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Wine drinkers, rejoice—it's never been a better time to glug down tasty Oregon wine, and now 20 of the state's top producers are gathering together for a new wine festival dedicated to the state's most promising red grape.
It's called I Love Gamay and it happens May 1st & 2nd at Ned Ludd event space Elder Hall.
Yes, this is an Oregon festival for gamay—not the ubiquitous pinot noir for which the Oregon wine industry is almost exclusively known.
Pinot noir is great—please, take my money—but right now Oregon gamay is where the action is. The grape is most associated with the Beaujolais region of France, and our state grows some of the best of it in the New World—the New York Times' Eric Asimov called a Portland gamay the best to pair with Thanksgiving a couple years back—with promising young winemakers and old hands alike creating expressive, diverse bottles of the stuff.
Related: Forget Mom's Pinot. We're Witnessing the Birth of a Wild and Wonderful New Oregon Wine.
20 winemakers from across the state are taking part of this event, including several of the New Oregon Wine stars featured in our recent wine issue—including festival founders Division Winemaking Company, Bow & Arrow, and Omero winemaker Chad Stock.
Other standouts include progressive winemakers like Bjornson Vineyard and Gorchau Cellars, estate Biodynamic stars Brick House Wine Co., and a multi-course dinner from chefs Cathy Whims (Nostrana) and Jason French (Ned Ludd).
Think of it as like SXSW for Oregon gamay, but you know, less of a corporate immigrant-unfriendly shitpile.
May 1 is the tasting salon, while May 2 is the 30 person dinner with food by French & Whims and heaps of wine.
I Love Gamay, Elder Hall, 3929 NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd. May 1-2. $125-$150.