William Pollard Jr | aka: Wild 4 Washington Wine

"Wine is a celebration beverage, i t elevates exceptional food" - A.J. Kemp, Co-Founder and General Manager, Hawks View Cellars A warm thank you to my friends at Hawks View Cellars. They sent me this lovely bottle of Oregon Pinot Noir to review. This wine was shiny and merits a wine of the week selection. A.J. Kemp in barrel room. Last year I enjoyed visiting Hawks View Cellars in the Chehalem Mountains of Oregon. The visit was one of the 2012 Wine Bloggers pre-conference excursions. Hawks View Cellars is a private winery and only provides private wine tastings. You must contact the winery in advance to schedule your tasting visit. With a production of 2,500 cases a year, they have the capacity to expand to 5,000 cases. But there's no rush. They are focused on producing premium wines with fruit from Oregon, Washington and California.

Five wonderful days in Oregon Wine Country.  Photo: Phelps Creek Vineyards view. There's a treasure trove of wine across the Columbia River. While I've preoccupied myself with my Washington wine pursuits, I've ignored a wealth of wine next door. I'm referring to Oregon Wine. This month I spent five enlightening days in Oregon, sampling the best of Oregon wine. The fifth annual Wine Bloggers Conference was hosted in Portland, Oregon. I was fortunate to attend. There are not enough words for me to express how affected I was by my experience in Oregon. Oregon winemakers are creating and expressing true wine passion. You can tell by the exquisite wines they are making. Oregon is an environment where sharing and inspiring each other is the norm. Environmentally aware, Sustainable, Organic and Bio-Dynamic are natural topics of conversation in Oregon wineries. Northern Oregon wine country is minutes from the vibrant city scene of Portland. I visited wineries a...