TRIP PLANNER: MCMINNVILLE PG. 92
Winter Cocktails
DIY: Wood-Fired Hot Tubs
A Festive Leavenworth Itinerary
PLAN YOUR
WINTER ESCAPE
COZY CABIN GETAWAYS
LUXURY BUNKING IN WINE COUNTRY
DESTINATION RESORTS
PLUS
:
SK I GUID E
TO N O RT T H E HWE ST
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November | December
volume 77
The annual ¡Salud! wine auction event in the Willamette Valley raises money for the healthcare of industry workers.
Gastronomy
¡Salud! The Oregon Pinot Noir Auction raises funds for health written by Kerry Newberry WINE TAKES on a deeper meaning every year at a signature event held in the Willamette Valley just after harvest. At ¡Salud! The Oregon Pinot Noir Auction, a passionate group of vintners and wine enthusiasts join together to raise funds that provide healthcare services to the state’s vineyard stewards and their families. For more than thirty years, the region’s vintners and physicians have partnered to address the barriers to healthcare for vineyard workers. Through funds raised from the wine auction, they are able to bring free services directly to vineyard worksites via a mobile medical unit along with a dedicated staff of bilingual, bicultural medical professionals. After a two-year hiatus, the leading wine auction is returning to in-person events. Held each November, the auction draws collectors from around the Northwest to bid on highly sought pinot noirs created by top Willamette Valley wineries exclusively for the cause. Over the course of two evenings, guests can bid on one-of-a-kind cases along with rare wine collections, unique culinary experiences and international getaways. The Big Board Auction & Pinot Party will be held on Friday, November 11, at The Allison Inn & Spa. Guests can mingle and taste barrel samples poured by the participating winemakers. The following night, there’s a Grand Dinner & Live Auction Gala at Domaine Serene’s Clubhouse. For tickets and ¡Salud! brings medical services more information on the program and particidirectly to workers in the vineyards. pating wineries visit www.saludauction.org. (photo: ¡Salud!) 32
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CRAVINGS:
DECADENT CHOCOLATE 1927 S’MORES COMPANY Cozy cabin vibes will easily warm up any winter night. But if you can’t escape for a weekend, just head to 1927 S’mores in downtown Portland. The lantern-lit space offers a festive way to gather with friends and swap tales at their “s’morefront.” Each batch is made to order and torch-fired to nostalgic perfection. In addition to the popular whiskey salted caramel version, the boutique offers seasonal flavors. The sweetly packaged kits are fun party favors and holiday gifts. 1126 SW ALDER ST. PORTLAND www.1927smores.com
ARROWHEAD CHOCOLATES There’s only one place in Oregon where you can eat locally made chocolate surrounded by the “Swiss Alps of the Northwest.” In Joseph’s charming downtown, the family-owned Arrowhead Chocolates serves up truffles with creative twists from hot chili to honey-lavender. Other standouts include a nibble blended with locally made Stein Whiskey and a truffle sprinkled with Douglas Fir spring tips. Come winter, you can’t beat a steamy mug of hot chocolate and their view of the majestic snowcapped Wallowa Mountains. 4 S. MAIN ST. JOSEPH www.arrowheadchocolates.com
BONS AMIS That moment when friends and family come to town and you wonder where you can take them for an only-in-Portland afternoon? This wine and chocolate tasting room is it. A collaboration between Willamette Valley’s Brooks Wine and Portland’s Woodblock Chocolate, you’ll find creative wine and chocolate pairings along with savory snacks like salt-brined cocoa beans and cocoa-dusted nuts. Beer fans can sub a seasonal pick from Wolves and People, an artisanal brewery set on a historic hazelnut farm in Newberg. 1715 NE 17TH AVE. PORTLAND www.brookswines.com/bons-amis
Photos, from top: Brady Bates Photography; Eugenie Frerichs/TravelOregon.com
Kathryn Elsesser Photography
food + drink
BEST PLACES FOR
FESTIVE GATHERINGS ABIGAIL HALL From the elegant hand-painted floral wallpaper to the glowing fireplace, this hidden bar tucked into a corner of the Woodlark Hotel hums with good cheer. It’s the perfect spot to get decked out and meet friends for their annual Holiday High Tea. Expect a tower of sweet and savory snacks from peppermint tea shortbread to a roasted beet and goat cheese sandwich. Sip from a selection of Smith Teamaker blends like Rose City Genmaicha or for a more spirited afternoon, opt for a creative tea-themed cocktail. 813 SW ALDER ST. PORTLAND www.abigailhallpdx.com
HIFI WINE BAR Located in the wine country town of McMinnville, this insider spot pairs a global wine list with an extensive vinyl collection. You’ll find live jazz nights and DJs spinning the classics on two turntables in the middle of the bar. A focused menu includes Dungeness crab toast, caviar and chips and puffy, cheesy gougères filled with Oregon bay shrimp. The vinous decor stars a chandelier made out of twisty old rootstock.
Photos, clockwise from left: Eva Kosmos Flores; Steve Freihon; Eva Kosmos Flores
food + drink
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Gregory Gourdet, of Everyone’s Table cookbook and Top Chef, opens Kann, a Haitian inspired restaurant. The clean and bright interior of the Portland restaurant. A peek at Kann’s griyo, twice-cooked pork.
Dining
Kann
written by Kerry Newberry
When the Durant family founded their olioteca in 2008, they adopted the Italian tradition of hosting an Olio Nuovo Festival, where millers invite the community to taste the freshly pressed olive oil. Their celebration includes an open-air olive oil tasting bar, mill tours, a marketplace with local food producers, cooking classes and guest food carts each weekend for the month of November. Plan ahead and make it a wine country weekend while staying at one of their two lodging options surrounded by hillside vineyards and olive orchards.
IN HIS James Beard Award-winning cookbook, Everyone’s Table, Gregory Gourdet wrote: “For me, food has always been about connection—the stews in my mom’s pot, the spices ferried to Queens by my aunts and cousins, the first grilled fish I ate on a Haitian beach all brought me closer to the place I’m from but didn’t really know.” Lucky for Oregon, food enthusiasts can now explore these bright and vivid flavors at one of the nation’s few Haitian-inspired dining destinations, also Portland’s most coveted reservation in town. A four-year dream in the making, the chef, who catapulted to national fame on Bravo’s Top Chef, opened his first solo restaurant this August. A first-generation Haitian-American, Gourdet named the restaurant Kann (“cane” in Haitian Creole) as an ode to his childhood memories of sugar cane vendors carting wheelbarrows stacked with the sweet stalks in Haiti. On the menu, expect a celebration of Haitian dishes made with Pacific Northwest ingredients from crispy taro root fritters to griyo (twice-cooked pork) served with fried green plantains and pikliz (a spicy pickled slaw). Other standouts that take advantage of the eight-foot wood-burning hearth in the kitchen include perfectly tender coffee-rubbed smoked beef ribs served with charred green beans and whole grilled fish packed with tangy layers of citrus, herbs and chilies. The chef ’s reverence for place carries through the dessert offerings from a grilled pineapple upside down cake to charred banana tarts served with guava-habanero ice cream.
5510 NE BREYMAN ORCHARDS ROAD DAYTON www.durantoregon.com
548 SE ASH ST. PORTLAND www.kannrestaurant.com
711 NE 3RD ST. MCMINNVILLE www.hifiwinebar.com
DURANT AT RED RIDGE FARMS
NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022
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PACIFIC CITY
Headlands Coastal Lodge & Spa Nestled in idyllic Pacific City, right alongside Cape Kiwanda State Natural Area, Headlands opened in 2018, situated on a cliff offering spectacular Pacific Ocean views from all rooms. For larger families or family reunions, book a luxury Oceanfront Cottage that has a fully equipped gourmet kitchen that can also be stocked with groceries upon request. The cottages also have an oceanfront patio or
balcony along with indoor soaking tubs. Winter adventures abound at the resort, with on-site adventure coaches who are available to help customize experiences for all types of travelers. From summiting the Great Dune at Cape Kiwanda, searching for agates, which wash up on the shore to indulging in a spa treatment at the hotel’s Tidepools Spa & Wellness, there is something for everyone. Weather
permitting, book a bonfire on the beach, where hotel staff sets up the scene for you, and guests need only show up to roast s’mores and enjoy the scenery as the sun sets. The resort is a two-hour drive from Portland International Airport. Meridian, the on-site restaurant and bar serves up creative Northwestern cuisine with delicious dishes highlighting seafood and produce from local coastal farms.
DON’T MISS: Book the Culinary Adventure Experience which includes a three-night stay, featuring a unique and interactive culinary adventure. Available through December 2022.
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AT LEFT Headlands Lodge is in the ideal location for checking in and checking out. (photos: Headlands Coastal Lodge & Spa)
◦ AT RIGHT Cannery Pier in Astoria overlooks the mighty Columbia, where it meets the sea. (photos, clockwise from top: Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa, Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa, Joni Kabana/ TravelOregon. com)
ASTORIA
Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa Recently renovated, Cannery Pier Hotel is an intimate boutique hotel sitting 600 feet into the Columbia River and overlooking the iconic AstoriaMegler Bridge. Every room has a view and balcony gazing out to the magnificent working river. Cuddle up on the window seat with the provided Pendleton blanket, a good book and some hot chocolate. Binoculars are also in rooms so guests can watch Astoria’s winter storms and ships passing at the mouth of the Columbia. Or soak in the clawfoot tub after a walk along the Astoria Riverwalk, which stretches for approximately 6 miles and showcases
museums, restaurants and breweries along the way. A 1913-era trolley, which is open from March to December, runs along the Riverwalk and provides a historical overview of the area. For history buffs, step back in time and check out the Astoria Underground Tour, an underground walking expedition which runs underneath streets and through tunnels where visitors can gain a unique insight into old Astoria. This is a self-guided tour which takes about forty-five minutes to an hour and at the end, a guide will be available to answer any questions.
DON’T MISS: The hotel provides a sumptuous sunrise breakfast from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and is included in the room rate. A social and wine hour is from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
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THE GRAND BARGAIN OREGON HERITAGE FOR IDAHO POWER
The B2H high voltage transmission line wins site approval, and an underdog group is headed to the Oregon Supreme Court written by Lee Lewis Husk
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HE UNDERDOGS have lost another round in the battle against Idaho Power’s plans to build a high-voltage transmission line across five Eastern Oregon counties.
In October, the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council issued a site certificate (with
conditions) after hearing testimony from more than 400 people—farmers, ranchers,
environmentalists, wildlife protectionists and Eastern Oregon residents opposed to the 300-mile line known as B2H which would run from Boardman, Oregon, to Hemingway, Idaho. The council, which is
staffed by the Oregon Department of Energy, has jurisdiction over the entire project in Oregon—190 miles of private land and one mile of state land.
The Stop B2H Coalition, a nonprofit grassroots organization of disparate individuals, has
struggled for years to try to protect what’s theirs and what Idaho Power wants and may seize (via condemnation). At stake are seven treasured miles of wagon wheel ruts left by pioneers on the
Oregon Trail, as well as sensitive wildlife habitat, quiet rural areas and big sky views. All would be impacted for the next 100 years, or longer, if Idaho Power prevails. The company said that it’s been collaborating with landowners, federal agencies, interest groups and other organizations to reduce B2H’s cultural and environmental impacts, according to Sven Berg, spokesman for Idaho Power. “Through years of this collaboration, we’ve tweaked the project route so that it balances the needs of communities closest to B2H with the safe, reliable, affordable, clean energy customers across the West need. Oregon’s Energy Facility Siting Council examined the route and its impacts in detail before approving a site certificate for the project.” The biggest impacts are in Eastern Oregon, so it’s not surprising the people most affected have spent years wading through a morass of federal and state regulations that allow public input but deeply favor utilities before any new energy resource can be built. “It’s been a heavy, heavy lift,” said Fuji Kreider of Stop B2H, who along with twenty or so volunteers, has spearheaded much of the opposition. The most recent skirmish involved the contested case the coalition entered in 2020 after ODOE gave preliminary approval of Idaho Power’s proposed siting. She said it took two years for the agency to complete the contested case review because fifty-two opponents raised seventy-one issues, even after narrowing by ODOE. “It was hellish,” she said. “It was during Covid, and everything was in writing. Each time we filed, Idaho Power and its bevy of lawyers would come back with objections, often with hundreds of pages. People got stressed out. Over time, they couldn’t keep up. “We weren’t surprised (ODOE and the council) ruled with the company,” she said. “They’ve ruled with the company ninety percent of the time.”
NEXT BATTLES: the Oregon Supreme Court and property condemnation Stop B2H and other opponents have known for years that the final arbiter would likely be the Oregon Supreme Court. “We’re in the process of analyzing which issues to take to court,” Jim Kreider, Stop B2H co-chair, said. Years ago, the Oregon Legislature, acting at the behest of power companies, fast-tracked the energy siting process, bypassing lower courts and funneling challenges directly to the Supreme Court. This highly unusual process means that Oregon’s highest court has no previous lower court reviews to inform it. “It’s a lot for them to absorb and a lot for us to go forward,” he said. Stop B2H’s other co-chair, Irene Gilbert, said the group will consider various procedural errors, interpretation of the law and the utility’s noncompliance with rules and standards. Stop B2H and other challengers have sixty days from being served with the siting council’s final order on Oct. 7, 2022, to notify the Supreme Court of their intent to appeal, and fourteen days thereafter to file written arguments. “The timelines for filing a petition and briefing the case out are insanely short,” said Karl G. Anuta, a Portland-based trial lawyer who focuses on environmental and conservation issues, who will take Stop B2H’s arguments to the Supreme Court. He said there are a host of different procedural issues, as well as substantive concerns about whether the project can meet applicable standards—such as noise and scenic view standards. There’s also the question of why Stop B2H, which represents a broad coalition of individuals and NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022
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