Summary: Portland, long famous as the Rose City, is becoming world renowned as the gateway to Oregon Wine Country. On a recent visit to Portland we joined family members on a informal tour through the Willamette Valley stopping off at Stoller Family Estate, Anne Amie Vineyard, Lemelson Vineyards, Cana’s Feast Winery and, the crème de la crème, Archery Summit. Although the weather was typically overcast, the day was sparkling with good cheer and filled with many fine samplings. We were in a vinicultural mood because our home-away-from-home was Bill Kimpton’s Hotel Vintage Plaza. Considering the fact that along with creating his first hotel in San Francisco in 1981, Kimpton also inaugurated the first complimentary nightly wine hour, it’s not surprising that he took the wine theme hotel-wide when he opened his first non-California accommodation, the Hotel Vintage Plaza, in 1991. The name of each room at the Vintage Plaza celebrates a different Oregon wine and the Kimpton’s signature Wine Hour flourishes in this location. Speaking of wine, Pazzo, the rustic Italian restaurant attached at the lobby to the property, has an excellent wine list including three special tasting flights which introduce the diner to three samples of Sparkling, Pinot Noirs and Italian vintages. During this latest pod cast, recorded in the restaurant on New Year’s Eve afternoon, I spoke with Pazzo Chef John Eisenhart and General Manager Jason Gordon about Oregon food and wine and the Vintage Plaza Hotel. For information on the Vintage Plaza go to VintagePlaza.com. Take a look at Chef John’s Tenth Anniversary menu at Pazzo.com.
