Washington state is one of the major wine growing regions of the United States. According to the Washington State Wine Commission, the state has eight distinct wine growing regions. All told, the industry’s economic impact is worth about $9 billion annually. For most of us, what matters is the taste, but for me, I am much more interested in the people who grow and pick the grapes, the ecology for the distinct products, and way this ancient tradition of viticulture is changing this state. (Click on each photograph to see a larger picture on a separate picture page.)