Category 5 Cellars: Wines For the Adventurous and Easy-going

By Cole Swanson
January 2, 2025

WOODINVILLE, WA – About 30 minutes from Seattle proper, within the Warehouse District of Woodinville, WA, is Category 5 Cellars, where visitors can sip Columbia Valley-based wines next to the production line. Since half of the building is utilized for winemaking, the tasting room is intimate in size, allowing for the well-educated and friendly associates to provide a more attentive service than a larger tasting room might. When describing the wines to me, their explanations went beyond regurgitating memorized tasting notes, settling into a passionate and deeper understanding for the wines made by winemakers – Jason Smith and Stan Tomson – who seemingly enjoy experimenting; with great success, I might add. 

As a wine enthusiast who enjoys discussing wine almost more than drinking it, the atmosphere was refreshing. For only $15.00 I sipped a total of five from their standard guided tasting, scrupulously savoring each one in order to exchange remarks with the server, whose passion for wine equaled mine.

This white wine is made entirely from the red grape Cabernet Franc, which was harvested early in order to preserve the acidity and delicate flavors. The gentle pressing of the grapes – which separates the juice from the skins while not extracting too much color – resulted in a wine that is as clear as water.

I tasted soft floral notes alongside white pepper, green bell pepper, bright citrus, pear, and gooseberry. The texture of the palate was soft, likely due to the sur lie aging (lees aging), and well-balanced by the high acidity.

Dineen Vineyard, Rattlesnake Hills, AVA

Varietal: 100% Cabernet Franc

Bottle Price: $32.00/Wine Club Price: $28.80

2023 Blanc Franc

2022 Interrobang

Naches Heights AVA

Varietal: 100% Point Gris – Orange Wine

38-day maceration; Aged for 15 months in French oak (14% new, 86% used)

Bottle Price: $38.00/Wine Club Price: $34.20

The color looked like a white wine that had been aging for decades – amber and as if someone dropped in an orange peel and let it marinate for a while. After my first whiff, I immediately smelled carmel and buttery notes. Flavors of cranberry spices, oak, wood spice, and mandarin orange displayed themselves on the soft and silky palate. The acidity wasn’t very high, as is typical with Pinot Gris, and the addition of 15 months barrel aging helped the body to feel fuller. 

The production of the 2022 Interrobang (in-ter-ro-bang) is thanks to Assistant Winemaker Stan Tomson, who created this orange wine from the white grape Pinot Gris. Orange wine is made from white grapes and produced like a red wine, meaning the skins are left in contact with the juice when the grapes were crushed and pressed, allowing the skins to dye the wine. Technically speaking, Pinot Gris has a reddish, grey hue, which is why it is typically used to create orange wine. In this case the maceration period was 38 days, longer than head winemaker Jason Smith preferred. But because the crew became sick with COVID they didn’t have a choice – thank goodness for COVID in this instance only. After the extended skin contact this wine aged in French oak barrels (14% new and 86% used) for 15 months.

2019 Cabernet Sauvignon

This Cabernet Sauvignon had a beautiful ruby color with flavors of ripe black plum, spiced black plum, blackberry, black pepper, red cherry, and juicy strawberry. The palate was silky but the tannins were still present, though not overly bold. A fantastic Washington state Cab that was approachable while still being complex and delicious.

Yakima Valley AVA

Varietal: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon

Bottle Price: $42.00/Wine Club Price: $37.80

2020 Mourvèdre

Deep, almost black in color. With each sip, baking spices and alcohol tickled my nose while flavors continued to develop the more I tasted – strawberry, ripe deep plum, bright raspberry, and tomato leaf with an iron-y finish and a hint of smoked meat on the tail end. The body was full due to the high tannins that Mourvèdre is known for.

Whaluke Slope AVA

Varietal: 100% Mourvèdre

Price Per Bottle: $52.00/Wine Club Price: $46.80

2021 Barbera

Sagemoor Vineyard, White Bluffs AVA

Varietal: 100% Barbera

Aged for 22 months in French oak (33% new, 67% neutral)

Bottle Price: $58.00/Wine Club Price: $52.20

Wine Club Exclusive

This is the first-ever Barbera Category 5 Cellars has created. It had a deep purple hue with notes of tomato leaf, ripe blackberry, blueberry, soft strawberry, and spiced cranberry and raisin. The tannins were grippy and the acidity was high, having me believe this wine could continue to age.

Jason Smith, owner and head winemaker of Category 5 Cellars, comes from four generations of pear farmers from Wenatchee, WA. However, he diverted from the familial path when he pursued computers at an early age. After spending 22 years in the technology industry post college, his agricultural roots called to him, and in 2015 he decided to pursue wine and attended the winemaking program at Northwest Wine Academy at South Seattle College. Just two years later, he launched Category 5 Cellars, and in 2020 the tasting room opened. His technology background is still a part of the winery however, as the name derives from an ethernet cable known as “Cat 5 Wire.”