Wine Country and Whitewater: Your Rogue Valley Basecamp
The Rogue Valley was just named the #1 wine region in the country in USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards, a jump from second place last year, and the timing couldn’t be better: the Rogue Valley AVA is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year. But here’s what doesn’t always make the headlines: you don’t have to choose between a wine country trip and an outdoor adventure. In Grants Pass, you get both, often in the same afternoon.
A Region Built for Wandering
The Rogue Valley AVA stretches roughly 70 miles wide and 60 miles long, running from Grants Pass to Ashland and looping through the Applegate Valley along the way. More than 80 wineries call this stretch home, producing wine from around 70 different grape varieties, a range made possible by the valley’s diverse elevations, soils, and microclimates. It’s part of what makes the region genuinely rare: you can taste a cool-climate Pinot and a sun-loving Tempranillo without leaving the same valley.
Grants Pass sits right at the western edge of all of it, which makes it the perfect basecamp for your wine getaway, with a side of outdoor adventure.
Pair Your Pour With the River (or the Trail)
Bookend your day of wine tasting with adventures in the beautiful surrounding valley. Spend your morning on a Rogue River float or Cathedral Hills hike, and save the afternoon for a flight of wine with a view of the vines that made this valley famous. Add in Oregon Caves, live music at a brewery, or a stroll through downtown Grants Pass, and you’ve got a weekend that doesn’t ask visitors to pick a lane.
Plan the Trip
For first-timers, the Applegate Valley offers an easy, low-key entry point to the wine trail, close enough to Grants Pass for a half-day loop. From there, it’s a short drive to wineries scattered throughout the wider valley, many with tasting rooms open daily through the summer season. Some local favorites include Plaisance Ranch (sustainable winery and organic cattle ranch), Wooldridge Creek (Oregon’s first combined winery and creamery) and Troon Vineyard (biodynamic farm with hardworking livestock guardian dogs, Beau and Belle). With fifteen wineries all under an hour from town, Grants Pass has the perfect afternoon for wine lovers of every kind.
Relax and Refuel
After a long day of wine tasting, you’ve earned a delicious meal! Grants Pass offers everything from fine dining to food truck finds to farm-to-table cuisine, with tables on rooftops, on patios, and along the river. You’re guaranteed to find a meal that hits the spot.
Ready to Plan Your Visit?
Find Grants Pass lodging and learn more about our award-winning wine country. We’ll save you a glass!
