The Auction of Washington Wines Has Grown With The Wine Industry

Victor de la Luz was once a beneficiary of Seattle Children’s . Now, nearly two decades later, he has come full circle and is a benefactor to the pediatric care institution.

De la Luz will be among dozens of Washington winemakers donating their time and wine to the Auction of Washington Wines during a three-day affair this week in Woodinville. The festivities kick off with TOAST! an awards ceremony on Thursday at Sparkman Cellars . The casual winemaker picnic and barrel auction follows on Friday at Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery . The festivities conclude with the main event, the gala auction on Saturday night, also at Chateau Ste. Michelle.

Proceeds from the auction will benefit Seattle Children’s uncompensated care fund, Washington State University’s Viticulture and Enology program, the Auction of Washington Wines Industry Grant (in partnership with Vital Wines), and the Allen Shoup Memorial Fellowship.

The Auction of Washington Wines was founded in 1988 by members of the Enological Society of the Pacific Northwest. The first auction, also held at Chateau Ste. Michelle, drew more than 300 guests and raised $20,000 for Seattle Children’s uncompensated care fund. The following year, revenue more than doubled to $50,000.

By then, the genius behind the auction and the Enological Society, Gerry Warren, decided the event had legs of its own. With help from then Chateau Ste. Michelle CEO Allen Shoup, the Washington Wine Commission, and the Seattle Children’s Foundation, the event spun off from the Enological Society. Last year, the auction drew more than 1,000 guests and raised $4 million.

“We had a lot of help from Allen Shoup,” Warren recalls. “He could see the value in the thing growing and becoming something that it did. When it happened, it was like we planted a seed.”

Founder of The Auction of Washington Wines, Gerry Warren.

De la Luz was working wine harvest in the fall of 2007 at Matthews Cellars in Woodinville, a side hustle to make extra cash. At the height of harvest his infant son, Axel, fell ill. Matt Loso, the founder of Matthews Cellars, and de la Luz’ boss at the time — whom de la Luz credits for promoting his winemaking career — urged him to take his son to the Seattle Children’s emergency room. There’s an affinity between the Washington wine industry and Seattle Children’s, Loso notes.

His son recovered and is now an adult living in Walla Walla. De la Luz is now production winemaker at Sagemoor Estates , crafting wines in Walla Walla under the leadership of General Manager Danny Gordon and Director of Winemaking Aryn Morell. He also crafts wines under his own label, the boutique winery De La Luz Wines .

“I didn’t know how much impact the Washington wine industry had at Children’s Hospital,” recalls de la Luz of his first visit to the Sand Point campus. “Walking the halls, I saw the donor walls, that’s when I found out how much the Washington wine industry was supporting Children’s Hospital.”

Because of the support of the Auction of Washington Wines and other donors, de la Luz was able to take his young son to the hospital without the burden of oppressive medical bills.

“My donation of wine and the support, it feels like it’s so little compared to the connection and the support I’ve received from Children’s,” he says. “If I could give more I would do it.”

This is the 21 st Auction of Washington Wines for Côte Bonneville winemaker Kerry Shiels and her Sunnyside family winery. Shiels’ father, Hugh, an orthopedic surgeon who would regularly refer patients to Seattle Children’s, founded Côte Bonneville and the estate vineyard Dubrul with his late wife, Kathy.

“It’s by far the best cause of any wine auction I am familiar with,” Kerry says. “It has done a lot for Seattle Children’s, and not just kids in Seattle. It is kids from all over Washington. There are a lot of kids from our wine regions that need care and don’t have the means to pay for it.”

In addition to celebrating the Washington wine industry and the auction’s beneficiaries, Shiels will celebrate her birthday on Friday.

“I am giving up my birthday for the auction,” Shiels says. “This will be my 21st professional vintage, which means my wine is old enough to drink.”

Kerry Shiels of Côte Bonneville and her dog Max.

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