In Medford we visited the Urban Cork theurbancork.com and Pallet Wine Company palletwine.com located three blocks off Main Street in Medford. State of the art grape crusher - some vineyards still use feet, but this machine can easily process tons of grapes at a time. This is where they leave barrels of wine to ferment. Winemaker Linda Donovan earned her degree in fermentation science from the University of California Davis in 1990, and has done extensive research into winemaking since. She opened this facility in 2009. If you travel through Central Point, be sure to stop in for three shops in a row on Front Street: Cheese, Chocolate, and Wine. The Rogue Creamery has been in Central Point for eighty years, with dairies along the banks of the Rogue River. Their mission statement: "People dedicated to sustainability, service, and the art and tradition of creating the world's finest handmade cheese." This is Tom VanVoorhees, Cheese Shop Ring Master (his official title). You can find the Rogue Creamery at 311 N Front St, Central Point roguecreamery.com. Right next door is Lillie Belle Farms, 211 N Front Street, Central Point lilliebellefarms.com. They make The Most Awesome Chocolate Bar EVER! Of course I had to try one because they use all natural ingredients, including organic sugar. To really appreciate this awesome chocolate bar, you must read the ingredients and look them up before you eat it. The bar tastes somewhat like a chocolate peanut butter cup, but there's much more to it. If you love chocolate, you have to try this bar. |
When we visited in October, the shop was all decked out for Halloween. Chocolatier Jeff Shepherd of Lillie Belle Farms Handmade Chocolates. Right between the Rogue Creamery and the Lillie Belle chocolate shop is a winery, Ledger David Cellars Tasting room, 245 North Front Street, Central Point ledgerdavid.com. This is a family-owned and operated vineyard tasting room. They welcome you to bring a picnic, or just a bag of chocolate, and enjoy your food while you taste their wine. Mekayla Hamlin, a ninth-generation Oregonian and the winery owner's daughter, hosted our wine tasting experience. The entire town of Jacksonville is designated National Historic Landmark. The town is walkable, with many historic homes and buildings, a pioneer cemetery, and a trolly car tour. The town's history goes back to 1851, during the gold rush. Jacksonville is home to the Britt Music Festival and is the gateway to the Applegate Valley Wine Trail. The Jacksonville photos are by Tara Fisher, fine art photographer, courtesy of Jacksonville Oregon Chamber of Commerce. Photo by Tara Fisher, fine art photographer, courtesy of Jacksonville Oregon Chamber of Commerce. Photo by Tara Fisher, fine art photographer, courtesy of Jacksonville Oregon Chamber of Commerce. Photo by Tara Fisher, fine art photographer, courtesy of Jacksonville Oregon Chamber of Commerce. Photo by Tara Fisher, fine art photographer, courtesy of Jacksonville Oregon Chamber of Commerce. On the Applegate Valley Wine Trail above Jacksonville, DANCIN Vineyards offers wine tasting and fine dining. The founders are Dan and Cindy Marca, hence the name DANCIN. Dan Marca told us about his vineyards and described his business philosophy. He believes in feeding people, so DANCIN offers fine dining. The pizza was amazing, and so were the salads and desert. This is a view of the hills surrounding DANCIN. Their vineyards are located near Jacksonville dancinvineyards.com. Downtown Portland | Breitenbush | Ashland | Medford | Central Point | Jacksonville | Grants Pass | Wildlife Safari Photos of other places |