Walter Dacon Wines

We thoroughly enjoyed coming here after visiting the taylor shellfish farm. It is probably about a mile away. When we arrived at the small winery, we were pleasantly welcomed by bo, the golden doodle. It was so friendly and curious. He was my highlight while visiting here. The winery is pretty small but the person there conducting the tasting was really nice. She showed us like seven different types of wines. They were all very good. The tasting was complimentary. Nice place to stop by if you are interested in trying different kinds of wines.

The pours were itty bitty but the owner was very sweet.
We enjoyed our time here. A little off the beaten track but I think worth it to stop for a break.
My favorite wine was Syrah Magnifique, which we bought. Some of the cheaper wines were not to my liking.
We bought a wine glass (riedel) with their insignia for $ 13.
On to Hoodsport where we hiked for five miles out at Staircase Rapids in Olympic park.

Amazing wines are offered without paying a tasting fee. Not one wine that I didn’t care for. The wine maker, Andy, and his wife Ann are fabulous and I love this place. I joined their wine club and couldn’t be happier.

Great wine, especially the Beaux. Chill setting, very nice people. It’s easy to relax here and learn about the wines the Andersons make. And ends more enjoyable to sit out on the patio with a bottle or two and friends to share.

Doing it right, that’s all I can say.
Ok, not really. I have been to Walter Dacon on 3 separate occasions after it was recommended to me by the host of where I was staying in Union, WA. I always go for a tasting (I think there are 7 or 8 wines to taste) and ALWAYS leave with at least one bottle.
I must say I am never disappointed in their wines. They run quite the gamut of red wines, and I think my favorite is their C’est Syrah Magnifique. De-​li-​cious! They also have a killer pinot gris (I think that is their only white), which is very crisp and refreshing and always leaving me wanting more. :)
When I am back in the area, you can find me there.
Now if I could just find their wines in Seattle…

Small, off the beaten path winery near Shelton, WA. Very good wines (both red and white), reasonably priced. The husband and wife owner are very friendly and approachable.
The ambiance of the tasting room is intimate and comfortable. There is a seating area outside for groups.
Would definitely visit again and purchase more wine.

Best winery in the Olympia area. It is nestled in a forest and operated by a very friendly older couple, with outdoor seating and a nice air-​conditioned indoor wine bar. Wines were good and were focused on reds more than whites.

Worth the trip! Live music on holiday weekends, with free tasting and good food. I recommend the Beaux and C’est Syrah Magnifique.

Some of the best advice I have received in 2014 was to go to this winery. This place is a true gem! Just thinking about them retrospectively makes me regret not buying more wine.
My husband and I started with the wine tasting with high expectations, and Walter Dacon didn’t disappoint! They had their red selections available and each one was fabulous. The flight was about 7 wines, and I had yet to have had a tasting where I loved each and every wine presented to me until I came here. I do not lightly say that everything was fabulous. While each flavor was unique, they were all done so very well.
As other Unilocalers have said, I have no idea how much the tasting was, but that might have been because we got a bottle, but I don’t see how it is possible to go in here and not walk out with at least 1 bottle. Even their cheapest bottle (which runs about $ 30) would have been a stand out red on my wine rack.
My favorite was the C’est Syrah Magnifique, but my husband’s was their GSM. My second favorite was their Belle. Each were stellar.
The owners are also super nice, and they have a really cute Golden Doodle dog who is the unofficial greeter of the place.
Bottom line– go here; go here and buy a LOT of wine. You will thank yourself for it.

I’m a wine fan. I love reds, I love whites, I love sparkling, so there’s no surprise that I love Walter Dacon Wines. But, let me share a couple of reasons why I love them more than others.
First, I love that the Belle and the Beaux wines are the same grapes aged in different oak (French and American, respectively). I think it is so cool to taste back and forth– sometimes I prefer the Belle, sometimes I’m enamoured with the Beaux. But it’s really interesting to taste the nuances that the oak alone imparts on the wine.
Not only are the wines delish but they are celebrated by others as fine wines, often pointing in the 90s. Recently their GSM was touted as one of four WA wines to try this spring.
Ann and Andy are amazing (yes, husband and wife team). They love to share their knowledge and love of wine with others. The fact that they do not charge a tasting fee is just one more reason to love them. Though I suppose it doesn’t seem important to them, as you’re bound to purchase a bottle after you’ve completed the complimentary tasting.

Great wines, great location, and great owners.
My wife and I stopped by Walter Dacon winery after hearing great things from people at other tastings. WD is a bit of the path but it is worth the trip. The selection of reds was amazing and our favorite was the 2009 Tempranacha and the 2009 C’est Syrah Beaux. Would love to see a better selection of whites, but I am not complaining about the reds.
Look forward to another visit soon.

Great winery! So glad my sister in law knew about this place or I would have never been able to try it. They have a great line up of wines, I absolutely love love love their dessert wine! The owners are super nice and friendly, we talked to them for over an hour. We will definitely be stopping in again soon.

Good wine great people. Fun visit if you are in the area the couple running it are super nice and fun.

I know at some wineries they are more… I guess the word would be snobby. Here I thought considering its on a side road and in Shelton for goodness sake, it wouldnt be full of wine snobbery but it totally was. We drive a nice car and dont dress like total slobs or anything and showed up and the people stared at us like we were freaks. I was made to feel like a moron just because I asked 2 questions. Some of their wines were good but I had some from other wineries that were better and cheaper not to meantion I prefer to support local businesses who dont treat me like crap.

This place had suprisingly good wine and nice building. They have a very small tasting room but tons of Syrahs. I enjoyed the French Oak more than the American Oaked Syrahs. Well worth a stop if you are in the area!

The past week end was the annual wine and chocolate tour of South Sound wineries. We started our tour at Walter Dacon. It was our second time for a tasting there.
Here is a pro –tip: You don’t need to go to Walla Walla or Napa for fine, artisinal, artsy — I man craftsman made wines. Walter Dacon makes wonderful Rhone style reds and a viog, a voigener. a white that I can not pronounce because I was born in Hoquiam.
These are rich, full bodied wines. Not for the wine guzzler but to be enjoyed for the flavor and other etsh.ethestix.for the subtle qualities a well made wine can offer. National trade magazines and respected wine competitions have scored their wines in the 90+ range — pretty cool for a small wine maker not in the heart of wine growing country (unless the Taylor Towne region is now a Tuscan sub division I do not know about)
The tasting room is classy but not pretentious. They offer their wines and winery related souvenirs. The wines are in the $ 25 to $ 35 range, as I’ve seen at limited production wineries in Oregon and Washington.
It is a pleasure to to know that such a fine wine maker is in our back yard. They now offer their basic red («Skookum Red») at Top Foods (west oly).
But first, do go to the winery for a sample of their fine wines and port. Very knowledgeable staff in the tasting room — and eager to teach about the wine tasting experience. You’ll enjoy your experience.

Cute little winery about a mile and a half off of Hwy 101. If you like wine and are in the Olympia/​Shelton/​Hoodsport area, definitely stop by for a tasting.
I have no idea what the tasting fee is, as we didn’t see it printed anywhere, but whatever it is (I doubt it’s free) they waive it when you buy a bottle. I ended up buying 3 bottles and our 2 tastings were waived.
The place is small but tastefully decorated… you can go on WD’s website to find out about their vintage large desk that serves as the bar. The servers are extremely friendly and seem to know enough about the wine. The wine itself is very tasty… this place seems to specialize in Syrah, which is normally one of my least favorite reds, but these wines are quite approachable. The prices aren’t bad at all for what you get… seemed like their single-​vineyard Syrahs go for around $ 30 – 36 a bottle, and their whites and mixed reds are much less.
We had a fun time and definitely would have lingered over a glass of wine (they sell some of their wines by the glass here), except it was about 90 degrees outside that day. We’ll be back though.

This was recommended to me by a friend that has a house in Shelton and knows my interest in tasting wines.
She said it was a little off the beaten path, but really not so much that you cannot find it and it was well signed, so much the better. When it says winery 500 ft take it seriously as it’s around a bend and then your are on the driveway which is a gravel road. They have gates that use to close it off when not open.
It’s a small venue, which makes it all the more endearing and the parking lot is small as well. They have the required handicapped spot which I noticed was blocked by a BMW from Virginia when we were there. To be fair the signage is there but hard to see immediately unless you are looking for it.
We walked in and it was a full house. Apparently, they had some passport group that was coming through and tasting at various wineries. It was a prepaid sort of scenario where they had to check your name off of a list, etc.
When some folks ahead of me bought a glass to enjoy on the patio (there are a couple of tables with umbrellas outside) I moved up to the bar. My fiancé had stepped outside (separate entrance to the bathrooms, regular toilets not a port a john), and the staffer said can I set you up with a tasting and I said yes and before I could inquire how much or anything else she poured two tastings.
It was crowded and they were busy, so I’ll give them that but I kind of wanted to know the $$ before proceeding. I picked up some materials at the bar trying to read how much a tasting was. There was no information anywhere on them. So, I shrugged and started on the first one. Just then my fiancé came back.
We tasted approximately seven wines which is generous considering a lot of wineries will give you about four for $ 10.
We really enjoyed the wines and ended up purchasing three bottles of wine there. The tasting fee was never discussed so I can only guess they waive it if you purchase but I’ll never know for sure. :)
Interesting thing I noticed while we were in there was the fine bar which appeared to be quite old and definitely reclaimed from another use. In reading their website it’s a vintage circulation desk from the Fremont library in Seattle circa 1917. It’s been well taken care of. Check it out if you stop in.
I’ll be back again!

Walter Dacon has a very nice selection of Syrahs to taste — and I also like their port a lot. If you belong to their wine club you can attend some really nice members-​only events, like their Memorial Day weekend event where you can kick back on a beach chair on their enormous lawn and enjoy seafood and live music. Lloyd and Ann run the operation and are very friendly. This is a fun place to take visitors. Cheers!