Northwest tour: Portland

This summer I took a week to visit some wineries and must see's in the Northwest. My first stop was Portland; I've heard so many amazing things about microbreweries, wineries, outdoor activities and the overall Austin-like vibe of the city... so I had pretty high expectations going in.

Day One: Vino!
Landing in the morning did not defer us from getting out to Willamette Valley to discover some of the best pinots.

Our tour included:

(Dundee)
Ponzi
Argyle
Archery Summit- We did the actual tour here and I highly recommend it. Later, it was ranked 1 out of 50 best Oregon wines for their 2006 Red Hills Estate Pinot Noir!
Four Graces
Winderlea- best tasting area, outside on a glass deck overlooking the vines.
**Food: Pok Pok. The most amazing, spicy, inventive Thai food. I'm sure my rave for this is elevated since we hadn't eaten all day, but it was still delicious. We had the pork shoulder, hot wings, prawns and some Thai beers. Let's just say I still crave this... its that good! The restaurant is unassuming to say the least, a converted house! They were voted best restaurant in 2007 and have since opened a sister restaurant called Ping.


Day 2: The great outdoors
Just a stone's throw from Portland is some phenomenal hiking; we decided to take in some fresh mountain air at the Columbia Gorge during our 5-mile hike to Angel's Rest. We also ducked into Naked Wines near Mt. Hood. Not very good but the names were hilarious, one label, Penetration, was even banned from a few states because of its provocative description!
**Food: Toro Bravo. Delicious tapas (must try the drunken pork) although there isn't a waiting area there is a cute bar next door.

Day 3: Coastal
We decided to head toward Cannon Beach after a quick stop in the Tillamook cheese factory. Unfortunately the fog was rolling in, so we spent an hour sipping wine on the powder soft beach at Seaside and then popped into a few wineries off hwy 8. Plum Hill wines were good and the table wines were exceptional for the price.
**Food: Bunk sandwiches, for breakfast or lunch. Homemade bread, fried egg, protein of choice with gooey local cheese? Yes please!

Side note: Although we didn't stop in, the street vendor food carts were worth stopping by. They have everything from Vietnamese chicken to gyros to funky flavored ice creams.

Dare I say, but I think this might be one of my favorite cities!