Umpqua Valley Barrel Tours: New Vintages and Surprising Settings

There are some excellent opportunities coming up for wine enthusiasts to experience the diverse terroir, excellent wines and friendly people of Oregon’s Umpqua Valley wine region. Three geologically unique tours explore three separate areas within the region: North, Central and South.  On each tour, lively Barrel Tour Buses will visit six award-winning wineries where wine tastings and food pairings will take place.

Wine lovers who choose the North tour will visit two brand new tasting rooms that will be opening for the 2013 season.  The new Triple Oak tasting room is housed within a century-old bank building in historic Oakland.  Renamed The Wine Vault, the building has been restored on the interior of the old bank and feature a tasting bar made from the slate slab from the bank’s historic teller counter.  Further north, at Anindor, participants will be invited into Oregon’s first tasting room that is housed completely within an eco-friendly yurt.  Anindor is one of three stops on the North Tour, located in Oregon’s newest established American Viticulture Area (AVA), Elkton.

Map provided by WinesNorthwest.com

The Central Tour features a 50’s rock theme and classic car display at Henry Estate.  Visitors will be able to vote on their favorite car while sipping both new releases and vintage wines from the Henry Estate wine library.  The South Tour includes a stop at the recently named “2013 Oregon Winery of the Year,” Abacela.

Every stop on every tour is a chance to meet and visit with the winemakers, and be among the first to sample their newest and most celebrated wines.

All three tours are offered on two days: Saturday, April 20 and Saturday, May 4.  The North Tour departs from Cottage Grove, and the Central and South Tours depart from Roseburg. $50 per person +  $2 processing fee. See a list of all the wineries included on these tours, and purchase tickets at UmpquaValleyWineries.org.

UPDATE: April 20 tours are SOLD OUT. There are a few spots left on the May 4 tours – get your tickets soon before they all sell out!