Chris Upchurch

The Climb

Training at University of Colorado and University of Washington led into wine merchant roles at Several of Seattle's best-known restaurants in Seattle, Washington until 1992. That work sat at the intersection of service, selection, and communication, where wine is handled as both product and experience. Since 1992, Chris Upchurch has remained Founding Winemaker and partner of DeLille Cellars, a long tenure marked by consistency and close attention to place. Since 2007, he has also served as proprietor and Head Winemaker of Upchurch Vineyard, extending that same approach into a project under his own name.

Today

At DeLille Cellars in Woodinville, Chris Upchurch’s work has included Chaleur Estate Blanc, a Bordeaux-style white wine that the winery was first in the state to create; the 2013 vintage stands among the named works tied to his tenure. The wine reflects the shape of his practice: precise, site-aware, and focused on translating vineyard character into the glass. A different kind of continuity appears in Doyenne Aix. In 2001, the first batch of what would become that blend was created at his wedding, placing the wine’s first step inside a personal moment and tying it to the DeLille portfolio. The result is a blend with a private point of origin and a lasting place in the work. Since 2007, Chris Upchurch has also been proprietor and Head Winemaker at Upchurch Vineyard. Four Flags and Doyenne are named works from that vineyard, carrying his focus on place into a project under his own name. The guiding line is direct: “The truly long-lived wines are made in the vineyards.”

Signature

Chris's signature wines include Chaleur Estate Blanc, Doyenne Aix, Four Flags, and Doyenne.

In Their Words “The challenge for us has always been, and remains, to create special wines from the uniquely expressive terroir that Mother Nature gave us a long time ago.” “That is an advantage and a disadvantage because some winemakers want to just talk about their own product.”

Recognition

Recognition around Chris Upchurch rests in named wines, durable roles, and a consistent insistence that land leads the cellar. Chaleur Estate Blanc connects him to a Washington first for Bordeaux-style white wine; Doyenne Aix ties a private milestone to a wine that became part of the DeLille story; Four Flags and Doyenne extend that same focus through Upchurch Vineyard. His work also shows the double life of a winemaker who speaks for more than one label. “That is an advantage and a disadvantage because some winemakers want to just talk about their own product.” The through-line is not a single bottle but a lineage of sites, blends, and responsibilities beginning in Seattle and continuing through Woodinville.