“When we had been thinking about building a bigger tasting room, we’d been thinking about building on site,” said Kim Goodreau, who owns the winery along with her husband, Troy.

Groodreau said they were approached by the owners of the building Ty and Brenda McPhearson asking if they would have an interest in the space, which had been recently vacated by a small-scale brewery.

“We thought it was wonderful that they’d have that kind of trust in us,” Goodreau said.

For the Goodreau’s it meant going off the winery site and taking a step up in size.

“We had wine tasting on site with room for about four,” Goodreau said. “We’ve gone from four to space for 22.”

Kim and Troy Goodreau were high school sweethearts who ended up reconnecting a few decades later — the Thrall and Dodge’s Lucky Twice wine is a nod to their relationship. Kim spent about 20 years in social services, but she said she quickly took to the work and duties of a winery. Troy is the second generation on the Thrall and Dodge Winery property.

Working together

Groodreau said one of Troy’s first tasks when starting the winery a decade ago was to make the Kittitas Valley a destination for wine enthusiasts who would otherwise just pass by on the way to the Yakima Valley and Walla Walla.

“Troy had the wherewithal 10 years ago to start an association,” she said.

The Kittitas Valley Vintners Association has grown since then. In addition to Thrall and Dodge, the members are Swiftwater Cellars, Canyon Mist Vineyard, Ellensburg Canyon Winery, Elevate Wine Company, Gard Vintners, The Springboard Winery and the Ellensburg Distillery.

In the past couple of years the association has been successful in obtaining hotel and motel tax monies to work with the Kittitas County Chamber of Commerce to better promote this area to wine tourists.

The Kittitas tasting room is part to the effort to give people another reason to stop and explore what Kittitas Valley wineries have to offer.

“This area is the gateway to the wine country,” Goodreau said. “We’re giving people a reason to stay.”

Room to grow

The Thrall and Dodge wine tasting room right now offers meat and cheese trays from Glondo’s in Cle Elum, but as part of the renovation of the space the Goodreau’s added a commercial kitchen, which gives the opportunity to expand the menu.

“We see a lot of potential for growth here,” Goodreau said.