Cascade Cliffs – Hood River

After spending two hours standup paddle boarding on the river, we needed to cool down with some good wine.
A friend of ours purchased a Groupon for Cascade Cliffs, which included four wine tastings (of 5+ flights) and two cheese plates. All for $ 30.
It sounds like they attract a lot of Portlanders with this Groupon, but it works, because I don’t know that I would have checked out Cascade Cliff otherwise.
Joni, our server, was pleasant. We learned that her brother owns the vineyard, so she was knowledgeable about the different grapes and blends.
The inside was nice. They sell some different lotions at the front, and they have a jug of ice-​cold water and glasses available. I really liked that they showcase their oldest (30-​year-​old) Merlot grapevine as decoration. While it was clean and cool inside, it was quiet, and I think the place could benefit from some soft background music.
My favorite wine was the Paisian – a Sangiovese and Merlot blend. The cheese selection was tasty, but it wasn’t labeled, so we didn’t know what cheese we were enjoying.
Overall, it was a nice afternoon pitstop.

We bought a Groupon for two which included wine tastings for two and a cheese plate. And we were so glad we did! Super friendly but not overbearing host … I believe she was the owners sister. All of the wines were very good and the little cheese plate had an assortment of sliced cheeses and dried fruit with rice crackers… perfect for a happy hour. Crackers are provided to clean your palate. They even had a small kids nook to hang out while the adults tasted. The only downfall for us was the price of their bottles of wine; least expensive was $ 20.

Super friendly and knowledgeable staff. Wines were delicious and original. Well worth the visit.

I will put the good up front. The staff is very friendly and the wine we drank in the tasting room was very good. However, I don’t recommend buying any bottles of wine from them. We bought six different bottles of wine and when we opened them at home they ranged from lackluster to horribly undrinkable. As if it were some kind of wine Russian Roulette. The Tempranillo I had at the shop was exceptional, but the Tempranillo I brought home could only be described as underwhelming. I had a taste of the Reserve Zinfandel and it was superb. The bottle of Reserve Zinfandel that I opened at home was pure vinegar. Ironically the least expensive bottle of wine, The Goats Head Red, was the best and it still ranked on the level of cheap supermarket wine. Hopefully they can get their quality control up to par because there is a marked difference from what was served in the shop to what was sold to me.

Excellent wine! Great tasting room service, helpful, knowledgable and fun staff. Has a nice relaxed atmosphere and a great convenient location. The Cabernet is excellent too.

Just came back from our first weekend trying Hood River wines and this was by far our favorite. Loved the Nebbiolo, Syrah and Sangiovese. yes, the price point is higher than we usually pay but the quality shows through. Looking forward to becoming members when they open their tasting room in Woodinville this fall.

Cascade Cliffs is another beautiful setting on the Washington side of the Columbia River. The setting feels more rustic that its neighbor Jacob Williams and the wines share that same sentiment. We came when it was a bit busy but we were set up at a barrel close to the wine bar and were quickly poured our first glass of wine, a 2011 Nebbiolo. We settled in, introduced ourselves to Max (attention loving pooch) and soaked in the charm of one of the oldest wineries in the Columbia River Gorge.
There were a couple of stellar wines that we were able to taste here. My favorite wine was the 2011 Tempranillo. As I mentioned before, the wines here match the rustic charm. If you have never had a Tempranillo, you can smell the rich almost leather like scent. This probably sounds quite odd but reality is this wine was exceptional. I bought a bottle for myself and at the advice of Jared, I will wait until 2015 before I allow myself to indulge.
My final though for Cascade Cliffs is that I really appreciated them letting us taste more than what was on their tasting list. We sampled eight different wines (one was a barrel sample) and I walked away not just with a couple of bottles of wine but also seriously contemplating whether or not I am going to join their wine club.

You can’t go wrong with the full bodied Barberra that they serve here. It’s a great family friendly location!

Great wines and very fun service, especially liked their Tempranillo! Brought a large group and they were more than accommodating. ¹⁰⁄₁₀

Really loved this tasting room! They were featuring all complex reds with lots of flavor! Our hostess was very friendly and more than happy to discuss each varietal with us. The had an awesome empranillo however the Syrah was also lovely. Wines definately have a complexity about them. If you aren’t able to get to the winery, it’s definately worth stopping in here for a tasting. Very affordable just $ 5 a tasting.