Willamette Valley
1I am planning a trip to the Pacific NW in September, and I would be remiss if I didn’t include a visit to Willamette Valley. Never been , and may never go back, so what would you suggests be for wineries to visit? Anne Amie, Marshall Davis, Nysa??? Would love suggestions from this well trusted gang!!!
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I like King Estates.
Spent part of our honeymoon in the Willamette Valley in 2016. Specifically the Chehalem Mountain region. Highly recommend Ponzi, Alloro, Hawks View and for a more intimate experience, Raptor Ridge.
My biggest regret and highest recommendation is making an appointment (they are appointment only) to visit Patricia Green Cellars. In the whir of wedding and honeymoon plans, I neglected to do so.
Chehalem Mountain Wineries
Most WV wineries specialize in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, because they are popular wines and the area is similar in latitude and climate to Burgundy. We are fond of the Eola-Amity Hills AVA, particularly Bethel Heights. For more variety in the lineup, you could try Willamette Valley Vineyards; they are a bigger operation and have tasting rooms all over but the vineyard is just outside Salem. Tip: If you’re going to stock up, many of the small wineries sell through the supermarket chains in Newberg at lower than tasting room prices. It’s been a few years for us, but they used to ship. Costco in the WV also has great selections.
If you are going to be in the neighborhood of Carlton, we recommend the restaurant Cuvee. If you’re near Dayton, and like mushrooms, try Joel Palmer House.
@davirom
Yeah that mushroom thing at the Palmer house is spectacular! In fact going to do that when we go in June
@davirom If you make it to Carlton, you have to go to Ken Wright, who’s tasting room is in an old Railway Depot.
We hit the following places last summer.
Violin. Right in town, did the tasting at his house. A fun and informal experience. Nice wines.
Goodfellow. Also in town. Did the tasting in the barrel room. Wines are solid, but a bit salty we weren’t offered the sparkling.
Sunbreak. Tastings out of Bjornson with spectacular views. In a sea of mom and pop back rooms, this was a fun, touristy option. Also got to see the winemaking operation, which was a treat.
Vincent. Big fan of these wines. I believe he has moved to his own space this year.
Shiba Wichern. Great folks in the middle of nowhere, up a mountain. Love these wines at the price point.
Did not make it to our planned visit at Eyrie or Kelley Fox. Next time.
I should mention that there were zero fees for these tastings, a bit of a throwback. Eyrie and KF do charge.
@hscottk
Our experience in the Chehalem AVA was that the wineries charged for tasting but waived the fee if you bought something. The exception was Ponzi who did not waive the fee. Might have changed since 2016.
@chipgreen Agree that many wineries who charge a tasting fee will waive it with a minimum purchase. Most of the places we visited didn’t have a tasting room per se, hence the lack of tasting fees.
I probably know a lot less about wine than the other people answering but I do live in Eugene, and the ones I end up going to frequently are King Estate (their winery / restaurant building is absolutely beautiful and the views are spectacular) and Sweet Cheeks (smaller, doesn’t have a restaurant as such, but they also have a lovely tasting room with very nice views of the vineyard and valley). The latter makes a dessert wine called Rosy Cheeks that I like a lot, if you like something that sweet. There are also quite a few that have tasting rooms in the 5th street part of downtown Eugene, that whole area has become much more of a destination than it was 15+ years ago when I moved here. I think there are between 15 and 20 more vineyards in the hills outside Eugene that must be worth a look, so I guess I’m just saying don’t overlook the southern Willamette Valley completely.
@blandoon We did both of those last time we visited Eugene – Sweet Cheeks had the great view, but the wines didn’t speak to us. King was much better on the stuff in the bottle (to us).
Longplay, and echo chip’s recommendations on Hawk’s View; it’s beautiful, and Patricia Green
Thanks for the great advice!!! Instead of spending 2 days in the area maybe I should spend 2 weeks!!!
I believe Torii Mor is in the vicinity of Anne Amie.