We've been long time fans of Longplay wine, ironically enough since we tasted their flagship Lia's…read morevineyard grapes at Seven of Hearts (now defunct). (Turns out other wineries were buying Todd's grapes too.). We stopped in at Longplay's first tasting room in Newberg where we met owner Todd Hansen and sampled his other wines and experienced his love for music. Da dum, turns out it was impossible not to fall in love with his laid-back passion for wine and music, much of which is older than he is. We gladly joined his wine club when he finally got around to starting one. Now he's got this fancy schmanzy industrial vibe winery with spacious indoor and outdoor seating and lotsa room for making wine. His Hi-Tone has been my fave, although since surpassed by his Experience. The Jory Bench is worthy of the wait, and the Lia's continues to deliver (thanks for continuing to make this, Todd). For a classic Oregon experience, I highly recommend Longplay.

Visiting in Willamette Valley in mid April for a wine tasting trip and ran across Longplay winery…read more As visitors we did not know that most wineries in Willamette are by appointment only, but when we arrived at Longplay they gladly let us in for a tasting. A bit of info on Longplay: Todd Hansen the owner purchased the Jacob-Hart vineyard in 2004 and renamed the vineyard after his daughter Lia. Know for its Pinot Noir Todd is putting out some very good varitals. His first bottle was introduced in 2007 named Lia's Vineyard Pinot Noir 2007. The winery has a Industrial feel and very clean, as the name implies "Longplay" is about vinyl records and Todd is always putting something on the turntable. There are great concert posters hanging on the walls going back to the 60's. A cool vibe all the way around with excellent music and great tastes. Todd & his staff hang out while your tasting to talk about wine and music, very cool. Stop in I assure you'll enjoy the wine and vibe. Correction: Todd purchased 50 acres of the Jacob-Hart vineyard - not the entire vineyard

Tendril makes amazing wines, from pinot noirs to chardonnay to sparkling wine I enjoyed all of it…read more Andrew is super friendly and a great manager with lots of knowledge of the wines being made by this place, Tony is super fun to talk to and learn more about wines, soil, terroir and the grapes of Oregon, he has many years of wine making experience so bring a notebook. Took some wines home and I'm very excited to open the chardonnay XL bottle!

Tendril Wines is such a wonderful wine tasting experience. Andrew is very knowledgeable, Friendly…read moreand treated us like family! We loved that owner/wine maker Tony Rynders came out and discussed his wines, and the name of the winery and was so down to earth. If you are doing wine tasting in the Carlton area, (who am I kidding - in Willamette, OR) this is a MUST STOP! This is a laid back tasting, that will knock your socks off your feet!

My husband and I had a lovely evening at this tasting room. The hosts were incredibly friendly and…read morevery knowledgeable. We learned so much about wine and the wines sold there during our tasting. I enjoyed the heartwarming stories of the different labels. While at the tasting, we snacked on roasted cashews and watched people mill about 3rd Street. The wine selection leans heavily toward roses and lighter reds.

R. Stuart was one of our stops when we were in McMinnville earlier this month. We had a delightful…read moretime with their flight, which compared two different years of the same wines. I enjoyed that immensely- it really shows how varied weather conditions can affect the outcome. Great service and charcuterie as well.

Was out here for a girls weekend and wanted a place that had a beautiful setting & view. What a…read morewonderful experience - the staff is so friendly and attentive. The wines were delicious - I loved the 2017 vs 2018 comparison flight - it felt very unique. And the view is unbeatable, after starting inside we made our way to the outdoor seating and just basked in the beauty of the outdoors.

When we arrived at Dukes yesterday, the server asked if we had reservations. We did not. "Well,"…read moreshe huffed, "we're pretty full right now." I counted five (5) empty tables. We thought Dukes was pet-friendly, and we saw two (2) large dogs lying on the concrete beside a table. One of them got up and lumbered toward ours (a 17-pound rescue). Intimidated, our little dog barked exactly once, prompting an employee to storm outside. Scowling, he said pets were absolutely not allowed. "We had a dog bite last year," he said grimly, oblivious to the other canines already present. Proverbial tales between our legs, we left, feeling pretty crappy--especially since we drove almost forty minutes out of our way to visit this winery. PS: Here is the initial response by Dukes Family Vineyards which they posted and quickly removed: "Your dog barked and snipped in a very aggressive manner twice upon arrival. You were asked to leave by the owner after he heard your dog being aggressive. Sorry about the disappointment, however; we had several patrons that witness your arrival and they thanked us for not letting you stay." PPS: To Dukes Family Vineyards: Your response, and your suggestion my chihuahua was "very aggressive" is completely absurd. My wife was carrying him. The instant she set him down, a much-larger dog came straight over and got in his face. Ours barked once. (He was frightened.) Please answer this question: Why are other dogs allowed to be there if your establishment isn't pet-friendly? Also: we were not "asked to leave." Your server told us you were "full," despite the number of empty tables. Your claim that several patrons witnessed our arrival and then thanked you for not letting us stay makes you (and them) sound like creeps. Further, your withdrawn statement illustrates for potential customers the way you will judge and treat them.

This is a very nice wine tasting room. The wines are delicious. The gal who helped us was very nice…read moreand we had a great conversation with her. Their cab franc is amazing.

Beautiful spot with a lovely tasting menu. The views are worth it. Friendly staff that know their…read morewines and a delicious food menu to munch on as well. Come for the views... stay for the wine.

This was simply a superb tasting experience. We have tasted at literally hundreds of wineries…read morearound the world and were still impressed. The wines are beautifully crafted. Clearly every step from the where on the land which clones are planted to how to farm, when to harvest, and how to age is carefully considered. When we learn something new that is a bonus, Rebecca was generous with her knowledge. She is very engaged in every aspect from dirt to bottle and cares passionately about this enterprise and her family heritage in ranching and farming. There are many seating options both inside and outside. We chose to stand at the bar because that is generally where you learn the most, as was the case here. Just do yourself a favor and make a reservation. It is the antidote to some of the larger and less personal tasting rooms and excellent in its own right.

We enjoyed our time at MonksGate Vineyard in Yamhill County, outside of Carlton. This was one of…read moreour stops on a custom wine tour in Willamette Valley, a.k.a. Oregon Wine Country. What stood out to me about MonksGate, compared to the other wineries and vineyards we visited, was the wonderful view we had during our wine tasting. We were outside, perched atop a mound, underneath trees, with a picnic table, umbrella, Adirondack chairs, and a side/end table, looking out onto seemingly endless vineyards. The weather was perfect and the atmosphere was calm and serene. We also pretty much had the whole place to ourselves except for one couple with a dog. Speaking of which, MonksGate is dog-friendly. As soon as we parked and got out of the car, we were greeted by the MonksGate owner's dog, Fizzy. Fizzy is a well-behaved and well-groomed Airedale Terrier. Fizzy and the other customers' small dog, Jimmy, hung out with us during our tasting. It added to our experience. This is a family-owned-and-operated vineyard. Along with Fizzy, we were greeted by Rebecca Moore, second-generation vineyard owner. In 1998, Rebecca's parents, Ron and Linda Moore, founded the 50-acre farmland where MonksGate sits today. The vineyard itself is 20 acres. It was named "MonksGate" because monks from the nearby Trappist Abbey (Our Lady of Guadalupe) walked across the land as a form of meditation. The Moores installed an access gate to allow the monks to continue their walks. Rebecca conducted the tasting. She had an assistant with her. They were both very friendly and welcoming. Below is a list of what we had with prices per bottle at the time of our visit. * 2023 North Block Dry Rose ($28) * 2019 Classic Pinot Noir ($42) * 2021 Classic Pinot Noir ($42) * 2023 Dry Riesling ($29) * 2023 "Fizzy" Sparkling Dry Riesling ($39) There was a tasting menu with helpful tasting notes. Also, Rebecca did a great job explaining each wine as she served them. I'm not a wine connoisseur so all I can tell you is I thought all five wines tasted fantastic. I'd be happy with any one of them at dinner or a social gathering, etc. My favorite was the 2019 pinot noir. How the notes described that one: "2019 was a cooler, more 'traditional' vintage, with rain during harvest keeping flavor phenolics bright and notes on the nose floral and spicy. The palate of this wine is rife with ripe raspberries, the finish long and balanced." By the time you read this, they'll probably be sold out. We had a Saturday 3pm reservation for a group of eight. The total cost of the tasting was $252.20, which worked out to $31.53 per person. We left the vineyard shortly before 4:30pm, so we stayed just under 1.5 hours. When we left, Rebecca and her assistant started to close up shop -- we were the last customers for the day. I will say, for as nice a property as this is, I thought it was a little weird how the restroom - at least the one we used - was an outdoor porta-potty. I've done a lot of wine tastings over the years and this was the first vineyard/winery to have a porta-potty as the restroom. Not a big deal for us, but just thought I'd point it out.

What an incredible experience! There were six of us traveling together, and after changing our…read moreitinerary at the last minute, we ended up at this small, quaint vineyard--and we are so glad we did. The tasting was held right in the owners' home, which made the entire experience feel so personal and special. We tasted a wonderful variety of wines, and the owners went above and beyond to make us feel welcome and catered to our group. It never felt rushed or like a typical wine tasting--it felt more like spending the afternoon with friends who just happen to make amazing wine! This unexpected stop ended up being one of the highlights of our trip. If you're looking for a more intimate, personal wine-tasting experience away from the larger, more commercial wineries, this is an absolute gem. We would go back in a heartbeat!

The owners are wonderful, vibrant people. Beautiful property, great wine, and a true experienceread more

Wow. I think this is my new favorite winery. Ever. Very knowledgeable and experienced winemaker…read more Excellent wines especially Pinot. Thank you Adea!!

Dean and Mack Daddy, the Saint Bernard greeted us on our after-hours tasting here. Both owner and…read moredog are super laid back and completely welcoming with open arms. It was almost time to close but Dean treated us like we were his first customers of the day. What I liked most about him was his attire...suspenders and a Lynyrd Skynyrd t-shirt topped off by a big bushy beard. Dean is a no-nonsense, be who you want to be kind of guy. He also had a Redneck Wine Glass sitting out on the shelf, which he washed out and let me drink from at my request. As I said there...the wine didn't quite open up like I had hoped in this mason jar glass. Funny, no? I will tell you that I couldn't get past his Pinot Blanc. My friend had been searching for a good Pinot Blanc to replace the one that was sold out at Four Graces, and boy did this one hit the spot! I liked it even better than Four Graces, so I bought a bottle while my friend took home an entire case. After my purchase, I felt a little saddened that summer was coming to an end soon, because it is the perfect "sit out on your deck in the sunshine" kind of wine. It is quite sweet, which is a huge bonus for me. Dean then took us into the room with the barrels and grabbed his wine thief so we could take a taste from two of them. We grabbed a picture with him, laughed a little (okay a lot) more, bought some wine and then went on our merry way. Kudos to Dean and his family for creating such a hospitable, comfortable wine tasting environment.