOR THE

MAN ’S MAN

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1. J. LEAVITT SUPPLY CO. DELANO DOPP KIT www.jleavittsupplyco.com { $140 } 2. WASHINGTON SOAP CO. MAN HANDS LOOFAH PUCKS www.washingtonsoapcompany.com { $6.99 each } 3. PACK ANIMAL BACKPACK www.packanimal.co { $325 } 4. UPHILL DESIGNS BAILEY FLASK www.uphilldesigns.com { $35 } 5. THE JOINERY CRIBBAGE BOARD www.thejoinery.com { $70 } 6. PACK ANIMAL KEY HOOK www.packanimal.co { $40 } 7. RAINIER BEER POSTER www.vintageprint.us { $20 } 8. STEEL TOE STUDIOS CUSTOM COORDINATES BRONZE BELT BUCKLE & BELT www.steeltoestudios.com { $152 }

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FOR THE

LADY 1. TRUELUX LOTION COCONUT LIME CANDLE www.trueluxcandles.com { $24 } 2. EUNI + CO. HEY GIRL HEY CARD SET www.euniandco.com { $8 } 3. BAR-MAIDS LO-LO BEAUTIFUL FACE PUDDING www.bar-maids.com { $35 }

4. BUTTER LONDON PALACE PASTELS GIFT SET www.butterlondon.com { $30 }

8. 52 LISTS FOR TOGETHERNESS

BY MOOREA SEAL www.indiebound.org { $16.95 }

5. BUTTER LONDON GLAZEN SMOOTH SILK SHADOW PALETTE www.butterlondon.com { $35 }

9. FOAMY WADER GREENS EARRINGS www.foamywader.com { $45 }

6. HEMLEVA PEAR DIAMOND AIR PLANT HIMMELI www.hemleva.com { $20 }

10. FRESH TANGERINE CURVE NECKLACE www.freshtangerine.com { $69 }

7. WASHINGTON SOAP CO. GLYCERIN SOAPS www.washingtonsoapcompany.com { $5.99 each }

11. BALEEN DIPPED BANGLES www.shopbaleen.com { $28 each }

FOR YOUR

STOCKING

1. MARNIN SAYLOR CINNAMON BUN, SPRINKLE MINI DONUT CAT & MAPLE BEAR www.marninsaylor.com { $24-$32 each } 2. HEMLEVA ENAMEL PINS www.hemleva.com { $8 each }

3. HANDMADE LA CONNER SUPERB LIP BALMS & LIP SCRUBS www.handmadelaconner.com { $6-$8 each }

Katheryn Moran

Leavenworth turns into a winter wonderland every year.

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p a p r i ng the w n U

d i a l y o s H I Traditions around the state for the holiday season … and beyond written by Sheila G. Miller

T’S THAT TIME of year again. It

seems as though, when the weather

turns chilly and gray, we find excuses new and old to gather together and celebrate—bring a little light of our own into the dark winter days.

Celebrate the end of 2018 and the start of

2019 in style, with our best ideas for getting out of your ruts and trying some new things.

As expected, there’s no shortage of Christmasthemed events around the state to check out.

But we tried to mix it up a bit.

First, the obvious.

There are the famous Seattle-area events— Argosy’s Christmas Ship Festival, for example.

Each night from late November through December 23 (and operating since 1949), the Spirit of Seattle leads a parade of lighted boats around the Puget Sound to sixty-five different waterfront spots. You can buy tickets to be on one of the boats, or you can watch them from shore.

Leavenworth may be best known for its Oktoberfest celebrations, but in December it transforms into a winter wonderland. The Bavarian-themed city hosts a Christmas Lights Festival for three consecutive weekends in December (December 1-2, 7-9 and 14-16), then leaves the lights twinkling through Valentine’s Day. If you visit during a festival weekend, you’ll find the lights on beginning Friday evening, with music and visits from St. Nicklaus, then festivities on Saturdays and Sundays at noon, with holiday characters and Santa marching through town.

Carolers, sledding, gluhwein, free cookies— the whole thing is a Christmas delight.

Around 4:30 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday, half a million lights are lit. Once the festival is over, the lights stay on every night.

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I

f you tire of the Christmas spirit, never fear. Perhaps you go in for the solstice? In Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood, the Feast of the Winter Solstice is put on annually by the Fremont Arts Council on the longest night of the year. This year, that’s December 21. The event, open to members of the Fremont Arts Council and invited guests, is an elaborate potluck with guests wearing next-level costumes and enjoying art installations and live music. Each guest picks a headdress for the event, then enjoy dinner before a ritual that begins at 10 p.m.

Next up, it’s New Year’s Eve. If you’re ready to forget 2018 or at least welcome 2019, there are First Night celebrations all over the state, including in Spokane and Tacoma. In Seattle, a spectacular fireworks show at the Space Needle is visible from nearly everywhere in the city. In the past, you’ve been able to watch the fireworks from above the fray at the Sky View Observatory at Columbia Center. Other popular New Year’s Eve festivities have traditionally taken

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Andrew C. Williams Cham Bunphoath

Bonus: The Bavarian Ice Festival from January 19-20 takes place while the lights are still on.

There’s ice carving, snow sculptures, and an annual fireworks show.

While we’re on the subject of twinkling lights, check out Stanwood, 50 miles north of Seattle. This city hosts a festival called The Lights of Christmas, a 15-acre holiday light display that’s the largest in the Pacific Northwest. It includes more than a million lights and is open for twenty-one days in December. Go to www.thelightsofchristmas.com for details and to find out when the “pay what you can” days take place.

One of the great aspects of Washington is its many scenic railroads, and in winter several of them transform into holiday must-sees. Mt. Rainier Railroad hosts ninety-minute Polar Express train rides nearly every day in December. Pick from a steam or diesel train. The Chehalis-Centralia Railroad also runs a Polar Express and a Santa Steam Train, and kids are encouraged to wear their pajamas. The Chelatchie Prairie Railroad in Moulton runs Christmas Tree trains on the weekends on its 1941 vintage train. You can even buy your Christmas tree while on the train.

Or swing a trip on the Santa Train in North Bend on weekends through December 16.

In Spokane, the city celebrates Bing Crosby’s roots—and his famous turn as Captain Bob Wallace in White Christmas—with a daylong Bing Crosby Holiday Film Festival at, you guessed it, The Bing Crosby Theater. The event will take place on December 8. Celebrate the movie that launched one of the great Christmas carols.

Mike Wu

place at the Museum of Pop Culture and the Pacific Science Center.

As with all New Year’s Eve celebrations, New Year’s Day comes calling, and it’s time for those resolutions.

Start 2019 strong with the healthy option—a 5K. It’s OK to shuffle. Resolution races take place on New Year’s Day in Seattle, as well as a few days later in Battle Ground and Steilacoom. Or swing over to The Worst Day of the Year Run in Bothell on January 5 and embrace the cold, wind and rain. It may be terrible, but there’s soup at the finish line and runners in costume.

If you don’t get enough of the cold on your inaugural run of the year, sign up to support Special Olympics Washington by participating in one of its polar plunges around the state. The first of the

year takes place in the Tri-Cities on January 20 and then in Anacortes on January 27. Seattle, Tacoma, Wenatchee and Spokane all host polar plunge events in February.

Finally, we know Lunar New Year isn’t until February 5, but it’s still a grand winter holiday tradition, especially in communities like Seattle. Each year, Chinatown celebrates the Lunar New Year (in 2019 we welcome in the year of the pig) in Hing Hay Park.

The festival includes music and cultural performances from a wide range of community groups, as well as a $3 food walk, in which restaurants from around Chinatown and the International District offer $3 bites of food. In 2018, Delta Airlines sponsored the food walk and people who participated had a chance to win a pair of round-trip tickets.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT The Lights of Christmas is the largest holiday light display in the Northwest. New Year’s Eve is celebrated in Seattle with fireworks. Lunar New Year is celebrated in February. Seattle’s Christmas ships visit sixty-five locations in the sound.

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HEART OF GLASS photography by Cameron Zegers If you’re in the market to make your own glass ornaments, it’s probably time to go to the Seattle Glassblowing Studio. Opened in 1991, this spot offers anyone age 5 or above the opportunity to get in the studio and get creative.

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Hugh Willa uses a stainless steel marver table to shape a piece of glass at Seattle Glassblowing Studio.

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FAR LEFT, FROM TOP Scoops hold glass particles called “frit,” which will become the coloring of glass art. Hugh Willa uses steam from a water-soaked hardwood block to smooth the shape of the molten glass. Yoshie Sugo reheats the glass while she and Willa work to ensure it’s at the correct working temperature.

ABOVE, FROM LEFT Willa uses jacks to expand the opening of his piece. Willa uses jacks to create a neckline between the glass and the blowpipe.

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CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT While Yoshie Sugo blows through the blowpipe, Hugh Willa uses paper to control the shape of the glass as it expands.

A glass sphere is heated up.

Artists create a variety of pieces at Seattle Glassblowing Studio.

Phillip Hickok shapes a piece of glass that will eventually be a bowl.

This finished piece features a double optic twist pattern.

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TRAVEL SPOTLIGHT 72 ADVENTURE 74 LODGING 77 TRIP PLANNER 78

pg. 77 Posthotel Leavenworth brings wellness concepts from the Alps to Washington.

Cameron Zegers

NORTHWEST DESTINATION 82

Travel Spotlight

Coastal Christmas A crab pot Christmas tree to celebrate the season written by Laura Cherau LOOKING FOR A unique way to kick off the winter season? For a one-of-a-kind quaint coastal Christmas tradition, now in its twelfth year, check out the world’s tallest crab pot Christmas tree at the port of Ilwaco. Each year the crab pot tree grows a little bit taller, and this year it will celebrate the local crabbing fleet with garlands, lights and buoys sporting the fleet’s colors.

On the first three Saturdays in December, Ilwaco also holds an informal Saturday Christmas Market at the Inn at Harbor Village located just a few blocks from the port shops, galleries and restaurants.

Since it is also crab season, it’s the perfect time to stop in at Jesse’s Ilwaco Fish Market for a tour and a crab or two.

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Welcome to the Beautiful Olympic Coast!

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Frommer’s declares the most spectacular setting anywhere on the Washington Coast . at historic Ocean Crest Resort

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adventure

A Winter Tree Safari Checking out the champion redcedar trees of the Olympic Peninsula written and photographed by Ethan Shaw

WASHINGTON PLAYS HOST to some of the grandest trees anywhere on the planet, bar none—colossal Douglas firs and Sitka spruces, skyscraping noble firs, barrel-trunked ponderosas mingling their vanilla scent with the aroma of sagebrush. But arguably none of them presents such a combination of staggering size, eccentricity and palpable ancientness as the western redcedar.

Also called giant arborvitae (or simply, but incorrectly, “cedar”), this “Tree of Life” of many Northwest Coast native cultures ranks among the largest and longest-lived trees in the world, and certainly one of the absolute champs, girthwise. In the Evergreen State, you can find redcedars from the Columbia Mountains of the northeast to the Salish Sea islands, but the tree’s preeminent redoubt is the Olympic Peninsula: Washington’s all-around big-tree hotspot and a fine destination for a wintertime arboreal safari.

Along with Vancouver Island, the Olympic Peninsula is ground zero for titanic redcedars. Several of the worldrecord ancients reign here, relics of a stature much more commonly seen before broad-scale logging in the Pacific Northwest. On a single (rainy) day on the westside— basecamped, perhaps, at the Quinault or Kalaloch lodges—you can pay your respects to the best-known jumbo-size champions, found in Olympic National Park, Olympic National Forest and adjoining state forestlands: all breathtakingly primeval monuments of this drenched rainforest realm on the far edge of Washington.

Giants of the Olympic Peninsula We can only begin our survey with a postscript for one of the world’s most epic trees. Until recently, the very biggest redcedar known anywhere grew on the north shore of Quinault Lake, just a cone’s throw from a host of other superlative trees in the “Valley of the Rainforest Giants.”

This colossus boasted some 17,650 cubic feet of wood and a trunk 19.5 feet across, with a cavernous, hollow heart in which you (and a gaggle of friends) could stand. In July 2016, the Quinault Lake Redcedar toppled, a reminder that, though these trees seem like permanent fixtures set against the 74 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE

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adventure

NOT TO MISS MORE OLYMPIC TREE SAFARIS: Many other champion or otherwise awesome trees grow in the near vicinity of the redcedars. The Quinault Rainforest includes some of North America’s finest remaining groves of Douglas-fir as well as one of the biggest Sitka spruces, a buttressed beauty not far from the Quinault Lodge. The heftiest yellow-cedar in the U.S. grows up Big Creek, a Quinault tributary, near Three Lakes; among the largest western and mountain hemlocks await up the Quinault’s Enchanted Valley. The Queets Valley, another great rainforest drainage, has its own outstanding trees—the very biggest Sitka spruce in the world and a champion black cottonwood in the Queets Campground, and the largest U.S. Douglas-fir a couple of miles up the Queets River Trail— but these are better suited for summer or fall tree safaris.

The Olympic Peninsula also lays claim to the biggest subalpine fir (near Cream Lake in the Bailey Range backcountry) and grand fir (along the Duckabush River Trail on the east side of the Olympic Mountains) and some of the heftiest specimens of Engelmann spruce, silver fir, and that tropicallooking Northwest hardwood, the Pacific madrone: a magnificent (but ailing) veteran on 8th Street in Port Angeles.

MORE GIANT REDCEDAR HOTSPOTS IN WASHINGTON: Other good places to admire supersize redcedars in Washington include the Big Beaver Trail in North Cascades National Park, the Cedar Flats Natural Area along the Muddy River southeast of Mount St. Helens, and Long Island in Willapa Bay, to name a few.

READ MORE: Robert Van Pelt’s Champion Trees of Washington State and Forest Giants of the Pacific Coast are invaluable big-tree references, not least for his superb scale drawings of the Olympic redcedar champions and other sylvan superstars.

Before it toppled, the Quinault Lake Redcedar had a 191/2 foot diameter trunk.

shorter timeframe and faster pace of human lifespans, they’re by no means immutable—or immortal. The past few years, incidentally, have also seen Washington’s two biggest ponderosa pines, both in the vicinity of Mount Adams, die—though hopefully they’ll stand for years yet as regal snags.

The National Park Service has decommissioned the short trail to the Quinault Lake Redcedar in the wake of its destruction, but you can marvel at its huge cousins along the lakeshore paths at July Creek nearby. And not far away, on the south shore of Quinault Lake, the Willaby Creek Redcedar looms as another immense champion, reachable via the Big Cedar spur route off the Rain Forest Nature Trail.

With the Quinault Lake Redcedar’s collapse, the timeworn Duncan Redcedar—more bleached, bony mega-snag than living tree, though it is plenty alive—now ranks as the heftiest of its kind in the U.S. at about 15,330 cubic feet in volume. It’s outsized by the slightly burlier Cheewhat Lake Redcedar on Vancouver Island, less voluminous than the Quinault tree was. Officially discovered by timber cruisers in 1978 and saved from felling, it’s an old-growth relic marooned amid logged-over woods near Mount Octopus. Massive and tall forest trees abruptly exposed by surrounding clearcuts often keel over in big winds, but the Duncan Redcedar has proved resilient. The skeletal white of its gargantuan, knobbed trunk comes festooned with hanging gardens of salal, evergreen huckleberry, and red huckleberry, and a hemlock roots at the top of one of its deadwood spars. Find it off Highway 101 south of Forks by turning east at the “Duncan Big Cedar” turnoff, then carefully following the scrawled signs for several miles on logging roads.

The Duncan and Willaby Creek redcedars (like the Quinault Lake Redcedar when it still stood) are burly ramrod columns. The Kalaloch Redcedar, just off Highway 101 north of its namesake outpost, is completely different. Squat, mindbogglingly fat, 76 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE

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Sarah West

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Trails linking Ozette Lake to the Olympic wilderness coast. The Duncan Redcedar is now the largest by volume in the U.S. The Kalaloch Redcedar, shown here before it split, is squat and burled.

extravagantly burled and many-headed, it’s the hobgoblin of the Olympic’s champion arborvitae. In a twist of fate, this salal- and huckleberry-garlanded fairytale tree split apart in a gale just two years (a blink of an eye, in redcedar-time) before the Quinault Lake Redcedar yielded to gravity. The damage to the Kalaloch, though, was less total—part of the hulk still stands and supports living foliage, though it’s no longer the broadest of its species in the world (before the fateful wind, it had a trunk diameter of about 20 feet).

Like the grounded bole of its Quinault Lake counterpart, the sundered Kalaloch Redcedar serves not only as testament to the whopping dimensions the Tree of Life can reach, but also the centuries—even millennia—of storm-battering a long-lived tree on the windward Olympic Peninsula endures.

Touring the Redcedar “Swamps” Redcedars flourish in the Olympic’s rainforest valleys and pop up among the foggy spruce stands on the coastal headlands and benches, but historically their true kingdom here was the waterlogged lowlands of the western coastal plain. Extensive logging has removed most of the giant redcedars from this realm, and the Duncan Redcedar on its margin is a lonesome standalone holdover amid tree plantations. You can get a taste, however, for a redcedar- (and hemlock-) dominated maritime forest along the Sand Point and Cape Alava trails linking Ozette Lake with the Olympic wilderness coast. Thumping the boardwalks through sodden “swamp-jungle” of evergreen huckleberry, salal, bracken and other luxuriant undergrowth, you’ll pass extraordinary redcedar titans—most boasting the “staghead” look of a mostly barren, multi-spired top characteristic of the old ones—as well as massive weathered snags and throne-like stumps.

lodging

AMENITIES

Enjoy a variety of state-of-the-art spa treatments, many inspired by European practices, all without leaving the property.

Indulge in the pool and wellness area at the heart of the hotel, featuring indoor and outdoor saltwater pools of varying temperatures, saunas, steam rooms, plunge pools, experiential showers and Kneipp Stepping Pools. Water and snacks are available throughout the wellness area, and if you’re feeling ready to rest more deeply, you can settle onto a waterbed in the napping room.

ACCOMMODATIONS

Fifty-five guest rooms offer the height of luxury. Choose between a classic king room or one of two well-appointed suites. Every room features a hand-carved marble soaking tub (and a shower) as well as little extras like in-mirror TV in the bathroom, custom bed linens, and a fireplace.

DINING

Breakfast and lunch are included in your reservation—stick around after checkout on your last day to enjoy lunch and other amenities. You’ll find an array of breakfast options at the European buffet. Choose from cheeses, jams, meats and baked goods, and eggs served any style you like. Don’t forget to try a latte with one of many housemade syrups. At lunch, be sure to have some homemade soup, complemented by seasonal salads and bread. Though dinner isn’t offered at the hotel, you can enjoy small desserts and coffee or tea in the evening when you return.

FROM LEFT A variety of pools are part of the European spa experience. The adults-only hotel focuses on wellness.

Lodging

Posthotel Leavenworth written by Cara Strickland photography by Cameron Zegers WHEN YOU THINK Leavenworth, you might immediately think of traditional Bavarian offerings like bratwurst, Oktoberfest and Christmas tree lighting. Venture over to the Posthotel, located just off the beaten path, and you’ll find an oasis of adult-only calm and pampering modeled on another Bavarian and European concept—the wellness hotel. Guests are encouraged to wear their robes and slippers throughout the property, which is closed to the public for maximum privacy and relaxation. With gorgeous river views and artfully crafted spaces, there’s no excuse not to unwind.

309 8TH STREET LEAVENWORTH www.posthotelleavenworth.com

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

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trip planner

Ingrid Barrentine/ Grit City Photography

Olympia is a quiet corner of the I-5 corridor, with scenic views and good coffee.

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trip planner

Small-Town Stunner Olympia is on the path to trendiness written by Naomi Tomky

Sitting at the bar at Dillinger’s, the upscale cocktail bar built in an old bank building, I asked my bartender, Donny Drake, what Olympia was missing. “Lots and lots of people,” he answered.

As the I-5 corridor’s big cities grow up, Olympia has quietly and consistently kept its core intact.

Washington’s capital remains the same as it’s been for years, now with a few fancier trappings (like the cocktail bar). You can still duck into bars and listen to bands that might someday be famous—the future Sleater-Kinney, Bikini Kill or The Gossip—but now you can pre-game with oysters shucked to order.

The town’s best beers still brag about using artesian well water, but mass-market pale ale is out and microbrew IPAs have taken its place.

As Olympia eases along the path to trendiness that Seattle and Portland paved—gaining a food hall, a food truck pod and a cutting-edge coffee roastery—it does so at its own pace. The town of just over 50,000 refurbishes historic buildings into modern uses, offers reinventions of businesses that have been around for years—like the farmers market, which has been going for more than forty years—and welcomes newcomers to see the old stuff, be it in antique malls or historic landmarks.

Spend three days in Olympia, and you’ll walk from one edge of downtown to the other a half-dozen times, and like Drake, you’ll think to yourself—passing the uncrowded waterfront path—“Why aren’t there more people here?”

But then you’ll book a last-minute hotel room, saddle straight up to any bar in town, and think about how nice it is to be in a city that gives you a little bit of space.

Day COFFEE • ANTIQUES • BEER Olympia’s coffee scene, like so many in the Northwest, is world-class, starting with the flagship Olympia Coffee

Roasting Co. The downtown location, opened in 2015, shares its obsession with coffee quality through the glasswalled roastery and in every cup. Nitro cold-brew kegs, various pourovers, and a view into the inner workings of a coffee company make this a pleasant place to pause before starting the day in earnest.

While the gem of Olympia’s market for old stuff, the Olympia Flea Market, closed in September, the city still has a walkable trail of shops through downtown. Start just up the block from the roastery at Finders Keepers Antique Mall, where forty booths sell everything from high-end dinnerware to heaps of old buttons. If that’s not enough, within a few blocks are the Courtyard Antique Mall, Antique Junkie and Peacock Vintage.

For lunch, return to the modern era with a stop at 222 Market, the food hall that follows the national trend to bring marquee restaurants and food shops under a single roof. Chelsea Farms, a second-generation family business, brings its fresh bivalves straight from the source to its oyster bar here. Dig into shucked-to-order platters of signature Chelsea Gems, sit at the beautiful bar, and wash them down with a bowl of chilled asparagus soup.

Then it’s time to head off in search of further beverages—while there’s a budding wine scene, DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

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Poppi Photography

Ingrid Barrentine

Olympia Tumwater Foundation

trip planner

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Tumwater Falls Park is ten minutes away, but feels a bit like wilderness. Three Magnets Brewing has some of the best beers around. The Chelsea Oyster Bar in 222 Market has oysters shucked to order.

this has long been a beer town. Olympia Beer started bragging about its well water-brewed beer in 1896, and the legacy—and slogan, “It’s in the water”—remain prominent today. Well 80 Brewhouse promotes the strongest ties to the well-water roots of Olympia beer, and the enormous restaurant caters to families.

Three Magnets, a few blocks away, has more of a traditional taproom feel and the best beers by far. It does have a kid-friendly restaurant section, but the taproom is the best place to sample the half-dozen or so IPA options. For those willing to go farther afield, Top Rung, in Lacey, is worth the trip.

After an afternoon of beer tasting, come back to the center of town for a hearty plate of Rush In Dumplings. The Russian dumplings, in flavors such as curry beef or buffalo, will do the hard work of soaking up all that beer and get you ready for a night exploring the Olympia nightlife—or hitting the hay back in the hotel.

Day SNACKS • OUTDOORS • COCKTAILS In summer, the Olympia Farmers Market rolls up the doors four days a week, but even the weekly Saturday market in winter remains a destination for visitors. The permanent, dedicated 80 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE

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location gives a community feeling—and having a roof makes it more palatable whatever the weather. Pick up a few snacks for a mini-hike and pop into Batdorf & Bronson for a cupping (the industry word for tasting) of its coffee beans.

Then head down the street back to 222 Market to sample baked goods at the Bread Peddler. The wild yeast breads, European-style pastries and rustic sweets and savories pile up along the counter, a feast for the eyes before becoming a feast for the stomach.

From there, head out for a taste of nature and history at Tumwater Falls Park, a quick ten-minute drive south from the market. The 15-acre park offers short trails starting at the falls themselves, with labeled native plants, historic building markers and footbridges. Look up to see the original Olympia Brewery building. Stop at one of the benches and dig into your picnic supplies from the market before heading back into town.

Pop into Dillinger’s, the newly expanded cocktail bar in one of the town’s oldest buildings. The Security Building, from 1927, once held a bank. Owner Sandy Hall embraced that history in putting together a Prohibition-era theme for the bar. Drinks like the “This is a Shrobbery” (mezcal, tequila, strawberry and lemon) play on the theme, and the original vault has a table for people who like to drink behind 6-inch thick concrete walls. Dinner is eclectic, including okonomiyaki (Japanese pancakes), local crab cakes and pork and grits, but worth sticking around for.

FROM TOP Kids can experience Puget Sound marine life up close at Hands On Children’s Museum. Mousetrap has a five-course brunch filled with local flavors.

EAT Chelsea Farms Oyster Bar www.chelseafarms.net/oyster-bar Our Table www.ourtableolympia.com/our-table Nineveh Assyrian www.nineveholympia.com El Pulgarcito www.restaurantelpulgarcito.com The Mouse Trap www.olymousetrap.com Old School Pizzeria www.oldschool-pizzeria.com

STAY The Governor Hotel www.coasthotels.com Swantown Inn & Spa www.swantowninn.com Hilton Garden Inn www.hiltongardeninn3.hilton.com

PLAY Tumwater Falls Park www.olytumfoundation.org Olympia Farmers Market www.olympiafarmersmarket.com

Day

Capitol Building www.olympiawa.gov

BRUNCH • KIDS TIME • PIZZA

Hands On Children’s Museum www.hocm.org Little Creek Casino Resort www.little-creek.com

Kailey Caldwell

Take a leisurely Sunday stroll right back to Dillinger’s next-door neighbor, Mousetrap, for a five-course brunch. The small, reservations-only meals aren’t a secret, but they fly under the radar—even though they have some of the best food in town. Despite the cheese-shop setting, chef Austin Navarre (previously at the Chelsea Farms Oyster Bar) goes light on the cheese, instead focusing on whatever local, in-season ingredients he can find—sautéed vegetables with cured egg yolk, duck fat biscuits and steak and grits.

The meal isn’t super kid-friendly, but they’re happy to accommodate. And if you do have little ones with you, reward them for their patience with a stop into the Hands On Children’s Museum. Olympia’s kids museum trumps both the Seattle and Portland versions and is worth a trip on its own, with crafts, local-themed activities and elaborate water exhibits. Older kids and adults can skip that in favor of a trip to the state capitol building, which offers free daily tours.

Cap off the trip with a casual meal at a local favorite. Decorated with retro memorabilia,

OLYMPIA, WASHINGTON

Hands On Children’s Museum

trip planner

Old School Pizzeria has been slinging slices since 1995. Long a favorite hangout of college students, it’s the sort that exists in every town, but gives as good a flavor of a place as any hyper-local, farm-to-table spot. It’s the kind of place where high school kids drink endless soda and their college peers drink beers while small children crawl about, where the people who are here, the ones who aren’t missing out, gather for pies.

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE 81

northwest destination

Absolutely Gorge-ous

Oregon’s Columbia River Gorge wows with wine written by Kevin Max

WHEN IT’S TOO COLD for even the hardiest windsurfer or kiteboarder, the Columbia Gorge has a second act—and one far more accessible to most. Take a wool sweater, a raincoat, a small backpack for hikes, and a sense of adventure. The rest will take care of itself.

In the southwest corner of the Columbia Valley wine growing region, or AVA, lies the intersection of wind, watersports and myriad wine styles that straddle the Columbia River.

The Columbia Valley AVA is a predominantly Washington territory, dipping into Hood River and The Dalles and continuing north to the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest and east to Walla Walla. Draw lines straight around the globe from here and you’ll go right through the famed French wine-growing regions of Burgundy and Bordeaux. This, Washington’s largest AVA, lays claim to 17,000 planted acres and dozens of wineries.

This corner of the region produces some very good wines and great experiences in a small-batch and backroad format. We can walk into any old store and buy a bottle with no other reference than its price and pleasing taste. In many of the wineries in the Columbia Valley, you will learn the story behind the wine, the winemaker and get to the elusive “why” of each wine. This is the gold we wine adventurers seek.

Morning crept in with a jacket of fog over the Columbia. A fall chill felt good as I stepped into Doppio Cafe on Hood River’s new waterfront. Summer culls windsurfers, kiteboarders and kayakers to the river. Now, all around me were signs of Hood River’s massive craft brewing industry—Pfriem, Full Sail and newcomer Ferment Brewing. Bearded brewers be gone, this trip was about wine and food.

I drove up the Hood River Valley. The surrounding pear and apple and cherry orchards were all reminders of the Ice Age Missoula Flood, which produced such fertile and productive soil in Washington and Oregon. In this zone is Hood Crest Winery, 82 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE

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so discreet that I almost missed it. Where the vineyard now has a proper sign forged in a shop where letters are symmetrical, it once had a hand-painted sign that said only “winery,” with such a charm that is found on other signs such as “elk jerky” or “beware of dog.” The owners and winemakers, Tess and Patrik Barr, laughed as they recalled how many visitors they received only because of the curiosity that that sign provoked.

The Barrs have life figured. He is handy to the point that he built a beautiful tasting room. She has the creative juices of a winemaker. They are both musicians. Together, they make wine and play music. In the corner of the indoor/outdoor tasting room and restaurant is a small stage where, on Saturdays, the blues waft over the tasting room along with the aroma of pizzas from a wood-fired pizza oven. The Hood Crest sangiovese and grenache are my favorites and perhaps their best. Go on a Saturday and treat yourself to outstanding blues in the vines.

The Pines 1852 has a tasting room in Hood River and its vineyard in The Dalles. Tasting rooms are great but only show a finished product in a filtered light. I wanted to see the origins of this wine and walk among its vines. I wanted to see another side of The Dalles that I hadn’t seen before. In prior visits, I had stayed close to the main attractions—the Sunshine Mill Winery, even grabbing its Copa Di Vino sealed glasses to go for camping.

Some of the best stories come from getting out and wandering.

So it was in the 1980s when one orchardist was walking 4 miles southwest of The Dalles and stumbled upon acres of abandoned zinfandel vines that dated back more than 100 years. Lonnie Wright, a young man from Indiana who had returned from an irrigation job in Libya, heard about this and presented himself unannounced to help revive these vines. This began Wright’s future as an orchardist and wine grower.

He took me to the vineyard where these vines were discovered and where it all began for what would

Blaine + Bethany Photography

Vineyards, like these near Mosier, are the magic of the Columbia Valley AVA.

PHOTOS: BLAINE FRANGER / BEAUTIFULHOODRIVER.COM

Just an hour’s drive east of Portland, the Columbia Gorge’s breathtaking landscape lends itself to the coziest of winter getaways.

Enjoy a wide variety of wines thanks to a unique collection of microclimates, allowing winemakers to craft wine unlike anywhere else. Or share a glass with family and friends over dinner at one of our local restaurants!

CHECK OUT THESE LOCAL EVENTS! Hood River Holidays hoodriver.org/hood-river-holidays Hood River Foodie February hoodriver.org/hood-river-foodie-february Hood River lodging properties will have Mt. Hood Meadows lift tickets available. Skip the lines, and go straight from your car to the lift. Shuttles will be running from Hood River, so there’s no need to drive up to the mountain—town-to-lift service!

RECE Stay 2 consecutive nights in a Riverview room at the Westcliff Lodge during your visit to Hood River and receive a $50 voucher to use at any of our local partner restaurants, shops, and wineries. Call for details!

IVE A

$50

VOUC H

ER

4070 Westcliff Dr., Hood River | 541-386-2992 | westclifflodge.com

COLUMBIA VALLEY, OREGON

northwest destination

EAT Celilo Restaurant and Bar www.celilorestaurant.com Pine Street Bakery www.pinestreetbakery.com Bette’s Place Restaurant www.bettesplace.com Bridgeside—Columbia River Inn www.bestwestern.com

FROM LEFT Lonnie Wright inspects his vines at The Pines 1852. Hood Crest Winery serves woodfired pizzas.

DRINK Hood Crest Winery www.hoodcrestwinery.com The Pines 1852 tasting room www.thepinesvineyard.com Tetrahedron Winery www.tetrahedronwines.com Hiyu www.hiyuwinefarm.com

STAY Hood River Hotel www.hoodriverhotel.com Best Western Plus Columbia River Inn www.bestwestern.com Best Western Plus Hood River Inn www.hoodriverinn.com Westcliff Lodge www.westclifflodge.com

PLAY Wine tasting in the Columbia Valley AVA www.washingtonwine.org Brewery hopping in Hood River www.fullsailbrewing.com www.pfriembeer.com www.fermentbrewing.com Mountain biking in Post Canyon Trail running along the Hood River

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later become The Pines 1852. This corner of the Columbia Valley AVA also provides merlot, syrah and zinfandel grapes for some of Oregon’s biggest names in the Willamette Valley.

Wright’s farm includes an Airbnb cottage among old and handsome barns. As Wright and I swirled and sipped some of the wines from The Pines 1852 portfolio, I was happy to be in the middle of the experience and not at the polished end of the process.

Back in Hood River, I checked in to the Hood River Hotel, a historic downtown icon. It’s a place where floors creak and people quietly read books in the lobby—an oasis in time. Before dinner, I popped into Ruddy Duck to look for something in the mountain-town fashion boutique for my wife. Nothing makes the return home easier than a well-chosen gift from Ruddy Duck.

On Oak Street in downtown is Celilo, a restaurant and bar with local cuisine and the warmth created by the blond wood of an updated lodge. I came not just for the food but for the extensive wine list. French-schooled chef Ben Stenn turns local bounty into stunning Northwest cuisine. I had pappardelle with delicata squash and a cab-franc from Memaloose Winery, one of the vineyards I wouldn’t get the chance to visit.

The grapes from Memaloose span the Oregon and Washington border with blocks from Lyle, Washington and Mosier, Oregon. Vines respect climate more than state borders. I respect the elegant cabernet franc that comes from Memaloose. On his 13-acre Mosier vineyard, Brian McCormick grows cabernet franc, chenin blanc, dolcetto, gamay and primitivo varietals— showcasing an abundance of styles that can be successfully grown at this latitude.

DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018

The next morning, in the pre-dawn darkness, I headed out on a run east over Hood River and circling up Highway 35 to an offshoot. It took me to a brief overlay with railroad tracks that ended in steps that surmount a giant flume—I had inadvertently found the Hood River Pemstock Flume Pipeline Trail and one of the coolest running experiences. I ran the narrow corridor atop the flume and along the Hood River until its end, then turned around and ran it back.

Before leaving the Columbia Valley AVA, I popped over the mighty Columbia River to Lyle, Washington, to meet Kelly Johnson, the owner and winemaker of Tetrahedron Winery, at her tasting room on State Street in the tiny downtown.

Johnson studied biology at Washington State University before moving to Napa Valley to learn winemaking over the next thirteen years.

It was the growth of the wine industry and her experience that allowed her to return to Lyle and begin making wine with science and art.

The consummate winemaker and scientist, Johnson sources grapes from around the region and turns them into sauvignon blanc, white grenache, malbec, cabernet sauvignon and rosés from merlot and cabernet sauvignon and malbec. A family friend of hers hand-paints bottles that make for great wine gifts and, later, colorful candlesticks.

As I rolled down the Columbia River and out of the southwest corner of the Columbia Valley AVA with a car full of great wine and experiences, I realized I had only skimmed the surface of this region that was transformed into such a fertile basket by ancient glaciofluvial deposits from the Missoula floods.

Spectacular views

Next to the Bridge of the Gods • Waterfall viewing, hiking, biking, sailing and more.

Hood River’s best place to

• Indoor pool and spa • Complimentary hot breakfast 735 Wanapa St. Cascade Locks, OR 97014 bwcolumbiariverinn.com

1-800-595-7108

Each Best Western branded hotel is independently owned and operated. ®

• Guest Wine Tasting Pass valid at 13 local wineries

• Inquire about Ski/Ride packages at Mt. Hood Meadows

• Dining at Riverside or Cebu Lounge with our award-winning wine list (over 200 selections) • Heated Shoreline pool, spa, walking path and private beach

12 Unique Burgers • Subs • Sandwiches • Fish & Chips OWP9/18

stayandtastehoodriver.com • 800-828-7873 Exit 64 off I-84 • Hood River, OR • hoodriverinn .com

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Explore DELICIOUS Destinations  EnjoyOlympicPeninsula.com  360-437-0120

The Heart of the Olympics from Sea-to-Summit & Canal-to-Coast

1889 MAPPED The points of interest below are culled from stories and events in this edition of 1889.

Oroville Bellingham

Friday Harbor

Republic Colville

Mount Vernon Port Angeles Coupeville Forks

Okanogan Lakewood Marysville Everett

Port Townsend

Newport

Seattle Port Orchard Shelton Aberdeen

Montesano

Wilbur

Waterville

Bellevue Renton Kent Federal Way Tacoma

Spokane Davenport

Wenatchee Ephrata Ritzville

Olympia

Ellensburg Colfax

Chehalis

South Bend

Yakima Pomeroy Richland

Cathlamet Longview Kelso

Pasco Kennewick

Prosser

Dayton Walla Walla

Goldendale Vancouver

Stevenson

Live

Think

Explore

15 Cougar Gold

38 Stay Alfred

72

Crab pot Christmas tree

17 Hanford

40 Bonaventure of Vancouver

74

Duncan Redcedar

18 Bad Dog Distillery

41 Tumwater

77

Posthotel Leavenworth

20 Breadfarm

42 Ebbets Field Flannels

78

Dillinger’s

34 The Blind Woodsman

44 Seattle Clemency Project

82

Columbia River Gorge

86 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE

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Asotin

Discover the unsearchable Discover the forest

Find a trail near you at DiscoverTheForest.org

Until Next Time

Home Among the Evergreens written by Bethany Marcel

I grew up in Elma, a town with more cows than people. I don’t know if that’s actually true, but when I was living overseas, if anyone asked, that was how I described my hometown. Of course, often it was just easier to say I was from Seattle. “Do you know Bill Gates?” one of my students asked once. How was I to respond? I nodded sagely.

Growing up in a small Washington town, the only thing I wanted to do was leave it. So I did. I traveled close to home at first (Oregon, California, New Mexico) before venturing farther (Iceland, the country of Georgia). My father is a die-hard Washingtonian, born and raised. So when I told him I was going to New Mexico, he just shook his head.

At the time, I couldn’t imagine unearthing an appreciation for my hometown. But the years have passed and I’ve found myself softening, thinking wistfully of the days of yore.

Lately, I’m thinking even more about where I came from. A few short months ago, my daughter was born.

My daughter is only four months old, but I’ve already found myself growing nostalgic. I’m eager to tell her about my childhood—the huckleberry bushes and the games of tag, the woolly bear caterpillars that curled up in your palm like small gifts.

I was a shy kid who found solace in books, and on those (rare) sunny days after school, I’d run into the woods in our backyard and make myself a bed of leaves, nestling my small body in among the evergreens. I didn’t even mind the spiders. I’d sit and read until my mother called me in for

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dinner. I loved everything about my backyard—the bright moss that looked like monster fur, the sword ferns and the blackberries and even the banana slugs, as unwelcome as they were when I was barefoot.

My daughter will experience some of this. Her grandparents still live in Elma, in the same house where I grew up. I hope she’ll have an appreciation for nature, for backyards in summertime. I hope to show her all the world has to offer. Right now we live in Portland, Oregon.

But we won’t always. My husband and I talk about moving overseas someday when she’s a bit older. I’m proud that she’s already taken her first flight, to visit her other set of grandparents in Massachusetts. But I hope her mother’s small town will always hold a special place in her memory, as it does mine.

As towns do, Elma has grown and changed. I no longer know it as intimately as I once did. But I’m grateful it gave me the space to create and dream. Those books I read in my backyard? They made me a traveler. Now a writer. Plus, I hear that things are happening in Elma. Rumor has it there’s a Burger King now.

enjoy relax

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