Where to Wine Taste in the Willamette Valley

Oregon’s most celebrated wine region offers stunning scenery, well balanced wines and plenty of small town charm.

When my husband and I visit our families in Portland, Oregon, we always try to escape for a day to the Willamette Valley. As you drive along the windy country roads leading to the wine region, it feels like you’re going back in time. The suburbs give way to gently rolling hills dotted with silos, slightly leaning barns and of course wineries. The climate and the cold weather Pinot Noirs and steely Chardonnays remind us of our favorite wine region Burgundy but it has its own identity. Small towns like Carlton, Dundee and Newberg still offer locally-owned bakeries, bookstores and markets, giving you a slice of Americana to go alongside the region’s elegant wines.

These are my favorite wineries to visit in the Willamette Valley:

Soter Vineyards

Soter Vineyard’s dreamy hilltop tasting room is where you’re most likely to find the cool kids from Portland. Reminiscent of a modern farmhouse, the lofty space has an open kitchen (where the winery’s chef makes snacks like focaccia bread for purchase and small bites to pair with wine) and large glass doors that open onto a patio. Staff typically greet you at the door with a glass of the winery’s excellent rosé before escorting you to your tasting. It might be located in the main building, on the terrace or just down the hill at a small cabin with impressive views of the valley.

Classic tastings cost $30 a person while the Provisions Tasting including food and wine pairings is $100. All tastings at Soter should be booked in advance. When you’re looking for Soter, follow the signs for Mineral Springs Ranch. 10880 NE Mineral Springs Rd., Carlton OR., 97111, 503-662-5600

Beaux Frères

I love the wines produced by Beaux Frères. Elegant and nuanced, they remind my husband and I of red Burgundy, but they also reflect the Willamette Valley’s unique terroir. I love the savory and complex Hyland Vineyard Pinot Noir made with grapes from some of the valley’s oldest vines. It’s possible to visit by appointment. Private vineyard tours and tastings cost $75 while a classic wine tasting of four current releases is $25. The tasting room feels like a real working winery. You’ll probably see the owner’s dogs roaming around and staff hard at work. Note that bottles here are pricey, but these are ones you’ll want to hold on to. 15155 NE North Valley Road, Newberg, OR 97132, 503-537-1137

Patricia Green

Just down the road from Beaux Frères, Patricia Green produces a wide variety of Pinot Noir from the mineral and earthy 2016 Estate Vineyard Old Vine Pinot Noir to raspberry and rose petal laden 2016 Freedom Hill Vineyard, Pommard Clone Pinot. The tasting room is humble, but with more individual bottlings of Pinot then any other winery in America, it’s an excellent place to start figuring what you do and don’t like. Tastings are offered by appointment only and cost $35 a person. 15225 NE North Valley Road, Newberg, OR 97132, 503-554-0821

Penner-Ash Wine Cellars

Penner-Ash Wine Cellars offers excellent wines and an impressive rustic yet modern winery nestled into a hillside. Designed by WaterLeaf Architecture, the winery celebrates the Northwest with local, natural materials and clean, simple lines. Wrap-around windows reveal views of both Mount Hood and Mount Jefferson on a clear day. Visitors enter the winery through handcrafted doors that lead to a large tasting room on the top floor.

The tasting room is open seven days a week from 11am-5pm. Reservations are only required for parties of six or more. The Penner-Ash flight ($25) includes five current release wines (waved with the purchase of a Single Vineyard Designate Pinot Noir or equivalent) while the Seated Tasting ($50) includes a table reservation and a curated flight of Penner-Ash wines. Penner-Ash allows picnics in its outdoor spaces. 15771 NE Ribbon Ridge Rd., Newberg, OR 97132, 503-554-5545

Domaine Drouhin

Perhaps no other Willamette Valley winery has such deep ties to Burgundy as Domaine Drouhin, a wine estate near Dundee. Joseph Drouhin founded a winery in the hallowed French wine region in the 1880s. A century later his descendants purchased land in the Dundee Hills in the late 1980s recognizing the valley’s immense potential. The four Drouhin siblings still own and operate both wineries including fourth-generation winemaker Véronique Drouhin-Boss, Vineyards Manager Philippe Drouhin, US Ambassador Laurent Drouhin and President of the Company Frédéric Drouhin. Véronique employs biodynamic and organic winemaking practices to create her elegant Burgundian-style Oregon wines.

The tasting room is open daily from 11am-4pm. Reservations are not required. 6750 NE Breyman Orchards Rd., Dayton, OR 97114, 503-864-2700

Where to Eat

Dundee Bistro

The Dundee Bistro is our go-to lunch spot in the Willamette Valley. It serves seasonal bistro fare (think hand cut fries with truffle oil, duck confit salad with delicata squash and a grass-fed hamburger with heirloom tomatoes) in a casually elegant space in the heart of Dundee. If you visit during the summer, make sure to reserve a spot on the patio. 100-A SW Seventh Street, Dundee, OR 97115, 503-554-1650

Red Hills Market

Just across the street from the Dundee Bistro, Red Hills Market is a reliable breakfast or lunch option. The market serves espresso and pastries like gooey cinnamon rolls in the morning and wood-fired pizzas and sandwiches for lunch. It’s also a good spot to pick up picnic provisions and local wines to take home. 155 SW 7th St., Dundee OR 97115, 971-832-8414

Thistle

Once named Restaurant of the Year by the Oregonian, Thistle has given foodies a real reason to venture out to the Willamette Valley. The restaurant sources the majority of its ingredients from within 30 miles for its strictly seasonal menu that might include duckling with black kale, celery root and bakery in spring and beef cheek with roots, black truffle and red wine in fall. The intimate restaurant seats just twenty people, so plan on arriving early or waiting for a table. 228 NE Evans. St, McMinnville, OR 97128, 503-472-9623

Carlton Bakery

The European-inspired Carlton Bakery churns outside excellent bread, pastries and sandwiches every day but Monday. Try the red wine-infused ciabatta, the almond croissant piled with almond slivers or the BLT on freshly baked baguette. 305 W Main St., Carlton, OR 97111, 503-852-6687

Where to Sleep

The Allison Inn & Spa

The Allison Inn & Spa is the most luxurious hotel option in the Willamette Valley. Each of the 77 guest rooms and 8 suites offers a balcony or terrace, gas fireplace and a spa-like bathroom. For even more pampering, guests can head to the full-service spa to take a dip in the indoor swimming pool and to indulge in treatments inspired by the valley itself like a honey and wine mask facial and a hydrating body massage that includes a crushed grape seed scrub. 2525 Allison Lane, Newberg, OR, 97132, 503-554-2525

Silo Suites Bed & Breakfast

Located on a working farm, the charming Silo Suites Bed and Breakfast offers accommodations in three converted grain silos. The five wine-themed suites, each with their own sitting area, have jacuzzi tubs, high thread count sheets and heated floors. One of the biggest draws is the delicious breakfast that includes eggs from the farm’s hens and homemade pastries. 10501 NE Abbey Road, Carlton, OR 97111, 503-687-3100

3rd Street Flats

These uniquely decorated apartments offer a slightly more cosmopolitan experience in downtown McMinnville. The 3rd Street Flat’s 11 apartment are located in two buildings: the 19th century McMinnville Bank (219 NE Cowls, McMinnville, OR 97128, 503-857-6248) and the Odd Fellows Lodge (555 NE Third St., McMinnville, OR 97128) built for an international fraternal society in 1909. Each flat sports its own look and feel from the Parisian inspired Pied-à-Terre to the mid-century style Aquarius. McMinnville is home to independent wineries, craft breweries and restaurants including Nick’s Italian Cafe, Bistro Maison and the Spanish tapas restaurant La Rambla.

Have any favorite wineries in the Willamette Valley? Let me know in the comments below.

Planning to visit Portland? Check out my top ten favorite things to do in the city here.