An old thread, but always pertinent . . .

Winter tires in the PNW mean very good in wet and resistant to road debris, which we have a lot of in the winter. We don't ride on ice, so that's not an issue for us.

I have a winter do_not_ride list that consists of tires on which friends, excellent bike handlers all, have gone down on in the wet, when we didn't even notice it was slick. So far:

Marathon Plus
Gatorskins
Vredestein Fortezza and Tricomp

I also have a recommended list of tires which we've tried and liked:

Conti 4000 Black Chili 25c - Very good in wet, fast, cut a little easily, but don't flat too often and are safe.
Schwalbe Durano 25c - Good in wet, more durable than the 4000s, but are a little slower.
Michelin Pro3Race 25c - Good in wet, slightly fragile sidewalls, fast, don't flat too much.

Still testing Zona's recommended ReFuse. New front flatted in 15 miles, but it was glass, so we'll give it a by. Don't know about traction, cutting, etc., yet.