Five Star Cellars

Before he retired as a John Deere dealer in the state of Washington, David Huse came to know many vineyard owners in the Walla Walla Valley. What started as a post-retirement experiment grew into a full-fledged passion for the Huse family. As the Five Star Cellars website proclaims, they use “grapes only from the highest quality vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley.”

David Huse started Five Star Cellars in 2000, and the first vintage consisted of 120 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon. That doubled the following year with Cabernet and Merlot. After a 2002 remodel, they released their first vintage, which quickly sold out and they started adding a Syrah to their growing list of vintages.

An early graduate of Walla Walla Community College’s enology and viticulture program, Dave’s son, Matt Huss, took over as winemaker and continues to draw fruit from some of the area’s storied vineyard owners. The name “Five Star” indicates the family’s dedication to producing high-quality bold red wines.

Over the years, Five Star’s operation has grown. They operate two tasting rooms, in Walla Walla and Woodinville, as well as a popular wine club. They added Traci Huse as financial director and wine club manager, Cameron Rushton, as assistant winemaker, and Lynda Gable as the Woodinville Tasting Room manager. Other family members help out when needed. Together, they have never strayed from the winery’s mission to provide high-quality Walla Walla wines to all.