Some people think I never work in the winery. Others know this is not true, but once again I’m out of town. I had the chance for a tag-along trip to Eastern Oregon that I couldn’t pass up. It meant I could spend 4 days with my parents. So I’ve been gone since Friday, returning late on Tuesday. RJ has had to hold done the fort with some help from Henry and Joyce. While here, Walla Walla was having their Spring Release event, so I HAD TO GO!. It was education, you know. Anyway, we started Saturday with an 8:30 brunch at Forgeron, trying 4 of their wines, plus sparkling. Very nice pairings. Everything was lovely, except the polenta, which had a case of the stickies. Then we went to a friend of a friend of a friend’s house, where we picked up a 12 passenger van and 4 more ladies for a total of 7. We managed to hit 9 more wineries before the end of the day and were still walking. We had some very good wines and some mixed experiences with regards to hospitality. Everything from thimble size tastes and a limit of 3 for your $5.00, to generous tastes, large food spreads and 25 wines plus barrel tasting. Everyone charged $5 except the Incubator (a cluster of small, new wineries). Most wineries refunded it with a purchase and with one winery, you got a free glass. Few wineries had entertainment and most just had cheese and crackers for food. I managed to pick up a case including 5 reds, and can’t wait to share the wines with my friends back home.
