Yamhill County’s Grochau Cellars Opens a Portland Tasting Room

The company is best known for its Commuter Cuveé Pinot Noir, a blend of fruit from 11 vineyards located across the Willamette Valley.

GC Wines GC Wines new Portland tasting room.
By Andi Prewitt

A Yamhill County winery is marking 20 years of business by bringing its products closer to its Portland drinkers.

Grochau Cellars, located just outside of downtown Amity (about 42 miles southwest of Portland), opened a tasting room at 3450 N Williams Ave., Suite 7, this fall. The business also changed its name: From here on out, Grochau is officially GC Wines.

While the new moniker might be a bit dull, the wines certainly are not. The company is best known for its Commuter Cuveé Pinot Noir, a blend of fruit from 11 vineyards located across the Willamette Valley aged in both French oak and stainless-steel tanks, as well as Melon de Bourgogne, a wine inspired by muscadet made with a grape variety that is common in France’s Loire Valley but rarely grown in the U.S. GC also has a line of natural wines.

Founded by John Grochau in 2002, the company was founded on the principle of minimal intervention during the winemaking process and sourcing grapes from responsible growers. You can now more easily sample the results for yourself in Portland (the Amity tasting room is closed for the season until spring). The new space, located in an open-air corridor of storefronts at The Canyons apartments, seats 17 inside and has a standing bar as well as outdoor seating in the courtyard.

Customers can expect a flight of four GC Wines for $20, which changes each month, along with a bottle list that can be enjoyed in the tasting room or taken home. Beer fans, there’s even a tap handle for you, and a variety of snacks (a nut mix, rice crackers with nori, olives) that everyone can enjoy. Those who want a more substantial meal to go with their wine are welcome to bring in outside food.

The Portland tasting room is open 4-8 pm Friday through Sunday.

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