McMinnville is emerging as the heart of wine country, a must-visit destination for tourists visiting to experience the unique terroir of the Northern Willamette Valley. While there was never a shortage of winery tasting rooms in downtown McMinnville, there’s been an explosion of new ones in recent years. Some feature wines made very nearby, while others focus on those from Washington and the Gorge all the way to the Applegate Valley in Southern Oregon. Third Street’s tasting room scene has something for everyone, even folks who aren’t “wine people” can find Bingo nights, trivia, lunch, and more at this new crop of tasting rooms. Here’s what to expect from each one presented from west to east on Third Street. 

The Grove 

Located in the old Cornerstone Coffee Roasters building on the Western end of Third Street, The Grove is home to two Willamette Valley wineries: Montinore Estate and Landlines Estate. Montinore was established in 1982 and is one of the country’s largest estate wineries producing wine with Biodynamic grapes. 

The Space: The expansive tasting room feels like a comfortable lobby of a polished, modern hotel. Think exposed brick walls with two interactive art installations; bar, table, and couch seating; and a dog-friendly patio and open-air doors for cafe seating out front. 

The Wines: 

• Montinore concentrates on Pinot Noir as well as cool climate white varieties and Northern Italian reds like Teroldego and Lagrein from their Certified Organic estate vineyard located in the north Willamette Valley. 
• Landlines Estates focuses exclusively on bottlings from the 25-acre Tidalstar, an organic and certified Biodynamic vineyard in Yamhill-Carlton AVA. The label represents small productions of four signature wines: three Pinot Noir and one Chardonnay. 
• The parent company of the wineries also owns Mac & Jack’s Brewery in Redmond, Washington, so The Grove also offers beer in addition to their wines. 

Extras: The Grove hosts occasional ticketed craft workshops, holiday markets, educational teach-ins, and live music events. On the last Thursday of each month they host trivia nights. Teams of up to six compete in trivia on geography, sports, history, movies, and music and walk-ins are welcome. Check out their event calendar to learn more.  

www.montinore.com

Jacob Williams Winery

McMinnville’s is the second tasting room of Wishram, Washington-based winery Jacob Williams. The winery doesn’t have proprietary vineyards, but they buy fruit from several growers in the Columbia River Gorge.  

The Space: Their McMinnville tasting room is cozy and casual with a handful of tables, a couch seating area, and cafe tables out front. 

The Wines: If you’re looking for big, bold reds, this is the place for you on Third Street. Jacob Williams is one of the only local wineries working with merlot, malbec, cabernet sauvignon, sangiovese, and zinfandel in addition to the locally-favored pinot noir and pinot gris. 

Extras: Jacob Williams is the place to have a tasting if you’re looking for lunch to go with it. 

Manager Shantel Shake offers occasional themed food pairings and a daily menu of Bavarian pretzel sticks, mezze and grazing boards, and even a whipped cream-topped Vadnay Chocolate brownie. Plus, the winery has a selection of tabletop games available for guests and regularly hosts a variety of live music events. 

www.jacobwilliamswinery.com

Acorn to Oak 

Acorn to Oak Wine Experience doesn’t represent a specific winery. Instead, the tasting room is a training facility for The Linfield University Center for Wine Education, a way to prepare students for careers in the industry.  As a result, it’s a great place to visit for novice tasters as the focus is on education and the diverse selection offers a chance to taste wines from multiple producers in a single setting. 

The Space: Sit indoors or out at the large, L-shaped tasting room decorated with student-made artwork. 

The Wines: A variety of Oregon-made wines that rotates regularly to reflect different producers, vineyard sites, and winemaking styles. 

Extras: The tasting room offers a new wine flight each week featuring 5 different producers. Charcuterie boards to accompany glass pours, flights, or bottler sales are also available. 

www.acorntooakwine.com

Troon

Founded in 1972, Troon is  located in the Applegate Valley in Southern Oregon near Grants Pass. Environmental sustainability is a huge focus for the winery, which is certified biodynamic and regenerative organic.

The Space:  After years operating a tasting room in Carlton, Troon moved to Third Street in 2022. The Branch Geary-designed tasting room is bright and airy inside, with shining accents including a polished concrete floor and elegant lighting; it almost looks like a restaurant inside. There is a cozy front couch area, bar seating, a large table for groups, and three private tasting nooks. 

The Wines: All of Troon’s wines are made using fruit grown on their Applegate Valley Estate. They’re biodynamic and regeneratively-farmed, and educating visitors about these practices is a major focus of the tasting room. One thing that distinguishes Troon’s wines is that they produce absolutely no chardonnay and pinot noir, a major focus of local growers in the Northern Willamette. Instead, visit Troon to try citrusy vermentino, heady rousanne, and peppery syrahs. 

Extras: Down in Southern Oregon, Troon operates a 2½-acre vegetable garden and food forest  in addition to their vineyards, and products from the farm are available on the menu in the McMinnville tasting room as well. They make vinegars, tomato sauce, salsas, pickles, and even wreaths made of grape vines. All are available seasonally

www.troonvineyard.com

The Dundee Wine Library 

Araminta and Henry Miller founded their Dundee Hills winery and custom crush facility on a literary theme, and their new McMinnville tasting room reflects the same vibe as their book-filled space in Dundee. 

The Space: It’s a little library living room on third street with a fireplace mantle, cozy seating, a bar, and a miniature grand player piano that plays 1,300 different songs. 

The Wines: Their chardonnay, two kinds of sparkling, and 5 vineyard-designated pinot noirs;  reflect both estate fruit and that sourced from vineyard partners in Chehalem, the Eola-Amity Hills, Dundee, and Tualatin Valley. 

Extras: The winery occasionally hosts events, and the owners said they love when book clubs choose their space to meet. 

www.dundeewinelibrary.com

Pike Road

Pike Road is the sister winery to Elk Cove, the first vineyard and winery in what is now the Yamhill Carlton AVA. Elk Cove works with only estate fruit, grapes grown in their own vineyards, but to make wine for the Pike Road label they source grapes from vineyard sites throughout the northern Willamette Valley.  The winery is named after an actual road that runs adjacent to the Elk Cove  vineyards and into the Oregon Coast Range Mountains. 

The Space: In 2022 the tasting room moved from its previous space in downtown Carlton to McMinnville’s Third Street. The third street tasting room is cozy, with vintage charm. There’s table seating, bar seating, and cafe tables out front. 

The Wines: Pike Road wines reflect six sub-AVAs of the Chehalem Mountains, the Dundee Hills, the Eola-Amity Hills, Laurelwood, the Tualatin Hill , and Yamhill Carlton. Single vineyard Pinot Noirs from some beloved vineyards throughout the region, as well as Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, and a sparkling wine. Price points are accessible, maxing out at $50 per bottle for current vintages and only slightly higher for library wines. 

Extras: 

• Pike Road hosts Bingo Nights on Thursdays. Cards are $5 for their wine club members and $10 for non-members and winners go home with gift cards. 
• The tasting room also hosts Drinks & Dragons, a casual Dungeons & Dragons hangout started by one of their club members. Held on the second Wednesday of each month, attendees can learn how to play the beloved fantasy role-playing game. 
• Pike road has a cheese fridge! Take home a wedge for later or DIY-a cheese board to accompany your tasting. 

www.pikeroadwines.com

Emily Teel writes about cooking and dining and develops recipes on behalf of national brands. Mom to a toddler, she’s also an avid gardener and loves to forage for mushrooms in berries in the Pacific Northwest. 

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