JENN DIRECTOR KNUDSEN PHOTO

Escape to wine country an easy drive from Portland

By Jenn Director Knudsen

article created on: 2009-02-01T00:00:00

Watch out husbands (and kids): the girls’ night out is morphing into girls’ get-aways. Often to far-flung, sometimes exotic locales. My sister recently invited me on such a vacation, minus the “far-flung” and “exotic” parts. 

A Bend resident, Abby had a small group of girlfriends—all professionals, all moms—wanting to get away, to someplace relatively nearby and—even though this was before the major market meltdown—low-cost.

Would I like to come along? To McMinnville.

A Southwest Portland dweller, I once visited a friend in McMinnville, attending Linfield College. And I’ve driven through a number of times, to wine country, to Lincoln City. But to stay? For vacation?

Even just for a weekend away, the idea at first lacked appeal. Due to my hardly knowing my sister’s good buddies and the venue. 

Until the plan took form and McMinnville would be our gateway to Willamette Valley’s wine country; we’d sleep and fortify on breakfast and dinner in the home of the Wildcats. The bulk of our days together, we’d tipple at numerous, beautiful wineries, chatting up vintners and tasting room smooth talkers, eager to kibbitz with us about their pours.

For my solo drive—bliss—I’d borrowed from the West Slope Library a Sherlock Holmes book on tape and listened intently and with no interruptions during the 45-minute drive southwest.

Turns out, my sister had helped plan a terrific get-away; getting to know five new girlfriends, all unfettered by work or home obligations, really made it a vacation. And imbibing some terrific vinos contributed to the weekend’s success.

In McMinnville, we stayed in the funky McMenamins Hotel Oregon; the first floor is dedicated to predictable pub fare. Hotel accommodations are on the second, third and fourth floors—up a creaky, winding staircase. The fifth floor has a rooftop restaurant and bar with terrific, expansive views of the small town, overlooking its squat buildings.

Each of the hotel’s 42 rooms pays homage á la Sylvia Beach Hotel in Newport to a different personality. 

Abby and I shared the spacious Nic Nicolai, Jr. room, complete with a king-size bed, two windows overlooking the downtown area and odes painted in wavy fashion all over the walls to this eponymous Nicolai (the eldest son of the hotel’s original proprietor and who’d live in this very room in the 1950s).

I couldn’t get over the low price of the room; upon check-in, however, I quickly realized why it was a mere $65 when the hotel manager handed me two keys, one for the room—and another for the bathroom down the hall. Oh well. Girlfriends are worth the inconvenience of dormlike living and drafty 2 a.m. potty breaks. 

(Not all rooms are sans boudoire; you just have to be willing to pay for one.)

With a map of the Willamette Valley’s wineries in hand, we all piled into my sister’s mini-van (vestiges of mom-ness) and took off. We took turns at the wheel, having agreed upon a safe-drinking/safe-driving system while alternately sampling wines throughout the day.

Leaving McMinnville behind, we wound our way through Dayton, Yamhill, Dundee and then Carlton, stopping to sample truly lovely elixirs along the way. 

And enjoy a terrific, fresh lunch at the Dundee Bistro (no reservation needed but it was packed and we had a wait, even at 2 p.m.).

Of note were Dayton’s Domaine Serene  and Visa Hills Vineyard & Winery; Yamhill’s WillaKenzie Estate; Carlton’s EIEIO  tasting room; and across the street, the aptly named The Tasting Room in Carlton.

Despite the looks of ennui from the woman pouring wine in The Tasting Room —it was nearing 5 o’clock and the sun was just beginning to dip in the sky—our very relaxed group spent close to an hour there. Lounging on the bar stools, laughing together, millions of miles from Portland or Bend. 

Having skipped tasting at the last couple wineries and tasting room—I was designated driver for a stretch—I knew it was not the wine making me feel warm and relaxed and taken in as a new friend of these cool, ecclectic women.

It simply was the dedicated time away, with women. Even if only a relatively short distance from home.

I left McMinnville the next morning with more girlfriends than I’d come with. Once in my car, I dove back into the nailbiter of a Sherlock Holmes tale. 

`But only 45 minutes later, I was back home. Very happy to see my husband and my two little girls, who were disappointed I hadn’t brought them bottles of wine. And nostalgic about our successful—and nearby —girls’ get-away. 

Jenn and her family are active members of Congregation Neveh Shalom. Her daughters are learning Hebrew, and Jenn struggles to keep up with them, especially where pronunciation is concerned.

This story made possible by a grant from the Judith and Edwin Cohen Foundation.

Want to go?

McMenamins Hotel Oregon, 310 N.E. Evans St., McMinnville, 888-472-8427; www.mcmenamins.com/index.php?loc=7

Wineries:

Domaine Serene, 6555 N.E. Hilltop Lane, Dayton, 503- 864-4600, ext. 214; www.domaineserene.com

Vista Hills Vineyard & Winery, 6475 Hilltop Lane, Dayton, 503-864-3200; www.vistahillsvineyard.com

WillaKenzie Estate, 19143 N.E. Laughlin Road, Yamhill; 503-662-3280; tastepinot@willakenzie.com

EIEIO, P.O. Box 490, Carlton; 503-852-6733; pinotcarlton@embarqmail.com

The Tasting Room in Carlton, 105 W. Main St., Carlton; 503-852-6733; pinot-noir.com

Eateries

WildWood Café, 319 N. Baker St., McMinnville, 503-435-1454

Bistro Maison, 729 N.W. Third St., McMinnville, 503- 474-1888; bistromaison.com

The Dundee Bistro, corner of 7th Street and Highway 99W, 503-554-1650; www.dundeebistro.com

The Horse Radish, 211 W. Main St., Carlton; 503-852-6656; www.thehorseradish.com