Although it almost seems as if we’ve gone from winter to summer in just a matter of days, Woodinville Wine Country is all ready.

More specifically, Woodinville’s Warehouse District is ready. With chilled (but not too chilled) white and rosé wines as well as BBQ-friendly reds, the wine tasting rooms in the Warehouse District are definitely ready.

For example, there is Pondera Winery – an art-focused, award-winning winery with wine grapes sourced from the Columbia Valley. Dan and Pat Howard – who are partners in the winery (of which their son, Shane, is the winemaker) and who also own the Howard/Mandville Gallery in Kirkland – share their gallery artwork in their Woodinville tasting room, conveniently located in the Warehouse District. High-end artwork that looks even better bathed in summer sun.

Also enjoy a wine tasting on a private patio in the Warehouse District over at Sparkman Cellars – a winery with wines known to receive 90+ scores – they have a secluded, fenced-in patio just off the main entrance that is getting ready for summertime’s warmer weather … and, by the looks of things, that’s right about now.

And, no matter which of the several wine districts you wish to taste through, consider grabbing a picnic to enjoy either on-site or on-the-go (say, while wine-tasting) at The PicNic Table in the Artisan Hill District, which opened only this past January.

What inspired this Woodinville picnic concept? Owner and Chef Danilo Amato (also of Amato Catering, which he founded in 2003, and who worked on private yachts as a chef for some 15 years) shared his epiphany: “I was driving up and down [in Woodinville] and I saw that people were eating out of their trunks,” he chuckled.

Then and there, The PicNic Table concept was born.

With its interior design of rustic-Italian-meets-modern-minimalist-chic, The PicNic Table has a picnic-friendly menu of offerings that are inspired by Mediterranean cafés. Items like olives, nuts, cheese and charcuterie platters, deviled eggs, terrines, soups, salads, sandwiches, pizzas, and weekly tapas. (Yum!)

So get on out in this fantastic weather we’re now having, grab a nosh and have a sip (or two or three).

For summer IS coming to Woodinvillle – in fact, as of late, it feels as if it’s already here!