Shit. I just realized my post about Oregon Pinot Camp didn’t make it up. I’m sorry.
It was quite eloquent, coming off of a 5 day high of great wine, food, people, and information. Now you get the sobered up version. I’ll throw in posts about the camp all month. But in conclusion:
     Let me just roll off some of the reasons I was so damn impressed:

  1). I gained tons of valuable information. Nerd-grade information. Soil types, canopy management, etc. Not just the usual marketing glossy crap.

  2). This was a group effort: Oregon above all. I can’t imagine Napa doing this. This wasn’t 50 different wineries pitching their wares. This was 50 wineries sharing their passion and gaining valuable feedback.

  3). I did not hear things like, "market share," and "brand management" all weekend. (I think it freaked the east coasters out.) You don’t determine your growth here, Mama Nature does. Pinot Noir tells you, you don’t tell it. So big Cali brands and umbrella corporations, if you want to invest–try Washington. They poop grapes up in the Columbia Valley.

  4). Zero attitude. Everyone pitched in. The guys that started it all and the ones that get all the fancy pants wine snobs drooling after them. They sat with us at lunch, picked our brains at dinner, went out for beers at the end of the day.

  5). They’re getting shit done. Winemakers and owners have come together to determine new AVAs, to fight land use legislation, to support sustainable agricultural practices, and to share valuable growing information. Only 30 some years old, this community is serious about where it’s going, why, and how it’s going to get there.

  With Portland less than an hour away, the area is ripe for wine tourism. But hopefully you won’t see the WIllamette Valley go adult Disneyland like Napa anytime soon. So only tell cool people about it, and maybe we can keep the Tommy Bahamas to a minimum.

**Notice the vineyards are planted crazy quilt-like, for maximum quality. Larger, rectangles on the valley floor are for vegetables, not grapes.