Spend a 3-Day Weekend In Oregon Wine Country

If you’re new to wine, start with our beginner’s guide to wine tasting—complete with planning tips, etiquette, and ideas for making the most of your time. Consider an outing with a local outfitter (like Black Tie Tours or First Nature Tours) for a guided, behind-the-scenes experience.

In the north Willamette Valley, you'll find nearly 400 wineries—from boutique artisans to expansive estates. For small-batch wines, The Carlton Winemakers Studio provides shared space, equipment, and resources to more than a dozen local winemakers. Just outside Newberg, meanwhile, Adelsheim Vineyard has been crafting award-winning wines since 1971 and hosts a spacious estate that overlooks nearby vineyards.

Farmers across the Willamette Valley produce more than 170 crops each year, many of which show up on dinner plates and in wine glasses at destinations you'll visit this weekend. Consider a stop for fresh fare at U-Pick farms, markets, and restaurants along the Willamette Valley’s farm loops and food trails.

For fresh, seasonal cuisine, treat yourself to a meal at some of our foodie-focused restaurants. The Joel Palmer House Restaurant creates culinary works of art based on sustainable, regional ingredients—primarily wild mushrooms—in the heart of Dayton. In McMinnville, Hayward dishes upscale Northwest fare, crafted with fresh, seasonal ingredients, inside Mac Market. And Newberg's Alpha Bravo showcases a build-your-own-ramen concept with a variety of creative ingredients.

Take Highway 99W south from the northern Willamette Valley for easy access to most of the region’s wineries. Highlights include the sustainably minded Left Coast Estate (residing in the midst of a stately oak grove and pouring popular varietals alongside wood-fired pizzas topped with local ingredients) and Durant Vineyards—which pours estate-grown pinot noir, sparkling wines, rosé, and other popular selections in a laid-back tasting room.

Once in Salem, stop into the ground-breaking Willamette Valley Vineyards—which hosts one of the region’s most beautiful tasting rooms. Afterward, wrap up your day’s wine tour with a tasting flight at the Mexican-American family-owned Cória Estates—whose patio offers sunset views of the Oregon Coast Range to the west.

If you didn’t fill up on pizza at Left Coast Estate, treat yourself to lunch or dinner at laid-back eateries in Salem.

Taproot Lounge and Cafe dishes a wide range of vegetarian- and vegan-friendly pub grub in an upbeat environment, the hip Fork Forty Food Hall brings together a handful of food vendors and an on-site bar for a globetrotting culinary experience, and Happy Bibimbap House serves a variety of fresh, flavorful Korean dishes.

Choose between a pair of hotels in Salem—one a classic overnight stay and the other (as of 2023) a new arrival on the local lodging scene.

The Grand Hotel in Salem sits on the site of a hotel that had welcomed guests since 1870; today, “The Grand” (as it’s most commonly known) hosts upscale rooms and suites within a short walk of several restaurants and nightlife spots in downtown.

Nearby, the recently opened Holman Hotel (pictured) offers a chic experience with a variety of modern touches just a short walk from the banks of the Willamette River.

Start your day with a hearty meal at Word of Mouth Neighborhood Bistro in Salem—dishing classic American breakfast fare (typically with fresh-baked, scratch-made bread, biscuits, and pancakes).

For a light lunch, try the quesadillas crafted with house-made Mexican cheeses at Don Froylan Creamery—or the Latin American-inspired food and drink menu at Xicha Brewing (boasting two locations around Salem).

Today’s winery suggestions are based entirely on your day’s plans:

Heading north? St. Josef's Winery has been growing grapes since 1978 and today hosts an Old World-styled winery—complete outdoor seating next to an on-site pond. (For other ideas, learn more about wineries at the eastern edge of the Willamette Valley and in the foothills of Mount Hood.) In nearby Canby, Oregon City Brewing's Canby Beer Library—housed in a converted library—pairs award-winning craft beer with fare from seven on-site food carts.

Further east, the charming Pudding River Wine Cellars pours its wine in a converted barn that's surrounded by a manicured vineyard.

And if your travels take you south, consider a side trip to the wineries and tasting rooms of the southern Willamette Valley around Eugene. King Estate Winery is the largest biodynamic-certified vineyard in North America (and is among the region’s best biodynamic wineries), while the Oregon Wine LAB is an urban tasting room in Eugene that pours house-made wines and small-batch selections from boutique wineries across the region.

If you’re flying home, learn about Alaska Airlines and its Oregon Wine Flies Free program—which lets you register and check a case of wine for no charge.