Bumper Crop Yamhill Valley Vineyards, Dining Are Bountiful

Oregon’s Yamhill Valley wine country, just south of Portland, is a year-round getaway that takes on added sparkle this time of year. The grape harvest and fruit crush are under way.

About 30 vineyards dot the countryside, from Rex Hill Vineyards in Newberg - with its terraced gardens, hot air balloon rides, antiques, art and sculpture - to mom-and-pop vineyards with just a tiny tasting room near the orchard.

The common thread is high-quality wines at affordable prices. There’s also the opportunity to pick up fine wines so limited in production they never make it out of Oregon.

During the weekend of Nov. 29-Dec. 1, more than two dozen Yamhill County wineries will welcome visitors to the 15th annual Wine Country Thanksgiving. Several of these northwest Oregon wineries are rarely open to the public.

Although an increasing stream of visitors wends its way through this valley that is fast acquiring a reputation akin to Napa Valley’s, the area retains a sense of secluded intimacy. Here in Yamhill, as in nearby Portland, a treasure trove of fine food, wine and lodging surprises many visitors.

Paley’s Place owners Kimberly and Vitaly Paley, who opened their 32-seat Portland restaurant last year, credit the area’s high-quality meats, vegetables, nuts, cheeses, fruits, and “wines akin to the French” for the area’s gastronomic boom.

Having lived and worked for 10 months near Limoges in France, the Paleys find Portland far more “European” than their former Greenwich Village home in New York City.

Chef Vitaly, trained in the French Culinary Institute in New York, lists the two-star Michelin restaurant Au Moulin de la Gorce in his resume, as well as Manhattan’s acclaimed Union Square Cafe, Remi and Chanterelle. Paley’s focuses on Pacific Northwest seasonal cuisine, featuring local bounty at “sane prices.”

In the forefront of the city’s culinary renaissance, Caprial Pence and her husband John, both graduates of the Culinary Institute of America, came to town four years ago.

The 1990 recipient of the James Beard Award as best Northwest chef, Caprial left Fullers in Seattle to return home to run the Westmoreland Bistro & Wine. Its blackboard menu announces uptown choices at downtown prices. Bottled wines are sold at retail, with just a $2 corkage fee added.

Lodging in Portland includes the stately 1906 Freiwald house, opened three years ago as The Lion and The Rose Bed and Breakfast. Convenient to Lloyd’s Center, the house is a restored Queen Anne-style mansion with such architectural elements as medieval oriel (bay) windows.

Equally convenient is The Partridge Farm Bed and Breakfast Inn south of the Rex Hills winery in Newberg. Although just off bustling Oregon 99W, the elegantly remodeled farmhouse looks out on an expansive lawn, gardens - and horses - that give it an off-in-the-country feeling.

A little further along 99W, the Red Hills Cafe, frequently cited for culinary excellence, is housed in a 1906 craftsman bungalow. Here, owner-chefs Nancy and Richard Gehrts offer a provincial menu that changes every two weeks, based on the availability of local ingredients - like the fresh fish offered daily. Full meals served mid-day begin at $6.

At nearby Duck Pond Cellars in Dundee, the Fries family just celebrated the winery’s third anniversary, although the vineyards were planted in 1986. The tasting room includes a self-serve delicatessen.

Take time for a drive into Dundee’s hills to visit Torii Mor’s Japanese-style tasting room and gardens. (From 99W, turn on Ninth Avenue to Fairview Drive.) Owner Dr. Donald Olson agrees with the Wall Street Journal’s assessment of Dundee as the world’s best place to produce pinot noir.

Nearby Sokol Blosser hosts concerts, offers walk-through showcase vineyards, a panoramic view and a tasting room with a wide selection of gifts and gourmet items.

Across the road, Laube Orchards, open year-round, sells fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts and gifts. Sweeping vistas (and Arabian horses you can pet) also await those who make Wine Country Farm Cellars in Dayton their next stop. Their Wine Country Inn is a restored 1910 home turned bed-and-breakfast.

Another wayside oasis, the Trappist Abbey in Lafayette, offers delectable fruit cakes and biscotti for sale, as well as walking trails and a retreat guest house. On your way south, check out Mattey House bed and breakfast, a lovely 1892 Queen Anne Victorian, complete with front-yard vineyard.

No tour of the wine country would be complete without visiting McMinnville, unofficial hub of the Yamhill Valley and well on the way to becoming a destination in its own right.

Nick’s Italian Cafe, a consistent champion on “best restaurant” lists, opened in McMinnville 19 years ago, when there were only five local wineries. It serves a fixed-price, five-course meal in a casual cafe setting.

Piontek Bakery and Cafe, also on Third Street, bakes the hearty loaves served at Nick’s. Few leave without an armful of goodies to take home. Their cafe also offers bagels, soup, espresso and sandwiches.

Look for Cafe Azul beneath an orange awning, a little way down the same block. It was acclaimed “best new restaurant in Oregon” last year and features fresh local ingredients in unusual dishes from southern Mexico and Yucatan. Trained by Mexican food authority Diana Kennedy, Chef Claire Archibald left California (Square One and Zuni Cafe in San Francisco and Chez Panisse in Berkeley) to return home and open Cafe Azul with sister Shawna.

For lodging, McMinnville’s Steiger Haus is hard to beat. The home’s wrap-around deck looks out on gardens below, giving it a light, airy feeling in all seasons.

Downtown, the European style Golden Valley Brewery and Pub produces fine hand-crafted beers and a menu that ranges from simple pub fare to the more sophisticated. The wine list includes their own pinot noir, as well other local offerings. Live rhythm and blues every Friday and Saturday evenings, hand-tossed pizza and brewery tours upon request also draw folks here.

Five blocks from downtown in the 1928 Williams House, which just opened as a bed and breakfast last December, the original mahogany woodwork still gleams throughout.

Southwest of McMinnville on state route 18, the Oregon Wine Tasting Room offers an array of Oregon wines that includes many from wineries not usually open to the public. Adjoining it, the Lawrence Gallery, Oregon’s oldest and largest fine arts gallery, features the Northwest’s only outdoor sculpture garden. From there, you can pause to nourish body and soul on heavenly fudge and truffles at the cloistered Brigittine Monastery in Amity.

Nearby, Amity Vineyards, local vintner pioneers, produce award-winning wines, such as its flagship pinot noir. Amity also hosts a Solstice Festival each June, the oldest winery-sponsored event in the state. Just north, the German wine-steuber-style tasting room of Kristin Hill Winery looks out on a 130-yearold Wych elm tree.

On the way back to Portland, turn off 99W to Oregon 240, heading west to see some of the wine country’s most spectacular panoramas. At Yamhill, meander north along Oregon 47 to Gaston. There, you’ll find Elk Cove, cited for the “pure beauty of its setting,” and Kramer’s, which has a picnic area, free beverage for designated drivers and a playground for children.

If you’re planning ahead, “Match Made in Heaven,” a celebration of Oregon food and wine, kicks off each year’s festivities at most Yamhill wineries on Memorial Day weekend, another popular time to visit.

Portland’s Rose Festival, in early June, is an added draw, with a Grand Floral Parade that is the crown jewel of more than 80 Festival events. The International Rose Test Gardens bloom then in a tapestry of pinks, whites, reds, apricots and yellows against the panoramic backdrop of the city and Mount Hood.

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: IF YOU GO Getting there: Take Interstate 90 west to U.S. 395 south, continuing on I-82 to I-84 west to Portland. From there, take I-5 south to OR 99W and 18. Lodging: The Lion and The Rose Victorian Bed & Breakfast, 1810 N.E. 15th, Portland. Seven rooms, five with private bath, $85-$120. Convenient to Lloyd’s Center. 1-503-287-9245 or 1-800-955-1647. The Partridge Farm Bed & Breakfast Inn, 4300 E. Portland Road, Newberg. Two suites, one queen guest room, all with private bath, $70-$100. 1-503-538-2050. Wine Country Farm, 6855 Breyman Orchards Road, Dayton. Five rooms, all with private bath, $65-$125. 1-503-864-3446 or 1-800-261-3446. Mattey House, 10221 N.E. Mattey Lane, McMinnville; 1-503-434-5058. Three guest rooms, two with shared bath, one private, $70-$85. Open Feb.-Nov.; closed Dec.-Jan. Steiger Haus, 360 Wilson Street, McMinnville. Five guest rooms, each with private bath, $70-$100. 1-503-472-0821 or 472-0238. Williams House, 809 N.E. Evans, McMinnville. Three guest rooms, each with private bath, $45-$95. 1-800-441-2014 or 1-503-434-9016. Food: Paley’s Place, 1204 N.W. 21st Ave., Portland. Open Tuesday-Saturday from 5:30 p.m. for dinner only. Reservations advised. 1-503-243-2403. Westmoreland Cafe and Bistro, 7015 S.E. Milwaukie Ave., Portland. Open for lunch 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and noon to 3:30 p.m. Saturday. Dinner: 5-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and 5-9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Weekend reservations advised 2-7 days ahead. 1-503-236-6457. Red Hills Cafe, 276 Hwy. 99W, Dundee. Open 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Tuesday-Friday and 5-9 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. 1-503-538-8224. Nick’s Italian Cafe, 521 E. Third Street, McMinnville. Open for dinner Tuesday-Sunday. Reservations encouraged. 1-503-434-4471. Cafe Azul, 313 E. Third Street, McMinnville. Open 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday for lunch; 5-9 p.m. Thursday-Saturday for dinner. Dinner reservations recommended. 1-503-435-1234. Golden Valley Brewery & Pub, 980 East Fourth Street, McMinnville. Open for lunch and dinner, 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m., Monday-Friday; 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday; 2-10 p.m. Sunday. Live Rhythm and Blues Fri. and Sat. 9 p.m.-midnight. 1-503-472-2739. Wineries: The harvest this year is expected to run from late September through October, a great time to visit. At most wineries, a call ahead will insure someone’s there to answer questions when you arrive. Rex Hill, 30835 N. Highway 99W, Newberg. Open daily 11 a.m.-5 p.m. except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas, Feb.-Dec.; for sales only, in Jan. 1-503-538-0666. Duck Pond Cellars, 23145 Oregon 99W, Dundee. Open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily except Easter, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas, New year’s Day. 1-503-538-3199. Sokol Blosser, 5000 Sokol Blosser Lane, Dundee. Open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. 1-503-864-2282 or 1-800-582-6668. Wine Country Farm Cellars, 6855 Breyman Orchards Rd, Dayton. Open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, Memorial weekend through Thanksgiving weekend. Remainder of year, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. weekends.1-503-864-3446 or 1-800-261-3446. Torii Mor, 18325 N.E. Fairview Drive, Dundee. Open noon-5 p.m. weekends, May-Nov., holidays and by appointment. Tasting Room: 1-503-538-2279; Winery: 1-503-434-1439 The Oregon Wine Tasting Room, 9 miles SW of McMinnville on Oregon 18. Open daily 11:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. 1-800-WINECLUB or 1-503-843-3787. Amity, 18150 Amity Vineyards Road S.E., Amity. Open noon-5 p.m. daily, March-Dec. 23; noon-5 p.m. weekends, Feb.1-503-835-2362. Kristin Hill, 3330 S.E. Amity Dayton Hwy., Amity, at junction of OR 99W and 233. Open noon-5 p.m. daily, March-Dec; noon-5 p.m. weekends Jan.-Feb. Closed Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Year’s. 1-503-835-0850. Elk Cove, 27751 NW Olson Road, Gaston. Open 11-5 daily. 1-503-985-7760. Kramer, 26830 N.W. Olson Road, Gaston. Open noon-5 p.m. Fri.-Sun., March-Dec. Daily June-Sept. Closed Easter, Jan.-Feb. 1-503-662-4545. Wine Country Thanksgiving: Nov. 29-Dec. 1. Each participating winery sets its own hours, approximately 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call Yamhill County Wineries Association at 1-503-434-5814. Touring/Shopping: Laube Orchards, 18400 N. Hwy. 99W, Dayton. Open daily 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Hazelnuts, walnuts, dried fruit, fresh produce, gourmet items, flower shop. 1-503- 864-2672. Trappist Abbey, Lafayette (Right turn off 99W onto Bridge St. and north 3 miles). Open 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, daily for religious services. Retreats by reservation. 1-503-852-0107. Piontek Bakery and Cafe, 411 E. Third Street, McMinnville. Open 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday. 1-503-434-6256. Lawrence Gallery, 19700 S.W. Hwy. 18, Sheridan; open 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. daily. Paintings, sculpture, ceramics, wood, jewelry and blown glass by Northwest artists. The Brigittine Monks, 23300 Walker Lane, Amity; open Mon.-Sat., 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m.; Sun., 12:30-5:30 p.m. Chapel open daily. 1-503-835-8080.