Perrie and I had company last weekend, so Saturday we took them out for some wine tasting in the Willamette Valley southwest of Portland. We started with August Cellars just outside Sherwood, and then headed to Erath and Winderlea near Dundee.

After lunch at the Dundee Bistro it was off to Sokol Blosser. They were really busy so we didn’t taste anything there, but they have one of the prettiest vineyards around here, as you can see in the landscape photos. (It helped that, while we were there, the sun came out for a few minutes in an otherwise overcast and rainy day.)

Since we were out that far already, we decided to head out for a brief visit to the coast. Hazelnuts are just coming into season here, so we stopped at a roadside stand and bought a bag. We also took the opportunity to stop for pie and coffee (and a loaf of the insanely good molasses bread) at the Otis Cafe.

We made it to Cape Meares just before dusk, and found it extremely blustery. We didn’t stay long there—a quick look at the Octopus Tree, a peak at Oregon’s shortest lighthouse, and back to the car.

We arrived back in Portland just after 8, tired but satisfied with a good day of touring. And with half a dozen bottles of good wine and five pounds of filberts to roast.

Click the thumbnails to see photos from the day.