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Oregon
Wine Adventure
August
10-14, 2008
Price: $1900 per
person
Oregon is not unknown in the wine world. It
is the fourth-largest wine producing state in the US, has
the third most wineries of any state, and has won many awards,
especially for its reknowned Pinot Noirs.
However, Oregon is still in its infancy as far as wine tourism.
And that makes our tour in Oregon special.
We spend five days in Oregon, visiting wine regions ranging
from Eugene to the northern Willamette Valley to the Hood
River appellation. This is a Multisport Tour and we visit
the wine regions by walking, bicycling, and canoeing. Most
of these activities are not currently organized or available
in the Oregon wine country outside our tour. We have created
unique vineyard walks, arranged a canoe trip on the Willamette
River with a stop at a local winery, and planned a bike route
through the Hood River region running down the lower slopes
of Mount Hood.
And Oregon's wine country is unique. It is spread over thousands
of acres and dominated by small, family-run wineries. Each
owner/vintner we meet has a great story and we will hear many
of them as we try the local Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot
Gris, and Riesling wines. You will be in the vanguard of active
wine tourism if you join us in Oregon next year.
Itinerary
Day 1: We meet you in the afternoon at the
Eugene airport, allowing you to fly in that day. We shuttle
immediately to Iris Hill Estates, where we meet owner Richard
Boyles for an introduction to the area and a walk on his land.
Richard takes us to the border with famed King Estate, where
we continue the walk to the winery's production area for a
tour, tasting, and dinner.
Day 2: We depart in the morning for Willamette Valley Vineyards,
one of the largest and most successful in Oregon. After a
private tour and barrel tasting, we transfer to the little-known
Eola Hills winery area where we have set up a unique, three-winery
walk through the vineyards. Choose how many and which wines
to taste as you enjoy the exercise between winery visits!
Wineries include Bethel Heights, Cristom Wines, and St. Innocent.
Afterward, we drive to the Phoenix Grand Hotel in Salem, our
home for the next two nights.
Day 3: Today is canoeing! We shuttle to the Willamette river
and jump in our canoes, heading downstream to the Willamette
Farms winery for a tasting and lunch. The winery is right
on the banks of the river and has its own dock. After lunch,
we shuttle to the heart of the upper Willamette wine area,
Dundee Hills, and to Red Ridge Farms herb garden and nursey.
We then walk with owner Alison Sokol-Blosser or one of the
winery managers through area vineyards to Sokol Blosser Winery,
with a separate wine tasting at each varietal planting. Dinner
that evening is at the impressive Carlton Winemakers Studio.
Day 4: In the morning we drive to the Hood River Valley,
with a stop en route at the base of Mount Hood and lunch on
your own in the cute town of Hood River. We take a downhill
cruise on bikes through the agricultural region, starting
at Wy'East Vineyards and with a longer option on a beautiful
paved path along the Columbia River. That evening, we have
a private tasting at the Cathedral Ridge Winery, known for
its winemaker Michael Sebastiani and voted Winery of the Year
by Wine Press Northwest, before heading to downtown Hood River
for our farewell dinner.
Day 5: On our final morning we depart Hood River for a short
walk to Multnomah Falls before continuing on to Portland Airport
and our departure.
Email
or call 845.485.7221 for more information and to reserve your
space
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