Soon after the Oregon Trail settlers descended into Willamette Valley, Oregon started receiving hearty souls from another location. Many leaving the promise of riches from the California Gold Rush headed north. When the gold did not pan out they came seeking the lush and fertile green pastures and gentle hills of the Umpqua, Rouge and Applegate Valley. Rivers full of fish and abundant wildlife that provided sustenance propelled the influx of settlers to our southern border.  A few of those early settlers from Italy, France, Spain and Germany spent enough time in Northern California to realize the grape vines from their homelands were already doing well in many areas just to the north of the gold rush. It was an easy assumption that they might also do well in the Oregon territory where the summers are hot but the rainfall is dependable. From this an industry was born.

Now over 150 years later wines from Southern Oregon have earned a place in history but also at your dinner table right now. Southern Oregon Winery Association’s Grand Tasting will take place on Sunday November 13 from 4-7PM at the Portland Art Museum. There you will have a chance to taste over a 100 offerings from the wineries of Southern Oregon.

This event sponsored by the Southern Oregon Winery Association will be an opportunity you do not want to miss as these wineries have excelled in quality over the past few vintages receiving accolades from many wine writers and critics alike (present company included). While I was researching my stories about who planted Pinot Noir first in Oregon I became acquainted with many of the people working in the thriving wine business outside of the Willamette Valley.  This discovery set me on a path to showcase how many great wines come from the Applegate, Rogue and Umpqua Valleys.

For this event, Southern Oregon is bringing the best it has to offer: Albarino, Viognier, Pinot Gris, Roussanne, Syrah, Tempranillo, Zinfandel, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and other eclectic, red blends to the Portland Art Museum in the popular Park Blocks.

To experience all of the wines being poured at the Portland Art Museum from those AVAs one might easily spend a lot of time and money touring these areas to take in all the wineries that will be represented at the Portland Art Museum. If you find you enjoy the wines I suggest you plan a trip south.  It’s a beautiful country and well worth the visit.

Tickets for this event are only $39 and well worth it. No place else will you be able to experience all the hospitality the Southern Oregon Winery Association and its members are bringing including an array of great appetizers provided by Vibrant Table Catering and one hundred or more wines consisting of a lot of varietals that our local wineries cannot produce—just another great reason to attend.

Now do yourself a favor and click here for tickets.  Uou will not be sorry and I look forward to seeing you there. Enjoy!

*This article was originally published on Oregonlive.com