Rob and Donna Mellison of Mellisoni Vineyards
2021 Washington Winery of the Year by Wine Press Northwest
2021 Washington Winemakers of the Year by Seattle Wine Awards
16 March 2022
A vacation trip to Tuscany in 2002 exposed Rob and Donna Mellison to “agritourismo”, and the experience changed their intended life in Lake Chelan. Rob was working for a company that invented quiet-closing cabinets and Donna was a pharmacist at the time they purchased land in Lake Chelan for retirement and vacationing. But after they returned from Italy, they were determined to turn their south shore Lake Chelan property into a venue for agritourism. They started planting vines on what is one of the steepest vineyard slopes in the state, and sold their first wines out of a trailer in 2010. In 2016, they built their beautiful all-in-one house, tasting room and winery facility surrounded by beautiful grounds and vineyards overlooking the lake. Five years later, Mellisoni Vineyards was named 2021 Washington Winery of the Year, and Rob and Donna 2021 Washington Winemakers of the Year. How do they explain their success?
For the answer, you’ll have to listen to their amazing interview below. They make diverse wines using at least 18 different grape varieties. Their success is impressive. One of their very first wines—the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon sold from their trailer—received a Diamond of the Decade Award at the 2020 Seattle Wine Awards. Rob and Donna have received over a dozen Platinum Awards in just two years, which is truly amazing. Great Northwest Wine bestowed a Double Platinum and 98 points on their Super Tuscan wine, Best Friends 2018, and the same award and 97 points on their 2018 Forte Rosso blend. Their wines are outstanding, unique, and fun, with many wine names exhibiting clever plays on words. To have the “Mellisoni Experience,” is to taste great wine, in a stunningly beautiful setting, with plenty of individualized attention.
Listen to the Interview: