Yakima-focused pours in an unexpected Tacoma spot
Downtown Tacoma · Tacoma · Wine Tasting Room / Winery · Visit Website ↗
Reviewed by the RagingWine Tasting Desk · June 28, 2026
RagingWine reviewed Structure Cellars Tasting Room’s wine list and gave it The Wild Card — RagingWine’s Vibe-Check rating. How RagingWine reviews wine lists →
Wingman Metrics
Walking into Structure Cellars' Tacoma tasting room, you immediately understand this is a winery first and a hang second — and that's not a knock. The list is tight, intentional, and built entirely around their own Washington-grown labels, which means you're not here to discover obscure Burgundy; you're here to go deep on what one producer can do with Columbia and Yakima Valley fruit.
Nine labels, all house-made, split cleanly between the everyday 'Craftsman' tier and the elevated 'Foundation' line. The Craftsman wines — Oculus Viognier, Piloti Cab Franc, Newel Red Blend, Bauhaus Syrah, Craftsman Cab Sauv — give you accessible Washington at approachable prices. Step up to the Foundation tier and you're getting their flagship expressions: a Rhône Blend, a Cab Franc, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon that push into serious territory. The regional focus is unapologetically Pacific Northwest, leaning on the power and structure that Yakima Valley does better than almost anywhere. If you came hoping for Burgundy or Barolo, you're in the wrong room — but if you want to understand what Washington wine can actually be, this list makes the case.
Five everyday pours anchor the glass program at $27–$30, which is reasonable for a tasting room operating at this level. The Foundation wines are available by the glass too, ranging from $40 to $48 — more of a considered splurge than a casual order, but they're there if you want them. No rotating guest wines or outside labels, which keeps things focused but limits the by-the-glass ceiling.
Oculus Viognier — $27
Washington Viognier is chronically underrated, and at $27 a glass in a tasting room setting, this is the kind of pour that reminds you why the Columbia Valley can hang with the Rhône on aromatic whites. It's the move if you want something that doesn't feel like a default.
Piloti Cab Franc
Most people walk into a Washington tasting room and reach for the Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah. The Piloti Cab Franc is what the curious drinker orders — Cab Franc in the Pacific Northwest has a cooler, more herbal edge than its Napa counterparts, and at $28 it's quietly one of the more interesting pours on the board.
Foundation Cabernet Sauvignon
At $48 a glass, this is where the math gets uncomfortable — that's bottle-price territory at most restaurants, and without retail comparables to benchmark against, it's hard to know what you're really paying for versus the Craftsman Cab Sauv sitting $18 cheaper. Unless someone on staff can articulate exactly why the Foundation tier justifies the jump, stick with the Craftsman and save the difference.
Foundation Syrah + Charcuterie board
Washington Syrah has a meaty, peppery density that was basically designed to sit next to cured meats and aged cheese. The Foundation Syrah at $48 earns its keep here — the fat in the charcuterie softens the wine's tannin, and the salt makes the fruit pop. It's the tasting room pairing that actually works.
The Bottom Line
Structure Cellars is a Wild Card in the best sense — not because it's flashy, but because it's a serious single-producer tasting room in a city that doesn't have nearly enough of them. If you want to understand Washington wine and drink well doing it, Tacoma just gave you a reason to show up.
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