 Michelle and Columbia Winery) were founded.Throughout the rest of the 20th century, the wine world discovered a new aspect of Washington wines with each passing decade – starting with Rieslings and Chardonnays in the 1970s, the Merlot craze of the 1980s and the emergence of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah in the 1990s.Washington has fourteen federally defined American Viticultural Areas with all but one located in Eastern Washington.