An Oregon Wine Tasting and the Lure of a New Road

Posted by Tom Wark on Jan 11, 2019

This is the very first wine event I plan to attend upon becoming an official Citizen of Oregon:

SIP: McMinnville Food & Wine Classic

Seventy-Five Oregon wineries as well as local brewers, distillers, chefs and bakers. What’s not to like. Plus, it’s in McMinnville.

I’ve tried a large number of Oregon wines over the years and, like most, am drawn to the diverse collection of Pinot Noirs. But I have a great deal of catching up to do (poor me). In the first place, I’m anxious to learn more about the terroirs and appellations of the Willamette Valley as construed through Pinot Noir. I feel like this is my first task before moving on to other varieties. It’s a matter of focus and I want to try to be thorough.

The McMinnville Food & Wine Classic should be a good first start. Moreover, it’s an excuse to head over to McMinnville and take a seat at Nick’s, not to mention a number of other eateries and drinkeries in town. I’m not suggesting that our new home of Salem is without its culinary attractions. I’m just saying…Nicks!

Kathy and I looked long and hard to find just the right home in McMinnville. Two years of looking in fact. But the right home at the right house just never presented itself and when the new Salem house presented ourselves it felt exactly right in every respect. So, while we forgo the wonderful restaurants and beautiful parks and smaller town of McMinnville, we feel like we’ve found home.

The wineries set to pour at the SIP tasting are a great blend of established, newish, larger and smaller Oregon producers. While it will be great to revisit the Beaux Freres, Archery Summits, Torii Mors and Raptor Ridges, I’m also looking forward to introducing myself to a few I want to become better acquainted with such as Dobbs Family, Domaine Roy, and Chris James, just to name a few of those wineries that will be on hand.

The SIP event happens over the course of three days, March 8, 9 and 10. It happens at the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum. Entrance is a bargain: $16 to $28 depending on the day you go. Heck, go all three days for a mere $44. TICKETS Are Here.

Truth be told, I feel like a kid in a candy store. The move from Napa to the Willamette Valley happening for us at the end of this month opens up so many possibilities. But it’s the newness, the adventure of discovery and the surprises that await that get me excited. Is there anything better than a country road you’ve never been down staring you in the face?