Where's the fire?! If you find yourself driving south on US395, between Lakeview, Oregon and Reno, you're in for a long and lonely trip through some of God's finest country. But you had better be on the lookout for interesting places to stop, and this is one of them. John's family has owned this tiny distillery for 70 years. Their idea - seems solid to me - is to make use of the wild plums that are native to, and only grown in, this corner of southeast Oregon / northeast California, and nowhere else in the world. They have an orchard and from it comes the stuff for plum jam, fruit wine, a very interesting plum gin and Stringer's Slivovitz. The last one is a frightening Polish-style vodka. It's an acquired taste, for sure, but what I like about it is that after about three shots you can make one hell of a drinking game just trying to pronounce the name of the stuff... John is a very accommodating host, and I left with a mixed case! read more

On a lonely road from Reno NV to LaPine OR, we zoomed right by the sign that said winery and distillery. We decided to turn around, and am so glad we did. Stringer's Wild Plum Winery was the highlight of the drive. John Stringer met us at the door and welcomed us in. He showed us all around the grounds and inside the winery. We had lots of questions about the workings of his winery, and he was happy to share his stories. We bought a bottle of his wild plum wine, and enjoyed every sip. The winery will definately be a planned stop on my next trip. Looking forward to trying some of his jams and liquors. read more

Stringer's Orchard may be a wild plum winery, but my favorite products of theirs do not include their actual plum wine. Their Pure Plum Preserves has just the right amount of flavor and tartness and may very well be the best jam/preserves/jelly I've ever had (and I'm a big fan of toast-and-jam and have scoured many a market trying to find jam as good as this). Their plum wine is good, different, and a little too sweet for me, but their Slivovitz is very good (if you prefer that sort of thing) and their new Plum Liqueur is delicious all by itself or wonderful when added to a pomegranate martini. Since I no longer have an excuse to drive all the way to Alturas, I am thankful that Stringer's offers fast shipping on their website. read more

ROAD TRIP! This place is in the middle of nowhere but real pretty country, but well worth the time (that includes driving from SoCal). Small outfit but the product is great. The sauces, preserves, wine and distilled spirits are well worth the effort. This is a destination stop because there is nothing else for miles around, right on the Oregon border on 395. Their hours are limited so call ahead to be sure they are open. If you have never had wild plums you are in for a treat. read more