Welcome to Rio Vista Wines, the winery on the River. Rio Vista is a hidden jewel on the banks of the sparkling Columbia River and the only winery in the Chelan area directly on the water that you can drive to, boat to, or FLY to! With so many means of transportation, there is no excuse not to spend your day on our sandy beach with a glass of our fabulous estate wine in your hand.

Winemaker, John Little, with help from his wife Jan, and his son John, are at the reins in all phases of the grape-growing and wine-making process.

John grew up on a farm in Port Angeles, WA, under the shadow of Hurricane Ridge. He spent his time milking cows (when he wasn’t sneaking off to do a little fishing in the creeks near the farm.) He was, however, exposed to wine at a young age and enjoyed a sip or two of his grandpa’s homemade fruit wine on holidays.

John graduated from Central Washington University and taught school in Seattle for 9 years. But the big city was not where his heart lay. He realized that farming was the profession that held the most interest for him so he and Jan and their 4 kids moved to Eastern Washington where they purchased an apple orchard which he farmed for 10 years. During this time he also began experimenting with winemaking.

After the orchard, John worked as a head carpenter at Wenatchee Valley College and retired in 2004. Jan retired from teaching at the same time. They then moved full time to Rio Vista and became serious winemakers. John Jr. graduated from the viticulture program at Walla Walla community college in 2014 and has since moved home and is working as equally hard alongside his dad to make some of the best wine in the Lake Chelan/Columbia region. John is a believer that good wine is made in the vineyard and the wine’s ultimate potential comes from the winemaker’s skills and practices in the field. He does it all, from pruning to winemaking and making all the important decisions that go with it.