© 2024 Boise State Public Radio
NPR in Idaho
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Apple's latest iOS (17.4) is preventing our livestreams from playing. We suggest you download the free Boise State Public Radio app & stream us there while we work to troubleshoot the issue.
Idaho dairy farmers produce more milk and cheese than almost any state in the nation. Idaho is ranked third behind California and Wisconsin.

Polar Express For Grown-Ups: Washington Wine Shipments Frantic Before Holidays

Jim Kleist runs the west coast for a large wine and produce shipping company called RailEx. The Wallula, Washington, wine facility is as big as 11 football fields under one roof.
Anna King
/
Northwest News Network
Jim Kleist runs the west coast for a large wine and produce shipping company called RailEx. The Wallula, Washington, wine facility is as big as 11 football fields under one roof.

For the Northwest wine industry this is crunch time. A massive rail and trucking facility in southeast Washington is pushing its final shipments out to arrive on store shelves before the New Year.

Jim Kleist runs the west coast for a large shipping company called RailEx. The company has nearly filled its new cellar-temperature wine warehouse that spans about 11 football fields under one roof outside of the Tri-Cities.

“And right now the wine warehouse is borderline crazy,” Kleist said.

This time of year about 45 semi trucks depart this facility on the daily. They ship wine to every corner of the U.S. There’s even a swift, direct train to the East Coast.

The company ships about 50 percent more wine than usual this time of year.

Copyright 2021 Northwest News Network. To see more, visit Northwest News Network.

Anna King calls Richland, Washington home and loves unearthing great stories about people in the Northwest. She reports for the Northwest News Network from a studio at Washington State University, Triââ
Anna King
Anna King calls Richland, Washington home and loves unearthing great stories about people in the Northwest. She reports for the Northwest News Network from a studio at Washington State University, Tri-Cities. She covers the Mid-Columbia region, from nuclear reactors to Mexican rodeos.

You make stories like this possible.

The biggest portion of Boise State Public Radio's funding comes from readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information.

Your donation today helps make our local reporting free for our entire community.