Phillip and I try to plan vacations around our birthdays, and my trend seems to be getting away to the woods for my birthday in the fall. This past year, we stole away to Portland, Oregon, and spent some time enjoying fall scenery that you can’t find in Southern California.
Some friends of ours that live in the area happen to be avid wine enthusiasts, so we intentionally planned an entire day with them as our tour guides in the Dundee area of the Willamette Valley wine growing region.
We had the pleasure of experiencing special tastings, courtesy of some of their memberships, at a couple different venues. With a full agenda, we managed to hit up Argyle, Fairsing, Lenné Estate, Dobbes Family Estate, and even stopping at the Dundee Bistro in between. Perhaps the best part of the day was sitting at Fairsing in their Adirondack chairs, looking over the view.
During our second day in Portland, we did a lot of exploring downtown, including a long time at the Saturday Farmer’s Market, even though it was a Sunday! The weather was clear and cold, but there were plenty of local artists, artisans, food, and drinks. I’ve never been at a farmer’s market where you could get wine and beer, but we were able to partake in both while we shopped!
A must see on my list is the Deschutes Brewery. After a long day in cold weather, the pub style food was warm and filling, and the beer choices stout (literally). We love sharing flights to try all the brewery’s options in person, even if we’re familiar with the commercially popular distributed styles. However, their Black Butte Porter is absolutely amazing, so we picked up a reserve bottle while we were there.
