In late September, Prosser's fall was all in one place. The Great Prosser Balloon Rally ran out of Prosser Airport September 25–27, while the Harvest Festival filled downtown with vendors, a stage and the Caren Mercer-Andreeson Street Painting Festival. The Prosser Record-Bulletin's recap reported that weather canceled Friday morning's flights, that balloons flew Saturday and Sunday, and that a new Golden Balloon Hunt sent visitors out across town.
Catch the Crush, October 9–11, 2026, works almost the opposite way. Prosser Wine's event page gives the location as "Prosser, WA," and under details it says only: "Check with each winery." The weekend has no main stage, no single wristband and no one admission price. Each tasting room hosts its own version of harvest, with its own hours, cover charge and ticket rules. That makes it worth planning stop by stop.
One Weekend, a Dozen Separate Doors
The Yakima Valley tourism calendar calls October 9–11 the main Catch the Crush weekend across the valley. It says harvest celebrations may include grape stomps, vineyard tours, a look at production, food, music and family activities. The one thing tying Prosser's version together is a paper passport. You pick up a Catch the Crush Passport at a participating Prosser Wine member winery. Collect at least five stamps over the weekend and you're entered in a drawing for a Prosser Wine gift basket.
The page says flatly that "every winery throws its own version of crush," and it asks visitors to check each winery's listing to see what's pouring, when it's open and whether a ticket is needed. The price range across stops shows how far apart those versions are.
Where the Fruit Is Still on the Table
Several stops do more than pour. They let you handle grapes, taste them before fermentation or walk through the production side. In mid-October, that's the part of the wine business usually closed to visitors.
| Winery | Address | What's hands-on | Listed cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airfield Estates | 560 Merlot Drive | Grape stomp on Saturday, Oct. 10, with food trucks and wine specials | $15 general admission with logo tumbler, stomping not included; stomp registration $40, $34 for club members, free under 12, now marked sold out |
| Coyote Canyon Winery, 16th Annual Harvest Party | Winemakers Loft, 357 Port Avenue | Three-person grape-stomp competition, barrel tasting, costume contest | $10 entry, $20 per stomp team |
| DavenLore Winery | 23103 S Davlor Pr SW | Help crush, punch down and press freshly harvested grapes; sample new wine from the press | Not listed |
| McKinley Springs Winery | 660 Frontier Road | Estate grapes tasted alongside the finished wine | $20 |
| Alexandria Nicole Cellars | Prosser tasting room | Taste fresh vineyard grapes and guess the wine they'll become | Not listed |
| Mercer Wine Estates | Prosser | Guided tour of the production facility | $25 tasting and tour with glass; $30 release-party ticket |
Airfield's split pricing matters most this year. The stomp registration page shows the $40 participant spots as sold out, while the $15 general admission for watching the stomp is a separate ticket on the Prosser Wine listing. If you want to be the one in the bin on Saturday, Coyote Canyon's team format is another listed option. Its stomp teams are three people at $20 per team, on top of a $10 entry.
DavenLore's listing goes furthest into the cellar. Guests can help crush, punch down and press, then taste wine fresh from the press. McKinley Springs offers a more contained version: one $20 tasting that puts the estate fruit next to what it eventually turns into, with Kate Turner playing Saturday from 3 to 5.
The Rest of the Weekend Runs on Music, Food Trucks and Case Pricing
Not every stop pulls back the cellar door. The rest of the lineup is closer to a neighborhood party, and the details differ enough that two stops on the same street can feel nothing alike.
At Martinez & Martinez, Saturday brings live music from TC Latin Fusion and food from Mama Juanita's Tacos. The $15 cover includes a glass of wine, and the event is 21 and over. Narratif Winery is running an Oktoberfest-style weekend, with brats, sausages and smash burgers from Sip and Savour next to its barrel tastings. Wit Cellars, at 505 Cabernet Court, is open both days, and Zac Burrel performs Saturday from 2 to 5.
Several stops are offering bottle and case deals:
- Evergreen Family Wines: 15% off three or more bottles, stacked on club discounts. Open noon to 7 Friday and Saturday, noon to 6 Sunday.
- Wautoma Springs: discounted tastings with small bites, 15% off bottles and 30% off cases.
- Smasne Cellars: a $115 case special on County Line Red, plus library wines and a port flight. Smasne is listed as closed Saturday for a private event, so Friday or Sunday is the window.
Hours vary as much as prices do. Alexandria Nicole posts 11 to 5 on Friday and Saturday and noon to 5 on Sunday, while Evergreen stays open until 7 on Friday and Saturday. With no central schedule, a Saturday route takes a few minutes of checking each listing first.
The Old Desert Wind Campus Is Pouring Under a New Name
One Catch the Crush stop is operating under a new name this year. In April 2026, Great Northwest Wine reported that Josh and Lisa Lawrence were rebranding the Desert Wind facility as Gård Estate Wines & Inn. The campus sits near the Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center. The Lawrences bought the complex from the Fries family in 2021, and earlier this year they acquired the Merkle family's interest in the Prosser campus.
The production story goes back further than the sign. Gård moved its winemaking from Walla Walla to Prosser ahead of the 2021 harvest, with Chilean-born winemaker Matías Kúsulas. The same report says the 2022 vintage was Desert Wind's final crush, and that Desert Wind wines would keep pouring during the transition. That means the harvest coming in at 2258 Wine Country Road this month goes into Gård wines in a building that has made them for several vintages. The name is the only new part. Josh Lawrence explained the move in the announcement:
"Prosser sits at the center of so many of Washington's most important wine regions, and the community reflects the same farming roots, heritage and sense of place that have shaped Gård from the beginning."
For crush weekend, Gård is offering passport holders a pairing box that includes a barrel taste of a 2024 wine. Live music runs Friday from 5:30 to 7:30. Hours are 11 to 7:30 Friday, 11 to 7 Saturday and 11 to 5 Sunday. After the weekend, Gård's Prosser page lists the tasting room as open 11 to 5 Sunday through Thursday and 11 to 7 Friday and Saturday. Walk-ins are welcome, and food is served daily: seasonal small plates, salads, sandwiches, a signature burger and rotating specials. On a weeknight in late October, that's a sit-down meal at a former destination property with no event attached.
What Keeps Going After Sunday
The crush weekend ends October 11. The October events listed after it are smaller, and several are built for a regular weeknight or a quiet weekend afternoon. The Record-Bulletin's October 7 roundup lists Wine Down Wednesday at Evergreen Family Wines every Wednesday in October.
- Wine Down Wednesday, October 14, 21 and 28. Evergreen Family Wines, 508 Cabernet Court, runs a 3 to 6 p.m. happy hour with special pricing on wine by the glass and bottle, plus small bites.
- Books on Tap, Sunday, October 25, 3 to 5 p.m. Alexandria Nicole Cellars hosts this free reader discussion in the Library Hidden Door Room at its Prosser tasting room, 2880 Lee Road. October's theme is "I'm not scared, you're scared," and the book is "8114" by Joshua Hull. Wine specials and small plates are available, and Alexandria Nicole asks guests to RSVP.
- Late-month activity at the Walter Clore Center. The Clore Center's calendar shows an event on October 16 and Cascadia Platinum Awards judging October 25–30. The center notes that some listings are private or ticketed.
The Record-Bulletin's roundup also points Prosser readers toward fall events a short drive away. Benton City has the Wolfies Pumpkins Fall Festival on Fridays through Sundays all month, plus live music at Hedges Family Estate on October 17. In Prosser itself, the rest of October runs on Wednesday happy hours, a book club behind a hidden library door and a tasting room that now serves lunch every day.
If the October harvest has you thinking about land in the Yakima Valley, from a few rows of vines to an acreage property near Wine Country Road, our team at Coldwell Banker Cascade can walk you through what's out there. Connect with a local expert today.
