Highway 18 revisited: Uncovering Yamhill County’s hidden wine treasures

The task: reveal a couple of of my favourite “secret spots” alongside a stretch of highway that meanders via wine nation on its solution to the Oregon coast. I’m wagering that even locals touring Freeway 18 with nice frequency could have missed a couple of of those Yamhill County gems.

Remy Wines

Each epic wine journey ought to start with glowing wine, so let’s begin with one in every of Oregon’s best-kept secrets and techniques. Its title is “Black Coronary heart” Blanc de Noirs, and I can’t get sufficient of its frothy mixture of crimson fruits and citrus. If I ever make a listing of the highest Oregon bubblies, winemaker Remy Drabkin’s “Black Coronary heart” will crack the highest three.

If the “Black Coronary heart” is gone by the point you get to the tasting room, don’t fret, all of winemaker Remy Drabkin’s efforts are price sampling. The tasting room’s entrance porch and the encircling tree grove are glorious spots to get pleasure from your alfresco wine flight.

17495 N.E. McDougall Street, Dayton, remywines.com or 503-864-8777.

Siltstone Wines

Along with being a prime winery supervisor, Joel Myers can be a extremely expert winemaker. A go to to his tasting room on Freeway 18 can be rewarded with an Oregon wine rarity: sauvignon blanc.

Siltstone’s 2018 Owl Ranch Winery Sauvignon Blanc is crisp and full of life, with aromas and flavors of white peaches, melon and the salinity of a contemporary coastal breeze. This tip of the cap to Sancerre is a steal at $15. It’s additionally a comparatively new wine for Myers, so you need to be capable of discover a bottle.

12251 S.E. Dayton Bypass, Freeway 18, Dayton, siltstonewines.com or 971-241-9365.

Mac Market

That is one in every of my favourite spots to seize a glass of wine and a chew to eat whereas I’m traversing Yamhill County. It additionally provides me an opportunity to take a look at their small however eclectic wine store. Each time I go to, I uncover a brand new Oregon vineyard I’ve by no means heard of earlier than. My present Mac Market “sizzling suggestions” embody something made by Ricochet Wine Co. or Landmass Wines.

With its group vibe and native distributors, Mac Market is a simple place to kill a couple of hours on a lazy summer season afternoon.

9 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1140 N.E. Alpine Ave., McMinnville, macmkt.com or 503-687-3606.

The Marigny

This industrial-looking enclave on the outskirts of McMinnville mixes rock and roll angle with the type of minimalist winemaking people name “pure.”

The wines made listed below are similar to Bob Dylan, the man I punned for this story’s headline: unfined, unfiltered and electrical. Folks ought to go there simply to purchase proprietor/winemaker Andy Younger’s newly launched pinot noir rosé, which sells for $25. Every sip is sort of a mouthful of cherry shaved ice on a sizzling day.

In honor of Dylan, I requested Younger, a drummer who as soon as toured the world, a query that will have made the late James Lipton cringe: in case your vineyard was a Bob Dylan music, which one would it not be? With out lacking a beat, Younger chosen “Urgent On” from Dylan’s “Saved” album. “Hokey wine metaphor apart, it’s a badass music from an underappreciated epoch in his profession,” Younger mentioned.

1722 S.W. Freeway 18, Suite C, McMinnville, themarigny.com or friend@themarigny.com.

Coleman Vineyards

If you’re a fan of dessert wines, head straight to the Coast Vary foothills west of McMinnville till you discover the Coleman Vineyards’ tasting room. It’s one probably the most scenic drives within the valley, and a 375 ml. bottle of candy magic awaits on the finish of your journey.

Whereas dessert wines aren’t usually my factor, I’m powerless within the presence of Coleman’s 2015 Glacial Rock Vin Glace Pinot Gris. Serve it with Rogue Creamery’s Oregon Blue cheese, and inform me this isn’t the perfect $15 you’ve spent on a bottle of wine this yr.

22734 S.W. Latham Street, McMinnville, colemanwine.com or 503-437-6071.

J Wrigley Vineyards

In the event you journey far sufficient up Sheridan’s Cherry Hill, a tough gravel highway will take you right into a forest of oaks. In a couple of minutes, you emerge onto an enormous open meadow with panoramic views that just about induce vertigo. Clouds appear inside simple attain up right here.

At this level, I’m at 600 ft above sea degree, and the highway continues to be headed up. On the peak, I can see the tip of the brilliant crimson J. Wrigley vineyard facility. I really feel like I stumbled into an Andrew Wyeth portray. The view from their tasting room is without doubt one of the greatest in Oregon wine nation.

Seize a glass of pinot noir or rosé and keep awhile. Simply you should definitely thank Freeway 18.

19391 S.W. Cherry Hill Street, Sheridan, wrigleywines.com or 503-857-8287.

— Michael Alberty writes about wine for The Oregonian/OregonLive. He might be reached at malberty0@gmail.com. To learn extra of his protection, go to oregonlive.com/wine.