slides: A Wine Tasting Itinerary for Memorial Day Weekend

Saturday, May 16, 2015

Carrie Wynkoop, GoLocalPDX Contributor

May is Oregon Wine Month. It’s a chance for us to celebrate Oregon wine, our winemaking community, and the beautiful landscape that produces it all. It’s a month full of special events and activities that comes to a close with the first big wine tasting weekend of the year – Memorial Day weekend.

See Slides Below: A Wine Tasting Itinerary for Memorial Day Weekend

With so many choices, and so many special activities, it can be a little overwhelming to decide where to go. My criteria? Visit wineries that aren’t usually open – and do everything you can to avoid the insane traffic. And to that end, I have just the plan for you!

Washington County has become one of my favorite places to take folks for weekend wine tasting. There are dozens of excellent small wineries to explore. Close in to Portland, rural Washington County is gorgeous and easy to explore without the crowds of Newberg and Dundee.

Here is my ideal itinerary for Memorial Day weekend wine tasting: You’ll start at Blizzard Wines in Hillsboro, just 34 minutes from downtown Portland and 22 minutes from Highway 217 in Beaverton. From there, you’ll visit Dion Vineyards in Cornelius, followed by Beacon Hill and Kramer in Gaston. Total drive time between wineries is just about 47 minutes. Here’s a Google map. View the slideshow below for details. Have fun and drive safe!

Visit Cellar503.com to sign up for more Oregon wine country itineraries.

Carrie Wynkoop is the founder of Cellar 503, a new wine club featuring unique, high quality, affordable wines that represent the full range of great Oregon wine. Cellar 503 is for anyone who loves Oregon wine and wants to explore.

Related Slideshow: A Wine Tasting Itinerary for Memorial Day Weekend

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Blizzard Wines

Get started with Blizzard Wines. Not normally open to the public, they are having a special open house on Memorial Day weekend. Winemaker Dana Blizzard was featured in the Cellar 503 shipment for May (featuring women winemakers) and will be on hand to pour a wide variety of wines including our favorite, Syrah. Get a sneak peek of the plans for their new winery slated to open this fall.

29495 SW Burkhalter Road, Hillsboro, Oregon 97123

Memorial Day Weekend Open House
May 23 and May 24, 2015
11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

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Dion Vineyards

Right up the street is Dion Vineyards. Featured in the Cellar 503 shipment for April (featuring biodynamic, organic and sustainable wines), Dion is totally committed to making the best wine they can from their 30 year old vineyard in the most sustainable way possible. Dion has generally not been open to the public, but they are celebrating the opening of their very first tasting room – head out to join in the festivities. And if you’re very lucky, you’ll grab up a bottle of their amazing Rosé!

33155 Riedweg Road, Cornelius, OR 97113 (Note: most GPS devices show the wrong address for Dion, make sure to type in this address directly.)

Tasting Room Grand Opening
May 23 and 24, 2015
11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

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Beacon Hill

Just a few miles further out in Gaston is the Beacon Hill Vineyard production facility. It looks like a castle in the middle of the fields! At Beacon Hill, you’ll find ten different wineries who are too small to have their own space. Memorial Day weekend will be a special event where all six wineries will be tasting through their wines. Wineries include Cellar 503 partner Wildaire Cellars, as well as Harper Voit, Leah Jorgenson Cellars, Antiquum Farm, Boulay Wines, Toluca Lane, Holmes Gap, Laelaps, Eminent Domaine, and Eisold Smith. So many great wineries all in one place!

22070 NE Ridge Rd Gaston, OR 97119

Memorial Day Weekend Open House
May 23 and May 24, 2015
11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

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Kramer Vineyards

For your last stop, drop by Kramer Vineyards and have a glass of one (or two or three) of their famous sparkling wines. Winemaker Kim Kramer has become known as the “Queen of Oregon Sparkling” – and for good reason! She’s making 8 to 10 sparklings a year, and sparkling makes up 40% of Kramer’s production.

Enjoy live music from 23window and food on their newly remodeled patio high in the Yamhill-Carlton hills.

26830 Northwest Olson Road, Gaston, OR 97119

Memorial Day Weekend Open House
May 23 and May 24, 2015
11 a.m. to 5 p.m.