Why McMinnville, Oregon, is the perfect Willamette Valley getaway
Nicolas-Jay Estate is one of hundreds of wineries near McMinnville, Oregon — Photo courtesy of Andrea Johnson
Wine lovers know Napa Valley and Sonoma, but Willamette Valley is one of the best regions for a wine country getaway. Centering it all is McMinnville, Oregon, the perfect home base for a fantastic Pacific Northwest food and wine adventure.
In 2021, the European Union granted Willamette Valley the coveted Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status, indicating the wine’s quality, reputation, and other characteristics are indisputably linked to its geographic origin. Willamette Valley is only the second American wine region, after Napa, to receive this recognition. Located on the same parallel as Burgundy, elegant pinot noirs and chardonnays are the specialty, along with some of the country’s best champagne method sparkling wines.
With more than 700 wineries across the Willamette Valley to visit, you need a plan and a central location from which to explore the region’s wineries and tasting rooms. McMinnville is known for its super walkable downtown, small-town charm, excellent restaurants, boutique hotels, and cute stores. (Don’t miss Third Street Books, which has the most thoughtful curation of good reads, greeting cards, and unique gifts.)
The best part is that you can reach McMinnville and the wine country with an hour’s drive from Portland International Airport. Here are our picks for the best places to stay, eat, and drink in McMinnville.
Where to stay in McMinnville, Oregon
The Tributary Hotel provides a luxe experience in McMinnville, Oregon — Photo courtesy of George Barberis
Several boutique hotels have popped up in McMinnville in recent years, including Tributary Hotel, Oregon’s first Relais & Chateaux property. It has eight luxurious suites, each named after different Oregon rivers. Breakfast here is a veritable feast, delivered to your room each morning with panache. And the chocolate chip and cherry hazelnut sea salt cookies for turndown service are life-changing.
The Boutique Retreat is a more affordable option. The tiny-home hotel includes nine standalone cottages, each with a fun theme, ranging from an industrial-chic urban loft to a Hawaii-inspired surf shack. In the evenings, guests can gather around a communal fire pit with friends and family.
At The Boutique Retreat, individual tiny homes surround a communal fire pit in the courtyard — Photo courtesy of Visit McMinnville
You can stay on a vineyard just 15 minutes from McMinnville at Durant at Red Ridge Farms. The estate’s two-bedroom Stoneycrest Cottage is a true hidden gem overlooking the vineyards, with a full kitchen and laundry facilities. Waking up to the sun’s golden glow and morning fog rolling across the vines is incredibly romantic. If you visit in November during the olive harvest, you can taste fresh-pressed olive oil from Oregon’s only commercial olive mill during Durant’s Olio Nuovo Festival.
Abbey Road Farm is another bed and breakfast farm stay, featuring five silo suites with ambient floor heating and soaking tubs. Just a short stroll away, alpacas, miniature highland cows, chickens, and a trio of peacocks are your neighbors.
Wineries and vineyards near McMinnville, Oregon
Tasting room views at Corollary Wines in Willamette Valley — Photo courtesy of Pablo Enriquez
Environmental stewardship has always been a core tenet of Oregon’s wine industry, including biodynamic pioneer Montinore Estate, which has a tasting room in downtown McMinnville. However, it’s worth venturing to the wineries and vineyards outside town for a more immersive experience, like the vineyard tours at Soter Vineyards’ 240-acre biodynamic estate and farm or nature hikes at Van Duzer Vineyards. Both have panoramic hilltop views when you sit for an al fresco tasting. Van Duzer is LIVE (Low Input Viticulture and Enology) certified, a sustainable winemaking certification in Oregon.
From Artist Block, an irreverent tasting room that doubles as an art gallery for emerging artists, to Nicolas-Jay’s French breakfast wine tasting, there are diverse wine-tasting experiences for every palate. Many wineries also have full-time chefs who craft delicious pairings to accompany wine tastings.
Antica Terra pours rare global wines in a comparative tasting with their own wines in the barrel room — Photo courtesy of Making Department
For example, at Antica Terra’s biodynamic estate, guests can book lunch with wine pairings in the barrel room or enjoy a wine flight and picnic under the dappled sunlight of native oak trees at the 200-foot-long Table in the Trees. If you’re ready to splurge, the Rarities tasting is the most extraordinary wine tasting in the country. It features a unicorn lineup of global wines alongside Antica Terra’s estate chardonnays and pinot noirs, paired with chef Timothy Wastell’s hyper-seasonal crudités, pâtés, house-made bread, and hors d’oeuvres.
If you prefer bubbles, Corollary Wines makes exclusively champagne-method sparkling wine; sip them at its tasting room in the Eola-Amity Hills surrounded by its estate vines. These are easily some of the best sparkling wines from the Willamette Valley, and the magnums are great for aging. Plus, you can’t forget Argyle, the sparkling wine pioneer in the Willamette Valley, where tours include dosage trials and a hand-disgorging demonstration to teach guests more about the intricacies of sparkling winemaking.
Who was voted the best?: Best Wine Tour Company (10Best Readers’ Choice Awards 2024)
Where to dine in McMinnville, Oregon
Grapes thrive in the lush landscape of the Willamette Valley, but there are also a plethora of farms and food artisans surrounding McMinnville. The valley is just an hour from the coast, so there’s plenty of fresh local seafood on menus here, too.
Hayward serves delicious fare, like crispy pork katsu with nuoc cham aioli — Photo courtesy of Amber Gibson
Hayward, McMinnville’s first-ever James Beard finalist for best new restaurant, offers hearty portions of soulful food for sharing. Every dish has a delicious and unexpected twist, whether the white pepper hazelnut crunch on hand-cut pasta or nuoc cham aioli dressing on ultra-crispy pork katsu. Opt for the “kickback” family-style tasting menu, and you’ll try nearly everything.
Vote Now: Best Grocery Store (10Best Readers’ Choice Awards 2024)
Ōkta serves creative ultra-seasonal fare in McMinnville, Oregon — Photo courtesy of Carter Hiyama
Ōkta is one of the best fine-dining restaurants in the country. Its captivating tasting menu and warm service reflect the microclimate of the Willamette Valley. Most of the produce comes from the restaurant’s regenerative farm, home to a rustic food lab where global fermentation and fresh ingredients meet. Chef Matt Lightner imparts bright, bold accents and layers of nuanced flavor to delicately plated dishes that resemble works of art.
For elevated casual dining with excellent service, try Capo, which specializes in Neopolitan-style, wood-fired pizza. Start with the heirloom and sweet corn contorni, made with Even Pull Farm heirloom tomatoes, whipped ricotta, roasted Bernard’s Farm corn, pickled red onion, basil, parsley, basil oil, and crispy speck. The simple mixed green salad is livened up with mint, parsley, and a tangy roasted tomato vinaigrette. You can’t go wrong with any of the pizzas, but the mushroom pizza is off-the-charts delicious, topped with caramelized red onion purée, fontina, cremini and oyster mushrooms, and fried sage.
