Gramercy Cellars

Greg Harrington's path to winemaking is distinctive among Walla Walla producers: Harrington trained as a sommelier through the 1980s and 1990s before earning his Master Sommelier (MS) certification in 1996, making him one of America's earliest MS-credentialed sommeliers. The Court of Master Sommeliers credential requires extensive wine knowledge across all major wine regions plus rigorous tasting, theoretical, and service examinations; the MS qualification has historically been considered the premier sommelier-track wine credential. Harrington's pre-Gramercy career included sommelier roles at prominent New York restaurants and beverage director responsibilities at major hospitality operations. The MS background gives Harrington deep wine-region knowledge that informs his winemaking approach at Gramercy: his admiration for Northern Rhône Syrah (particularly Cornas) shapes the producer's stylistic register, and his global wine-tasting experience informs blending and varietal decisions across the broader Gramercy lineup.

• Greg Harrington: trained as sommelier 1980s-1990s; Master Sommelier certification 1996; one of America's earliest MS-credentialed sommeliers
• Court of Master Sommeliers: requires extensive wine knowledge + rigorous tasting/theoretical/service examinations; premier sommelier-track wine credential
• Pre-Gramercy career: sommelier roles at prominent New York restaurants + beverage director responsibilities at major hospitality operations
• MS background informs Gramercy winemaking: deep wine-region knowledge + Northern Rhône Syrah (Cornas) admiration shapes producer stylistic register

The Harrington family lived in Manhattan's Gramercy Park neighborhood through Greg's New York sommelier career; the Gramercy Cellars name reflects this Manhattan neighborhood reference. Greg and Pam Harrington moved from New York to Walla Walla in the early 2000s to pursue winemaking; the move represented a significant career shift from hospitality to wine production. The Harringtons established Gramercy Cellars in 2005 in Walla Walla; the early operation focused on Syrah and Rhône-variety production using contracted Walla Walla and Yakima Valley fruit. The move from New York hospitality to Walla Walla winemaking parallels broader patterns of professional-career-to-Walla-Walla wine commerce moves that have shaped many Walla Walla producer foundings (Cadence's Ben Smith from software engineering, Avennia's Marty Taucher from Microsoft, Maison Bleue's Jon Meuret from dentistry, and others). The Harringtons' New York hospitality background provides a sommelier-buyer perspective that distinguishes Gramercy from producers founded by farming, viticulture, or other production-side backgrounds.

• Gramercy name: reflects Manhattan's Gramercy Park neighborhood where Harringtons lived through Greg's New York sommelier career
• Greg + Pam Harrington moved from New York to Walla Walla early 2000s to pursue winemaking; significant career shift from hospitality to wine production
• Gramercy Cellars established 2005 in Walla Walla; early operation focused on Syrah and Rhône-variety production using contracted Walla Walla + Yakima Valley fruit
• Career-shift pattern: parallels Cadence/Ben Smith (software), Avennia/Marty Taucher (Microsoft), Maison Bleue/Jon Meuret (dentistry) professional-to-wine-commerce moves

Gramercy sources fruit from premium Walla Walla, Yakima Valley, and Rocks District vineyards. Boushey Vineyard (the Dick Boushey premium grower near Grandview in Yakima Valley) supplies Gramercy's most-cited Boushey Vineyard Syrah; the Boushey Syrah has become one of Washington's most-cited Yakima Valley Syrah bottlings and demonstrates the high-quality Syrah production capacity of premium Yakima Valley sites beyond the Walla Walla and Rocks District Syrah-focused producer cluster. DuBrul Vineyard (the Shiels family Rattlesnake Hills vineyard) provides additional premium Syrah and white variety fruit. Selected Walla Walla highland sites and Rocks District sources support the broader Syrah lineup including the Lagniappe Syrah reserve bottling. The fruit-sourcing model parallels the broader Walla Walla single-vineyard premium producer approach (Andrew Will, Long Shadows, Buty, Forgeron) using long-term grower partnerships rather than estate-vineyard ownership. The Boushey, DuBrul, and Walla Walla premium-site sourcing provides Gramercy with diverse vineyard-specific Syrah expressions across multiple Washington AVAs.

• Boushey Vineyard (Dick Boushey premium grower near Grandview, Yakima Valley): supplies Gramercy's most-cited Boushey Vineyard Syrah; demonstrates Yakima Valley Syrah quality capacity
• DuBrul Vineyard (Shiels family Rattlesnake Hills): additional premium Syrah and white variety fruit
• Selected Walla Walla highland sites + Rocks District sources: support broader Syrah lineup including Lagniappe Syrah reserve
• Fruit-sourcing model: long-term grower partnerships rather than estate-vineyard ownership; parallels Andrew Will + Long Shadows + Buty + Forgeron single-vineyard premium approach

Gramercy's stylistic register reflects Greg Harrington's deep Northern Rhône admiration: the producer's Syrah bottlings show structured cool-climate-influenced character with restrained alcohol (typically 12.5-14 percent), savory mid-palate, smoked-meat and olive-brine aromatic notes, and ferrous mineral signature. The Lagniappe Syrah (Cajun French for 'an extra gift' or 'a little something extra') is the producer's flagship reserve bottling sourced from selected premium sites; the wine anchors the upper-tier Gramercy reference. The Boushey Vineyard Syrah, the John Lewis Reserve Syrah, and the broader Syrah lineup represent additional Gramercy expressions. Beyond Syrah, Gramercy produces Grenache, Mourvèdre, and other Rhône varieties at smaller scale plus some Bordeaux variety bottlings. The producer's Cornas-influenced stylistic register has earned strong critical reception across multiple vintages and positions Gramercy among Walla Walla's most distinctive cool-climate Syrah producers (alongside Cayuse and Reynvaan's Rocks District operations, Gramercy's broader Walla Walla and Yakima Valley sourcing produces a different but stylistically related cool-climate Syrah expression).

• Stylistic register: structured cool-climate-influenced Syrah; restrained 12.5-14% alcohol + savory mid-palate + smoked-meat and olive-brine aromatic notes + ferrous mineral signature
• Lagniappe Syrah (Cajun French 'an extra gift'): flagship reserve bottling from selected premium sites; upper-tier Gramercy reference
• Additional Syrah bottlings: Boushey Vineyard Syrah, John Lewis Reserve Syrah, broader Syrah lineup
• Beyond Syrah: Grenache + Mourvèdre + other Rhône varieties at smaller scale + some Bordeaux variety bottlings; Cornas-influenced register distinguishes Gramercy among WW Syrah producers