oothills WENATCHEE u LEAVENWORTH u CHELAN u AND ALL OF NORTH CENTRAL WASHINGTON
May-June 2019
The
Home & Garden Issue
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May / June 2019
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EDITOR’S LETTER
Home, $weet Home A
fter a long winter cooped up, I’m happy to be outside for more than a few minutes at a time. Yes, spring has been especially sweet this year. Has it made me more motivated to do yard and garden work? Not really, but let’s just pretend it has and move on to the topic of this issue: Home & Garden. We’ve put together some stories that we hope will give you ideas for making changes/improvements to your own property — if not this year, maybe next year. As we put the final touches on the issue, I couldn’t help but ponder the challenges of homeownership. They are many, with a list of improvement projects that never seems to dwindle. Our home was built in the mid-1990s. We moved in 12 years ago and have, until recently, avoided big-ticket repairs/replacements. But lately, they’ve started to pile up. Some of our expenditures were expected — HVAC systems, after all, aren’t built to last forever. Same goes for the roof that will be replaced later this year. Some expenses, though, have been surprises — like discovering last summer that rats had set up shop in our crawl space. That forced us to call in the experts to serve a proper eviction notice, remove the insulation material where the rodents were nesting and shore up the two spots along the foundation where the uninvited guests were accessing the crawl space. It added up to a tidy sum that chewed into our savings. Thankfully, we never saw a single rat or signs of a rat inside the home. Other home projects in our near future include replacing the driveway and putting up a new fence. After those jobs are completed, it will probably be time for another exterior paint project. It’s enough to make you wonder if homeownership is all it’s cracked up to be. Despite the financial hits in recent years, I fully believe our home has been a tremendous investment, with returns not measured in money, but instead laughter, smiles and happy memories. So while the recent home improvement/repair bills and those in our future are not ideal, it all adds up to money well spent.
Marco Martinez, editor foothills@wenatcheeworld.com
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Contents
8 Scene
Photos from Night at the Museum fundraiser
36
Old is new
10
enatchee W couple goes the renovation route
Nature show
ildflowers W abound at Coyote Dunes
48 Flamingo flair
Joyce O’Neal’s garden is full of personality
56 Merlot
& marriage
16 Urban tale 28 Homegrown
Cashmere store is “Pinterest live”
Native plants are a natural option 6
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Bianchis build winery, romance
66 Wine with friends
Enological society is equal parts learning, fun
oothills A BI-MONTHLY LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE ABOUT NORTH CENTRAL WASHINGTON
Publisher Jeff Ackerman (541) 817-4263 ackerman@wenatcheeworld.com Managing editor Russ Hemphill (509) 665-1161 hemphill@wenatcheeworld.com Editor Marco Martinez (509) 664-7149 martinez@wenatcheeworld.com Advertising Sean Flaherty (509) 664-7136 flaherty@wenatcheeworld.com Creative Director Nancy Phillips Proofreaders Joanne Saliby Lorna Osborne
LOCAL. Neighbors. Family. Friends. Invested in Impacting and Improving Our Communities. When the people you serve are friends and family, you see the world differently. We understand that we are all connected. Caring for one another, whether in the exam room or out in the community, is who we are.
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Foothills Magazine is published bi-monthly by Washington Media LLC, 14 N. Mission St., Wenatchee, WA, 98801. $4.99 Retail Price Subscriptions: $14.99 annually Send check or money order to: Foothills, Subscriptions 14 N. Mission St., Wenatchee, WA, 98801 or subscribe online at ncwfoothills.com Copyright 2019 with all rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is prohibited without written permission.
COVER PHOTO: Paul T. Erickson photo As a tribute to her late husband, Sonny, Joyce O’Neal has California poppies lining the street in front of her Victorianstyle home in Wenatchee.
IT ALL STARTS AT... 25 N. WENATCHEE AVE. • 663-7401 Arlberg Sports Haus • Leavenworth Arlberg Sports • Pybus Market May / June 2019
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Night at the Museum
The Well Strung quartet plays its version of jazz, blues and classic standards.
T
he Wenatchee Valley Museum & Cultural Center played host March 23 for its Night at the Museum fundraiser. The event featured four distinct areas in the museum — The Apple Crate Cider House and Brewery, Homesteaders’ Speakeasy, Coyote’s Coffeehouse and the Gallery Wine Bar — each with its own distinct live music/food/drink flair. Foothills Magazine sent Frank Cone to the party, and he brought back these images of the happy crowd. F
David and Wendy Hulse 8
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Debbie and Keith Kelly
THE SCENE PHOTOS BY FRANK CONE
Frank and Chrissie Kuntz
Matthew and Rachel Evey
From left, Rob and Bealinda Tidd, Jody and Bryan Campbell, Lorren Clemens and Tom Arnold
Barbara Walters and Angela Morris
Anna Lively and Kirk Laird May / June 2019
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Full Glory Coyote Dunes is home to a wide variety of wildflowers When naturalist Susan Ballinger leads nature walks, she shares her expertise about flowers and all other aspects of local ecology. She’s seen here last spring in the Coyote Dunes area.
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H
ikers and bikers in the Wenatchee Valley know Coyote Dunes Natural Area even if they don’t recognize its name. The unique, stabilized dunes along the north end of the Apple Capital Recreation Loop trail in East Wenatchee were named in 2017 after being purchased through a joint venture between ChelanDouglas Land Trust, Chelan County PUD and a private couple. The PUD owns and manages the 26 acres and has plans to build a permanent trail and install a bathroom. The remnants of a pump house and irrigation lines show that people have manipulated this landscape for decades. Now, with protection as a designated natural area, Susan Ballinger, a conservation fellow with CDLT, and the Washington Native Plant Society are helping to restore it to a more natural state, including removal of invasive cheatgrass. Ballinger knows the Coyote Dunes better than anyone. She’s done numerous plant surveys here. Her excitement about all natural wonders rubbed off on participants of a wildflower walk with her last spring.
HOME & GARDEN
STORY BY MARLENE FARRELL PHOTOS BY KEVIN FARRELL
Showy milkweed is a large flower that also serves as a critical habitat for migrating monarch butterflies. May / June 2019
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Top: Barestem parsley is found throughout the Wenatchee foothills. Bottom: Veiny dock is a hearty plant that thrives in the dry conditions at Coyote Dunes. Right off the Loop Trail, many veiny docks spread out via woody rootstalks blooming in the sand. The large, pink blossoms can be viewed for weeks in the spring. This plant’s deep root system allows it to thrive in a dry environment. In comparison, “it’s a race against time for some plants in the dunes,” Ballinger explained. “They must bloom and set seed before everything gets too dry.” Such is the case for Richardson’s penstemon and sand dune penstemon, which blossom in late spring. Richardson’s penstemon displays pinkish red tubular flowers along multiple stems and often tucks into rock cracks and ledges. Sand dune penstemon catches the eye with its blue whorled flowers encircling a tall stem. Showy milkweed is at the western 12
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edge of its range here. Many specimens can be found at the dunes’ transition to riparian habitat. These wildflowers have large dusty leaves and a round head of rosy flowers. They serve as critical habitat for monarch butterflies, which lay one egg per leaf and, as caterpillars, eat milkweed leaves exclusively. When admiring the blooms and their fragrance, you can also try to spot a tiny pale yellow egg on the underside of a leaf. Another fragrant beauty is the pale-stemmed evening primrose, distantly related to the garden variety. As the name suggests, the white to pale pink flowers open fully in the evening atop stems bearing lanceshaped leaves. Some more common plants that adapt to a range of conditions are still fun to spot at the Coyote Dunes. Min-
er’s lettuce and prairie stars are both such generalists. Miner’s lettuce’s edible leaves are easy to remember because they fuse into a round disk clasping the stem. While barestem parsley is a ubiquitous member of the lomatium family, Ballinger pointed out its relative, the giant-seed lomatium. This plant has complexly divided leaves reminiscent of carrot foliage, and blooms white instead of yellow. Both species share the virtue of having edible roots, which the American Indians often harvested and turned into flour to be baked into large, flat biscuits. Many unique flowers are waiting to be discovered at Coyote Dunes and other local regional parks. Getting to know them by name and seeing their splendor up close adds fun and wonder for hikers of all ages.
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The fragrant, pale-stemmed evening primrose opens in the evenings.
To Visit:
Coyote Dunes is managed by Chelan County PUD: wwrld.us/Dunes
Resources to Learn More about Local Native Wildflowers: ✿W ildflowers of the Pacific Northwest, a 2006 field guide by Mark Turner, describes and illustrates 1,220 commonly encountered species. ✿ Mark Turner’s website: pnwflowers.com ✿ Wenatchee chapter of the WNPS: wnps2.org/wenatchee-valley ✿ WNPS plant lists (comprehensive lists for specific locations): wnps2.org/plant-lists
Giant-seed lomatium’s flower head is an explosion of tiny white flowers. 14
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✿ Wenatchee Naturalist is another valuable local resource: wenatcheenaturalist.com/wildflowers F
The
&
Home Garden
Section
T
his is the time of year we pour a lot of effort into making the inside and outside of our homes look beautiful. Inside this section, we hope you’ll find some inspiration. May / June 2019
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HOME & GARDEN STORY BY KELLI SCOTT PHOTOS BY PAUL T. ERICKSON
Urban has vintage, repurposed and new items for sale.
An
Urban twist on farmhouse chic 16
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Kara Velazquez, along with husband Martin, own Urban in Cashmere. Velazquez sells a mix of vintage furniture and brand-new items in the farmhouse design.
W
hen Kara Velazquez first stepped through the door of 126 Cottage Ave. in downtown Cashmere, she knew this was the place. It was the fall of 2015, and Kara was looking to buy a building where she could open a home décor shop. “I walked in and said, ‘This is perfect,’ and it was so ugly.” But Kara looked beyond the building’s dreary, dropped ceilings. She spotted some brick under the cracked drywall. In an instant, she saw the potential. Kara and her husband, Martin, bought the building, which over the years had been home to a J.C. Penney, a drug store, a Liberty Orchards call center and an antiques market, among other things. For the next three months, Kara, Martin and the rest of the family set
Velazquez has local artists she calls “makers” who come up with original designs for Urban. These are old Reader’s Digest books cut to letter shapes. May / June 2019
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Kara Velazquez’s son, Roman, builds tables, benches and barnwood table frames for sale at Urban. He also builds custom tables and benches at customer’s request.
Velazquez hired someone to outline the image of Washington state and chip away the plaster to reveal brick on one of the walls of Urban. 18
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about completely renovating the property. They gutted the large, open room down to its four exterior walls, uncovered skylights, and hung a romantic chandelier. In mid-May 2016, Urban in Cashmere opened to the public, selling a mix of vintage furniture and brand-new items. The store is more than 3,000 square feet of treasures for the home — everything from throw pillows, candles and baskets to farmhouse tables and industrial-inspired light fixtures — all impeccably on-trend and all handpicked by Kara. Since its opening, Urban has become the valley’s go-to source for all things farmhouse chic. Customers come from all over the state, drawn to tiny Cashmere to shop the store. “We’re a destination now,” Kara said. She said customers have described her store as “Pinterest live,” and it really is. Urban is like a real-life showcase of Pinterest-popular home-
Velazquez painted the original bricks a pleasing dusky brown for the Urban entrance in downtown Cashmere.
décor ideas. The whole shop feels a bit enchanted. Strings of Edison lightbulbs climb weathered wooden ladders. Soft blankets are piled on rich leather sofas, next to vintage-inspired botanical prints and shabby-chic dressers and
hundreds of pretty little things everywhere you look. And Urban now carries the wildly popular Magnolia Home line of products from HGTV stars Chip and Joanna Gaines. The store’s overall style is casual,
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Clockwise from bottom left: A ladder, lights and a faux plant can add an accent to a room. Textures, colors and words come together in design at Urban in Cashmere. Below a chandelier-style lamp is a reprint of old downtown Cashmere which includes the J.C. Penny store, on the left side of photo. Crisp whites and neutral colors throughout the home, wide wood plank floors and shiplap are all hallmarks of the style. Throw in some industrial accents, fresh pops of greenery and plenty of pieces that feel vintage — whether or not they actually are — to complete the look. It’s a decorating trend that feels modern without being cold. And despite its white-hot popularity at the moment, it’s also a timeless look that Kara expects will be with us for years to come. “I think that the style will hang around. It just may change its name again,” she said. Before Joanna Gaines became a household name, before HGTV and Pinterest, people called this look “primitive,” Kara said. Now it’s “farmhouse,” and next year we may call it something else. But the trend isn’t going away. 20
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Urban was not Kara’s first foray into the world of vintage retail. She’s always had a knack for fixing up old furniture. Just as she saw the potential in the old building, she can look at a piece of furniture, see past its chipped edges and outdated hardware and know immediately how she might breathe new life into the worn piece. She has been refurbishing furniture for years, first as a way to furnish her own home, then to sell in local antique malls and at Out on a Whim, the consignment store in downtown Wenatchee that Kara owned from 2012 to 2016. Urban is open just two days a week — Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. — which leaves her plenty of time to spend with her grandchildren. It also leaves her time to hit up estate sales and thrift stores in her neverending search for furniture to refurbish
May / June 2019
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Top: What’s old is new in the farmhouse genre of design. These vintage-themed items are actually new. Bottom: Simple design and placement can make an ordinary object a piece of art, says Urban owner Kara Velazquez.
and treasures to bring into the shop. That search has become more difficult lately, Kara said, in large part due to the popularity of DIY television shows and the internet. It seems everybody and their mother is now on the hunt for inexpensive, old dressers to fix up. The thrift stores are picked over, “and now there’s no $10 dresser,” she said. But Kara keeps searching, and she keeps changing up the products in Urban. Right now, you’ll find spring and summer items throughout the store. Come back in December and you’ll enter a dreamy Christmas wonderland. 22
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New isn’t always necessary Here are Kara Velazquez’s tips for achieving a high-end look in your home using repurposed items: ✷ Paint ties everything together. Two furniture items that don’t naturally go together can coexist in one room if they are painted the same color. ✷ Use unconventional pieces to achieve the look you want. For example, if you’ve had your eye on an oversized nightstand at Pottery Barn, opt instead for an old dresser painted in a color to match the rest of the bedroom. ✷ A collection of white plates and other serving pieces always looks pulled-together, even if the pieces are collected over time and not one uniform style. ✷ Avoid cluttering your home with too many decorations. If you bring something in, take something out. — Kelli Scott
On the Web Facebook: wwrld.us/urbanFB Instagram: wwrld.us/urbanIG Website: urbanincashmere.com F
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May / June 2019
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HOME & GARDEN STORY BY DEE RIGGS PHOTOS BY PAUL T. ERICKSON
Spikey as they are, cactus produce beautiful blooms.
Bringing nature home 28
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Native plants will attract birds, bees and butterflies
Creating a habitat for pollinators helps the look of your garden and helps out the bee population.
N
ative plants aren’t for everyone, or every yard, says Ted Alway, owner of Derby Canyon Natives in Peshastin. But native plants might make sense on your property if you’ve got: ✿ A transition space between a well-manicured yard and the foothills ✿ A steep hillside where you don’t want to plant junipers, which are not good for a fire-resistant landscaping ✿ A section of landscaped yard where you want to attract bees, butterflies and birds May / June 2019
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Clockwise from top left: Showy Asters are great for spot-color areas in a low-water garden. Ted Alway owns and operates Derby Canyon Natives in Peshastin. Red Columbine is stunning in shape and color. Creamy buckwheat makes for a dense space filler. 30
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Native plants are “all about bringing nature home,” says Alway. “Along with native plants come the swallowtail butterflies that pollinate and are just pretty, the wrens rummaging through the understory, and the oriole making this wonderful hanging nest
that looks like a macrame bag.” Alway, who earned a bachelor’s degree in plant protection and opened Derby Canyon Natives near Peshastin in 2002, says about 80 percent of his five-acre business is selling plants for environmental restoration. Clients May / June 2019
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Above: Thought of mainly as a weed, milkweed is actually a useful plant in a low-water environment. Left: The green house at Derby Canyon Natives holds a variety of succulents.
32
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include the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management and conservation districts. The other 20 percent are people looking for ways to incorporate native plants into their home landscape. And many of them want to attract birds, bees and butterflies to their garden. “They come in and say, ‘I love what I’m seeing in Sage Hills. How do I recreate that,’ ” he says. Key to attracting birds, butterflies and bees, he says, is diversity of plantings with a range of bloom times and varying heights. “Bees and birds need places to rest, nest and hide from predators,” he says.
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Rocky Mountain penstemon is a sturdy vertical plant.
Mixing tall and lower-hanging plants make for a visual blend. 34
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May / June 2019
Flax is a classic low-water plant.
Here are some of Alway’s tips for ways to incorporate native plants into a home landscape: ✿ That full-sun hillside — where you don’t want junipers or cheat grass but you want to stabilize the bank — is an ideal spot for native plants. Alway suggests planting native roses in the upper area. “The birds will love them and they smell good when they are in bloom, and they will cover that bank.” Below there, add some mock orange and currant. “You could put a sprinkler on them three to four times a year and call it good,” he says. Add to the mix some wildflowers that are drought-adapted. “There are wonderful penstemons and desert buckwheats out there. Give them a year of health and they will thrive in dry, exposed rock spots. They are perennials and they will come back every year.” ✿ People who want a meadow-look could plant native grasses that grow from seed. They will compete well with weeds. Among the possibilities are blue flax, blanket flower, bluebunch and wheat grass. ✿ To attract hummingbirds, which love tubular flowers and are most attracted to red flowers, Alway suggests penstemons, honeysuckle, mint, columbine, currants. A popular early spring hummingbird favorite is the currant. A popular one is the cutleaf penstemon, which blooms from June to mid-August. Salvias are also good hummingbird attractants. ✿ Bees need not only flowers but also places to nest. Many need small burrows from such things as downed wood. “A somewhat unkempt landscape is conducive to native bees,” ✿ Birds need a wide range of plantings, including grasses, sunflowers, asters, currants and osier dogwood. Different species of birds need low, medium or high nesting sites. Hawthorn trees are great because of the thorns, which keep predators away. “And they are dense so there is protection from the elements.” ✿ To attract monarch butterflies, plant a range of milkweeds. The plants are 2 to 3 feet high and produce tennis-ball size flowers in purple, white and pink. F
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Janice Daines worked with contractors to revamp areas of their house like this small loft overlooking the living room and the entrance to the master bedroom. 36
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HOME & GARDEN
STORY BY DEE RIGGS PHOTOS BY DON SEABROOK
Down to the floor boards and studs Wenatchee couple find their new home by buying a fixer-upper
I
Mike and Janice Daines went with urban farmhouse style when renovating their 1980s home. Large posters they have collected during their travels hang throughout the house. They replaced all of the drywall and put in higher-end vinyl planking on the floors.
n 2016, Janice and Mike Daines found the perfect house — to renovate. The Wenatchee couple loved the neighborhood on Dana Street, they liked being closer to town than where they were living in Sleepy Hollow Heights near Monitor, and Janice had a vision. “I could see the bones were good and I could see the potential of it,” Janice says. The Daines spent a year on fixes, working with contractors and changing the house all around. “Basically, we gutted it,” Mike says. “We took it down to the floor boards and studs,” Janice says. “We did allnew drywall, new insulation, opened up walls and opened up the stairway.” And they got rid of the main-level flooring, which was a mish-mash of tile, slate, vinyl, wood and carpet. “It had five different flooring materials, which is a no-no to me,” she says. May / June 2019
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Mike and Janice Daines replaced the backyard deck and updated the landscaping on their Dana Street property in Wenatchee.
An outdoor sitting area is off the small library at the Daines home.
Furniture from around the country dominates a front room. 38
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Now, the main floor and most of the upstairs floor is luxury vinyl planking, which makes for a natural wood look. “It’s great when you have pets,” Janice says, noting their three cats and two dogs. Janice, a registered nurse, and Mike, a pathologist, say they have taken “a nice 80s house” and made it into an urban farmhouse. When they bought the house in 2016, it was painted a light pink on the outside. The outside and inside walls are now white. The couple hired Tim Corbaley of Corbaley Construction to work with them on Janice’s vision. Work included redoing the stairwell, revamping the layout of the master bedroom and bath so the bath could be expanded, removing walls that cut the house into too many spaces, removing a small bath from the laundry room area, and redoing windows and doors. They also replaced the backyard deck and updated landscaping. The couple kept the basic floor plan of the kitchen but added white cabinets, a farmhouse sink, a butcher-block topped island and soap stone for the main countertops. “You can pull out a pot that is 400 degrees and set it right
Janice Daines says her granddaughter Evee, 3, was the biggest inspiration for renovating her Wenatchee home. “I wanted to make it a cool, hipster grandma’s house,” she says. on the soap stone,” Janice says. The renovation was a big project, but Mike and Janice say they rarely argued. “I just let her do anything she wanted,” quipped Mike. But Mike also got what he wanted. The couple hired Helton Builders to
add a 500-square foot shop where Mike could do his wood-working hobby. His work is featured throughout the house and includes a kitchen table, a coffee table, ornate cutting boards and a diagonally shaped bookcase just off the second-floor landing.
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Mike Daines designed and built the bookshelves in his home’s small library/sitting room.
An outdoor sitting area is off the small library at the Daines home.
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The kitchen includes soapstone countertops and a hexagon tile backsplash that Janice says is a throwback to art deco.
Throughout the 3,700-square-foot house are wall hangings from places the couple have traveled, including tribal masks and large, collectible artwork. “Everything has meaning,” Janice says. A key feature is an oxen yoke, which the couple installed as a fireplace mantle. “My father received it as a gift from an old woman in the 1930s, and her father had used it on an oxen team, crossing the plains,” Mike says. While Janice did all the decorating, she often consulted with Mary Marsten of Material Things and Katie Brender with Standard Paint and Flooring. “I would bounce ideas off them,” she says. Janice says the renovation gave her an outlet for her love of interior decorating. “Growing up, I wanted to be an interior designer, but my parents told me to be a nurse,” she says. Janice describes her decorating style as “eclectic with a twist.” As an example, she chose a hexagontile backsplash in the kitchen. “It’s a throwback to art deco,” she says. “It was a classic from the 1930s yet it seemed to be on trend for 2018.” The couple moved into the Dana Street house in January 2018, leaving their 5,800-square-foot house that sat on 12 acres and included a large vineyard. Downsizing was the main idea behind their move to Dana Street, but Mike was also getting burned out with taking care of the vineyard and large yard. Janice had also worried that he would hurt himself on the steep ground as he mowed. “Every time he would mow, I worried that he would roll,” Janice says. One time, he did, but he escaped injury. Now that the renovation is done, the couple say they plan to spend more time traveling, visiting their grown children, and being with their 3-year old granddaughter, Evee. Evee, Janice says, was the biggest inspiration for their renovated home. “I wanted to make it a cool, hipster grandma’s house,” she says. “I wanted it to feel warm for my granddaughter, with bright colors and art, and bright tiles in the bathroom. It’s a place where she’ll come and we’ll bake cookies.” F
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HOME & GARDEN STORY BY DEE RIGGS PHOTOS BY PAUL T. ERICKSON
O’Neal’s garden has a flamingo section adorned with various flowers for a fun spin on gardening.
Flamingos & Angels Joyce O’Neal’s garden has humor, flair
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Joyce O’Neal found a second use for an old, claw-foot tub, filling it with flowers and an angel statue.
I
n 1987, the landscape of the big house on Castlerock Avenue in Wenatchee was looking bleak. “The lawn was dead and the garden was all dried up,” says Joyce O’Neal. “At that time, the bank owned the property and they wouldn’t water it because they were saving money.” Oh, how things have changed. O’Neal’s home is on the Wenatchee register of historic homes. The physical structure impresses, but it’s the garden features that give it true curb appeal. Since buying the house in 1987, O’Neal has created a garden wonderland. There are flowers galore, along the street, the long driveway, in the back yard and side yards. O’Neal has fullsun flowers like roses, iris, hollyhocks and lilies. And she has shade plants like hostas, ferns and bleeding hearts, rhododendrons and hellebores. Among the mix are 18 pots full of flowers. May / June 2019
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She has also created theme gardens. One in yellow and white features lupine, iris, coreopsis, daisies and columbine. And one off to the west side of the house, in shade, is her flamingo garden. “It’s kind of a joke,” she says. O’Neal and her late husband, Sonny, were high school sweethearts in Arkansas, where, she says, pink plastic flamingos were popular in gardens. Peaking out of the flowers and shrubbery are eight colorful flamingos, some of them painted in bright colors and a few in the classic pink plastic. “Anytime you can create and do something new, it’s fun,” she says. Angels are a theme throughout the garden. Angel statuary can be found in sunny and shady areas. O’Neal says people know she likes angels and they have given her quite a few of them over the years. In one area, she has placed a bathtub that is planted with “violas and pansies and whatever I can find. There is a whole bunch of stuff in there with a big, tall angel.” O’Neal hires help for the big garden and lawn but she is out there working most days, too.
“Gardening is a hobby. It’s a lifetime hobby.” Fuchsia Gartenmeister are small but dramatic features in Joyce O’Neal’s yard.
— Joyce O’Neal
Joyce O’Neal of Wenatchee tends to her vast amount of flowers at her Castlerock Avenue home.
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Brunnera is an attractive, neutral groundcover in Joyce O’Neal’s garden. “Gardening is a hobby,” she says. “It’s a lifetime hobby. I love being outside and playing in the dirt. And then, you get to create something.” O’Neal describes gardening as her “peaceful time.” “If I have a problem and ... I’m out there, the solution comes to me. And the time pays off in such surprising beauty,” she says. Among O’Neal’s favorite plants are springblooming hellebores. “They are gorgeous and I plant them everywhere that I can,” she says. “They also stay green all winter long.” A favorite flower color is peach, which, she says, goes well with the color of the house.
Small and large carnations dot the grounds of the O’Neal property. 52
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O’Neal has several varieties of rhododendrons throughout her yard.
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Clematis vines offer a bold, vertical blast of color as Joyce O’Neal weeds her vast garden in the background.
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She says she buys most of her plants late in the season to save money. “I buy on the clearance racks of the stores in town,” she says. “Everybody
in the stores knows me.” Last summer, she was looking for spots for four climbing roses, and wanting to add Daphnes to her mix of flowers.
“Non-gardeners would say I have run out of space,” she says. “There’s always a place for a plant. Gardeners are never done.” F
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What started with a winemaking class in 2014 is now a serious venture for Doug and Kim Bianchi, owners of Bianchi Vineyards in East Wenatchee.
Vineyard romance Doug and Kim Bianchi go all-in on their winery, relationship
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I
t’s accurate to say Doug and Kimberley Bianchi have a romance with wine. After all, they were married last August among newly planted vines at Bianchi Vineyards, the new winery they’ve started in East Wenatchee. They had planted the Merlot and Syrah vines only a few months before the wedding on the hills above the Columbia River overlooking the Wenatchee Valley.
THE VINE STORY BY RICK STEIGMEYER PHOTOS BY PAUL T. ERICKSON
Wine ages in barrels at Bianchi Vineyards. The Bianchis have live music and mountain bike events planned for this summer. May / June 2019
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Doug Bianchi drew from his Italian heritage for the elk skull logo for Bianchi Vineyards.
“Let me get this straight,” Doug recalled Kim’s response to his somewhat indirect proposal the previous year. “You want me to quit my job, move to Eastern Washington and help you start a winery? Not without a ring on my finger!” That was fine with Doug, 58. Kim quit her job as a dental hygienist and the couple made the move and started working together with goals in mind — a wedding and a winery. Doug said Kim actually started it all in 2014 when she signed the two of them up for a winemaking class in Lynden, close to where they were living at the time. Doug, who works as an international heavy construction consultant and is often on the road, didn’t think he had time for a new hobby. Kim kept after him and soon they were taking classes with Chris Covington, who has since started Port Gardner Bay Winery in Everett. To his surprise, Doug found a strong calling in learning to make wine. “Something clicked,” he said. “Others in the class were interested in drinking wine. I was the only one who was really interested in making wine. I immediately knew I was going to start a winery.”
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Bianchi buys grapes to make his wines but has planted Merlot and Syrah vines with another block of Sauvignon Blanc to be planted this spring. He plans future plantings of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. 58
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Bianchi, standing, chats with guests outside the pole barn he converted into a wine lab, processing room, and bottling and storage space.
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Bianchi’s 2015 Tempranillo was a Silver Medal winner in the 2018 Wenatchee Wine & Food Festival competition. 60
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That first wine, a 2014 Tempranillo made from premium Yakima Valley grapes, turned out awesome, he said. He started making plans with Covington to start a winery together, but then hatched a new idea. Why not look for property in Eastern Washington, where he could be closer to the heart of Washington’s grape-growing regions and where he could plant his own vineyard? He was familiar with the area, having worked in Quincy, and attended Eastern Washington University many years before. When he found a newly listed 10-acre former apple orchard just below Pangborn Memorial Airport, it seemed like his vintner’s dream and destiny had really fallen into place. Perhaps prophetically, Doug grew up in a large Italian family in the tiny town of Grapeview on the Kitsap Peninsula. And yes, there were vineyards there. “There were vineyards on the islands and they always intrigued me as a boy,” he said. His grandfather was raised in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy before the family
immigrated to the Mendoza region of Argentina. Both areas are known for their vineyards and wine culture. Growing up around vineyards and relatives who made and enjoyed wine had planted a seed that had been growing within him.
The Bianchis have also remodeled a small house on their property as an Airbnb for business travelers.
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Bianchi wine club members Mikayla Crawford, left, and Jessica Brooks enjoy a glass of Tempranillo with a view of Mission Ridge in the distance.
Doug Bianchi said he follows the basic principles of good winemaking: Use the best quality grapes. Keep it clean and simple. Don’t make it complicated. 62
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Bianchi closed the deal on the new property in 2017. By the next spring, he had contoured land around the existing house, turned an old pole barn into his wine lab, processing room and bottling and storage space. He added a temporary tasting room with an outdoor patio. He replaced the old apple orchard irrigation system and planted blocks of Merlot and Syrah vines. Another block of Sauvignon Blanc will be planted this spring, followed by future blocks of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. He’s considering planting Tempranillo, Barbera, Primitivo (Zinfandel) and other grape varieties in coming years. It didn’t take Doug long to connect with local winemakers. Mike Scott, owner of Martin-Scott Winery and one of the true pioneers of the Columbia Valley wine industry, lives a mile away on SE 10th Street. Mike introduced Doug to Allen Matthews of Malaga Springs Winery and Pete
Beaumont of Beaumont Cellars. All have become generous and valuable mentors, Doug said. “I’m really excited to be here. People have been so helpful and welcoming. They’re always ready to help,” he said about his new winemaker friends. Doug and Kim have three sons and a younger daughter between them from previous marriages. All have been involved in the family-run winery. For the near future, the winery will continue to use grapes sourced from premium vineyards in the Wahluke Slope and Yakima growing districts. Grapes are crushed elsewhere until Bianchi completes construction and
“My goal is to bring out the grape’s destiny. You have to start with good fruit.” Doug Bianchi Bianchi Vineyards Owner
the vineyards come into production. Doug said he follows the basic principles of good winemaking: Use the best quality grapes. Keep it clean and simple. Don’t make it complicated. “My goal is to bring out the grape’s destiny,” he said. “You have to start with good fruit.” Bianchi Vineyards currently produces Tempranillo, Merlot, Syrah and an unoaked Chardonnay. A red Bordeaux-style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec and Cabernet Franc will be released later this year. The 2015 Tempranillo was a Silver Medal winner at the 2018 Wenatchee Wine & Food Festival competition. The Bianchis have already started a wine club and vineyard club in which members can adopt a vine from which their wine will be made. Live music and snowshoe hikes have been popular tasting room events. More music and running and mountain bike events are planned for this summer. They’ve also remodeled a small house on the property as an Airbnb for business travelers. Plans are underway to build a new
tasting room and event center within the vineyard, offering the property’s most scenic views of the Wenatchee Valley and Mission Ridge, close to where the couple were married. “We want to create a wine experience for others, as we have for ourselves,” he said. “Wine is a celebration of life. I love watching others share that celebration.” F
Bianchi Vineyards 4210 10th St. SE, East Wenatchee bianchivineyards.com (360) 815-6167 Tasting room hours: Friday, 2 to 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.
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UPON FURTHER REVIEW
A TASTE OF NCW WINES WITH BARB ROBERTSON
Rocky Pond 2017 Rosé of Grenache, $24
Isenhower Cellars 2017 Barrel Fermented Roussanne, $22
Cairdeas Winery 2016 Diffraction Red Blend, $24
If you’ve driven north of Orondo recently, you may have noticed vineyards between Daroga State Park and Chelan Falls. This is Rocky Pond’s Double D Vineyard, situated near the river. There are 55 acres planted up to 940 feet on a north-facing slope of fine silt loam and tumbled granite. Several grape varietals are grown there, including the Grenache that made this pretty pale baby pink wine. I’d like to preface my reaction to the Rocky Pond Grenache rosé. My 16-yearold son loves fruit and I stuff all kinds of different fruit products in his lunch bag. A couple items that are almost always in the bag are strawberry dried fruit strips and Clementine oranges. The wine had some spice and florals on the nose, but when I took a sip it reminded me of my son’s fruity lunch bag, minus the bag. Dried berry fruit leather and mixed citrus danced together in perfect harmony. The finish is crisp and refreshing. You can pair this wine with just about anything or nothing.
I remember back in 2004 when I first visited Isenhower Cellars in Walla Walla. They were playing around with some different and exciting varietals at the time, and one of them was Roussanne. Brett Isenhower thought there was enough Chardonnay floating around and he wanted to be different, which can be a bad thing or a good thing. For Isenhower, it was a very good thing, and 15 years later he is still going strong with this varietal. The 2017 vintage is from the Olsen Ranch Vineyard in Yakima and has a light yellow-green color. The aromas are tropical with a dollop of honey. The palate shows creamy matcha, lush peach, mango and citrus peel. It’s a happy wine and will lift your mood with the first sip or glass. You can pick up a bottle at the winery’s Leavenworth tasting room. Take it to the next crab feed and you’ll be a hero.
The Merriam-Webster definition for diffraction: a modification which light undergoes especially in passing by the edges of opaque bodies or through narrow openings and in which the rays appear to be deflected. If you look it up, you’ll see a wave motion. I would say that a small sip of this wine creates a large wave of flavor. The grapes in this Rhône-style blend are Syrah, Grenache, Petite Sirah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault and Carignan, in that order. Maybe it’s because I have Easter candy around the house, but I could swear I was smelling berry jelly beans and strawberry peeps when I put my nose in the glass. The palate echoed the fruitiness, but instead of sweetness there is a light pepper and dried herb aspect. The wine is easygoing and very drinkable. This is a perfect red wine to drink on a spring day while you watch the flowers bloom. Try it with a charcuterie and cheese plate and let your mouth hum like the bees.
Barb Robertson City: Wenatchee Credentials: Earned advanced certification through London-based Wine and Spirit Education Trust; currently working toward higher-level diploma through WSET. Earned degree in marketing from Central Washington University. Owned The Wine Bin retail shop in Wenatchee for five years, as well as the Mission Street Bistro Wine 64
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Bar for 14 years. Has worked in the Northwest wine industry for more than 15 years, including sales, production and marketing. Was a judge for the 2011-18 Wenatchee Wine & Food Festival wine competition, the 2017 and 2018 Cascadia Wine Competition and the Washington State Fair 2015-16.
UPON FURTHER REVIEW
Bianchi Vineyards 2015 Tempranillo, $26 Tempranillo may be a newcomer to Washington, but its roots can be traced to 1000 BC in Spain. It’s far from being a novel wine in the world, because it’s the sixth-most planted grape varietal globally. Some people think Tempranillo has the potential to become a signature wine in our state as it shares the same growth parameters as Spain, which produces world-renowned wines from the Tempranillo grape, such as Rioja. The name Tempranillo comes from the Spanish word temprano, which means early. The grape is one of the first red varietals to be harvested, along with Merlot. The grapes for the Bianchi Tempranillo come from the Wahluke Slope. The first sniff into the glass revealed dark berry, red currant and a sultry coconut note. It has an approachable, medium body with soft tannins. There is acidity on the mid-palate that carries the berry, plum and five spice flavors into the finish. This would be a great wine to pair with your next tapas party!
M����� Y��� H������ L��������... EVEN HEALTHIER!
C��� S�� O�� N�� S�������!
— Barb Robertson
225 S. Wenatchee Ave., Wenatchee • 509-888-7873 May / June 2019
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THE VINE
STORY BY JAANA HATTON
PHOTOS BY PAUL T. ERICKSON
Left: Jan Lutz pours a glass of Wanderer’s White blend from Errant Cellars prior to a recent Wenatchee Valley Enological Society meeting. Above: Ruth Allan, an original member of the Wenatchee Valley Enological Society, enjoys a glass of Errant Cellars wine next to her granddaughter Laura Elizabeth, who is also a society member.
The sipping W society
Local wine group is equal parts learning and fun hen it comes to wine, it’s not simply red or white. It’s Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Malbec or Cabernet Sauvignon, just to mention a few options. Wine comes in every imaginable flavor and bouquet man can extract from grapes. For those who would like to know more about wine making and wine tasting, there is the Wenatchee Valley Enological Society friendly group of about 75 people who will happily guide you. May / June 2019
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Megan Couture, owner and winemaker at Errant Cellars of Quincy, describes her method of making wine during a meeting of the The Wenatchee Valley Enological Society.
Jan Lutz raises a glass in memory of Martin-Scott Winery co-owner Judi Scott prior to the group’s January meeting. 68
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Society member Terry Porlier regards the colors in a glass of Errant Cellars wine.
Wenatchee Valley Enological Society vice president Lauri Leedy opens a recent meeting. They gather at the Wenatchee Valley Museum & Cultural Center every third Thursday of the month. While most of the members are 50 years and older, there are some 30-somethings in the group. An individual yearly membership costs $15. At the meetings, an additional fee usually around $20 covers the cost of the wines that are sampled. John and Cheri Knudsen joined the Enological Society last year because some of their friends are members. “We enjoy learning about wines outside of the Wenatchee area and the comradery at the meetings, said Cheri Knudsen. “The society has introduced us to wineries we didn’t know of before.”
Russ Speidel, top left, and Dwight Bonneville pour the next round of Errant Cellars wine during a meeting. May / June 2019
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Well-used glasses hold red and white wine during a meeting of the Wenatchee Valley Enological Society. Ruth Allan is one of the founding members of the non-profit group, which had its first meeting in June 1980. “Joan Van Divort and I joined forces along with some other interested people to establish a wine society in Wenatchee. Joan had been a member of the chapter (Greater Seattle Chapter Enological Society) when she lived in Seattle and wanted to continue the activity here,” Allan said. Van Divort had accrued a strong knowledge of the finer things in life while working for affluent families in the Seattle area. Allan’s background is in the arts. “Initially, we invited wineries from the Yakima area to come to our meetings,” Allan said. “Then Mike and Debbie Hansen established their vineyard in East Wenatchee, just past 70
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the airport. They produced Bordeaux wines.” These days, there is no need to venture far: the greater Wenatchee area is booming with grape growers. “To me, the best part of the society are the friendships,” Allan said. “As for wine appreciation, my taste has shifted from whites to reds. Merlots are my favorites.” Current board president Don Julien said he likes to introduce unusual wines to the group. “The gatherings are about wine and local education,” Julien said. “But our society is also about comradery and entertaining. We are one of the eight or nine active chapters in the Pacific Northwest.” The group meets nine times a year. “Seven of the meetings are tastings, one is our annual Gala which
is all about French champagnes and sparkling wines and we also have a picnic,” Julien said. The society invites winemakers to present their products, have blind tastings and learn while laughing. “We have five different samples at our tastings, along with a potluck,” Julien said. “The society introduces both Washington and international wines.” Al and Sandy Schuster, members of the sipping society since 1980, echo the society’s statement of education and fun. “This society brings together people from all walks of life, at any level of wine knowledge. It’s a fun group with a common interest: wine,” Al Schuster said. “Somebody might suggest ‘Hey, lets’ go to Walla Walla for the weekend to do some wine tast-
ing’ — and off we go.” The bonding over wine has led to trips much farther away, including Europe. “It was the summer of 2003,” Sandy Schuster recalled. “We were just sitting around with some friends and one of them happens to know Rick Steves, She said she might be able to arrange a wine trip through him in Europe for us. And so she did. Rick Steves didn’t come with us, but some people who work for him were our guides. We had a lovely time on the “Wine and Dine” trip to the Provence region.” “Since then, we have made other trips with some of those friends, every year,” Al Schuster added. “Enological” sounds refined and maybe even intimidating. No need to worry: novices are welcome. The whole idea of the society is to teach its members wine appreciation. The meetings include a short — a very short — presentation of the wines to be tasted, and the rest is left to the taste buds. “We started out as enthusiastic white Zinfandel drinkers,” Al Schuster recalled, laughing. “It was the ‘Two-
Members enjoy food from This & That catering of Quincy during a recent meeting.
Buck-Chuck,’ a cheap California wine, that we enjoyed.” These days, Sandy Schuster’s palette prefers Pinot Gris and Syrah wines, while her husband is partial to
Malbecs. “We say that if you like it, it’s a good wine,” Sandy Schuster said. On the Web: wenwine.org F
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