Economic factors key in wine’s Pacific Northwest migration

NAPA — Washington State may be overshadowed by California’s wine industry, but it is gaining prominence and will continue to do so thanks to cheap land, fewer regulations and growing recognition of the quality of the Evergreen State’s varietals. That was the message Tuesday from Ted Baseler, president and chief executive of Ste. Michelle Wine Estates of Woodinville, Wash., which has grown to be the nation’s seventh-largest wine company through the strength of its home market.