Discovering the wineries of Southern Oregon

Rogue Valley wine countryWe love exploring wine country, especially where we have not been before. In Southern Oregon, near the touristy towns of Jacksonville and Ashland, are numerous wineries waiting to be discovered. We are on our way to the 5th Annual Wine Bloggers Conference in Portland, Oregon, and decided to drive from our Bay Area home just so we could spend time visiting wineries in Southern Oregon. We are spending two nights in Ashland and another night in nearby historic Jacksonville before heading north to Portland.

We stopped into the Liquid Assets wine bar in Ashland. On many Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays in the summer, the wine bar invites a nearby winery to pour their wines. On this night it was Fred and Cindy LaBrasseur. They own the LaBrasseur Vineyard in the upper Rogue Valley near the town of Gold Hill. The LaBrasseur wines are polished, well made and very tasty, indeed. I like the wine prices, with no wines in the LaBrassuer lineup over $25. When you buy wine in Oregon, vs California, there is a hidden 8.25% discount. There is no sales tax in the State of Oregon. Whoopee!

LaBrasseur vineyards and winery
Fred & Cindy LaBrasseur

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Harvest Film at Sonoma Film Fest and other Wine News

The 15th Annual Sonoma International Film Festival is April 11 to 15. For you wine lovers and wine country enthusiasts, the festival will debut the film “Harvest,” a feature-length documentary that follows five Sonoma County family wineries and their experiences in the harvest of 2011. I have not seen the film but I have watched the trailer. It looks like a terrific documentary. I won’t be at the film festival, but I sure hope I have the opportunity to see this film later in the year at other venues. Check out the trailer.

Benziger Family and Earth Day
Benziger Family Winery will host a winery event and nationwide wine tastings to spotlight sustainable winemaking in commemoration of Earth Day. At the winery, the event is called “Earth Day at the Estate” and will be a wine tasting with Mike Benziger. The event will take place April 21 from 11:00 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Benziger Family Winery, 1883 London Ranch Road in Glen Ellen. The cost is $40.00 for Wine Club Members and their guests and $60.00 for the general public. Seating is limited. To reserve a spot call 800-989-8890 or email buywine@benziger.com.
Throughout Earth Week (April 22-28), select wine shops and stores nationwide will offer “green flights” of Benziger Family Winery’s award-winning wines at in-store tastings sponsored by the winery’s distributor, Kobrand Corporation. For a complete list of participating locations visit www.benziger.com/earthday. Profits from both events will go to supporting the land and the community of farm workers who tend it.

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Indian Rock Vineyards in Murphys – A Little Different

They prefer to be off the radar, building their clientele on word-of-mouth and the reputation of their wine. They don’t sell their wine retail; most of it goes to their wine club members and the rest is sold to visitors out of their tasting room. A few bottles can be found in local restaurants.