Thanksgiving weekend is a prime tour time for wine fans. Many wineries only open twice a year and this is one of those times. Now what? First of all, I can tell you, do not plan to get a group of 20 or more together and hire a tour company (okay, I own one of those so I am being honest here.) Large groups may overwhelm some wineries open on this weekend. It is better to show up in smaller groups….ten or less (with this number you can still hire a tour company to drive you). Many wineries, especially in Yamhill County, will see 500+ visitors per day on this weekend. It’s crazy!
On this weekend, the wineries pull out all the stops. You will find stellar wines available for purchase, perhaps barrel samples and wonderful foods. Wineries will be charging tasting fees on this weekend (even those who normally do not). So make sure to stop by the ATM before you head out in the morning. The tasting fee will cover some of the wineries costs. They are paying for the food, the wines they pour as samples, the extra staff for the weekend as well as glassware. That means, when you see a $15-20 tasting fee for the day, consider the wines you are tasting and the cost of the day. Some will even refund all or a portion of your tasting fee with a case purchase. Some wineries include a glass in their fee that you can take home. Others will not. Please be sure to check this as well. There are few things worse than having to buy a glass you do not need or to take one you were not supposed to take. Archery Summit Beaux Freres Belle Pente Bergstrom Chehalem Domaine Drouhin Oregon Domaine
Serene Eyrie Ken Wright Cellars Patricia Green Cellars Shea Wine Cellars (at Adelsheim) Sineann Westry
Wine Company There are many other wineries open that weekend statewide. My best advice on finding out all of the details….get your hands on a copy of the Oregonian’s Fooday. They have a wine issue that should be out this week or next. It will outline so many wineries in it that you head will spin faster than Linda Blair’s did in the Exorcist! A reminder….please be responsible and have a designated driver. This is one big weekend, it is dark by the time you head home and the weather can be dicey, so please be safe! Once you have returned home and have the time to collect your thoughts, I would love to hear about your day….you may even find yourself in a future article. You can email me at PDXWineauxs@aol.com. Happy
Thanksgiving! Enjoy! |
Adventures
in Wine Archive
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The turkey has been placed in the fridge. The guests
have gone home. You have three days off. What on earth will you do? Shop
at the mall? No way! Eat leftovers for lunch and dinner? No way! Visit
local wineries? Oh yea, baby! 
The first thing that I will
say, as far as actually getting to the wineries, is to make sure
you have found out what their hours of operation are. Hours vary widely.
Some are open from 9-3. Some are 10-3. Some are noon to 5. Please
check
times so that you do not miss a winery that you really want to
visit. Going back to a previous article, that does not mean showing up
at 3:05
at a winery that closed at 3PM. If they opened at 9AM, it means
that their staff has been there since 7AM, by 3PM they have put in a
full
day and, well, they told you in their advertising that they closed
at 3:00. 
Okay, so you may be asking, where should we go?
Hmm, great question! On this particular weekend you have the opportunity
to visit wineries
that are not normally open to the public. Here is a list of just
a few
that I would personally recommend. And hey, you can purchase most
of these wines year round right here at Avalon! 
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