Courtesy of Tetherow Resort
Sunrise on the golf course at Tetherow Resort
The central part of the state, including Bend, Redmond, and the Cascades, has all the outdoor adventure, dining, and craft beer opportunities youâre expecting from Oregon. (And a lot more sunshine!) Sunset Staff in Partnership with Visit Central Oregon – May 10, 2021 | Updated May 11, 2021
Central Oregon is the stuff of our Pacific Northwest Dreams. With the beyond-bucolic river town Bend offering all the urban amenities (craft beverages! open air concerts! local and global culinary gems!); quaint Redmond increasingly blending cowboy and cool; and a wealth of outdoor activities for hikers, bikers, golfers, and more set against the backdrop of the stunning Cascade mountain range, the region is at the top of our return-to-travel bucket list. Weâve curated a 4-step menu of options to help you design your very own Central Oregon getaway.
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Oregon has made a name for itself with Pinot Noir. These high-quality wines invite comparison to Burgundy rather often, since Oregon’s cool climate is perfect for fussy Pinot Noir. These versatile wines range from light and fruity to serious and ageworthy. Rosé of Pinot Noir and fascinating white Pinot Noirs are represented here as well.
While pricey versions abound, we selected 10 beautiful and fun wines that can all be found for less than $30.
Sun Break 2018 Marie-Paule Cortell-Rose Vineyard Pinot Noir (Eola-Amity Hills); $29, 93 points. This cuvée was half fermented with whole clusters. It’s a precise, focused wine the blackberry and black cherry fruit has a gentle squirt of lemony acidity. It’s lively and clean, with no sulfites added, and a lovely showcase for this outstanding vineyard.
Q&A: Dick Erath
Oregon Pinot Pioneer
Former engineer Dick Erath was first inspired to pursue winemaking in 1965 following an early garage experiment. After completing coursework at University of California, Davis, in 1968, Erath moved his family to the Willamette Valley. An old logger’s cabin on 49 acres would serve as home – and impromptu winery for many years. The following spring, he planted 23 varieties in the Dundee Hills, including Pinot Noir. By 1972, Erath had produced his first commercial wine of 216 cases at Knudsen Vineyard. Intrigued with French varieties, he soon became instrumental in importing French clones to Oregon. In 2006, he sold the winery and brand to Chateau Ste. Michelle. He now lives in Vancouver, Washington, with his wife, author C.J. David Erath. The Erath Family Foundation continues its contributions to the industry.
Boone s Wine and Spirits
Boone’s exclusive Pina Collaba is a collaboration with the Glenwood Brew Pub.
Special to the Daily
This week, I’m going to take you back to where I grew up the Willamette Valley in Oregon. Now famous around the world for its spectacular pinot noirs, 50 years ago there were just a handful of pioneers trying to prove they had found the perfect place to grow this amazing and hard to grow grape. Names like Erath, Ponzi, Sokol Blosser and Adelsheim were some of the first to plant pinot noir, pinot gris, chardonnay and riesling. From just a few wineries in the 1970s, there are now over 700 producing some of the most incredible wines in the world from more than 70 different varietals. The two I’ll talk about today are Van Duzer Vineyards and Ken Wright Vineyards.
Newberg, Ore. (April 19, 2021) Nicolas-Jay, an Oregon partnership between Jean-Nicolas Méo of Burgundy’s Méo-Camuzet and visionary music entrepreneur Jay Boberg, announces the opening of a new winery and tasting room at 11905 NE Dudley Road in Newberg, Oregon. The tasting room is open to the public by appointment only, with a welcoming hospitality program centered around Burgundian winemaking on Willamette Valley soil.
Tucked in a natural amphitheater in the northern reaches of the Dundee Hills AVA, Nicolas-Jay’s new winery and tasting room is surrounded by Douglas firs and Oregon white oaks. The winery lies at the base of an open slope, the current and future site of their estate vineyard. The 53 acres were once a Longhorn cattle farm, and the converted barn now houses a winery, two temperature-controlled cellars, a tasting room, and a tasting deck offering 300-degree views of the location.