Want a tiny trip with big impact? These are my favorite quick drives to awaken the wanderer’s spirit and get the lay of the land around McMinnville.

The Red Hills Loop (The Dundee Hills AVA)

You will know the Dundee Hills by their swiftly rising island of red volcanic soils, just 28 miles southwest of Portland. More than 50 wineries produce wine here, including many of Oregon’s heritage producers and award-winning wineries. While you can’t see them all at once, you can get a nice sampling of landscape and product by taking what I sometimes describe to visitors as The Red Hills Loop.

Start just south of Dundee on Hwy 99, take a right after the weigh station. Turn right on NE McDougall Road. Stop in at Remy Wines, located in a 1900s farmhouse, for a selection of bold, Old World-style reds. The stop will be a visit with a true artist, one working in non-traditional grape varieties such as Lagrein, Dolcetto, Sangiovese, and Barbera.

Head up into the hills on NE Breyman Orchards Road. Where the hill crests sits Durant Olive Mill at Red Ridge Farms, a sensualist’s wonderland where a height-of-adorable gift shop and nursery will have you running like a gold retriever from pot to pot to catch the next fragrance. Next door, the same family operates the Durant Vineyards Tasting Room, where, on a high visibility day, Pinot and the peak of Mt. Hood are a perfect pairing from an outdoor patio

Follow Breyman Orchards Road further and take a right on Archery Summit Road, taking the curves deep into the woods before the road hugs famed producer Archery Summit’s hillside Pinot block, otherwise known as Summit Vineyard. Here you’re close to Ground Zero for the perfect conditions for producing Pinot noir. Wines sourced from this area are an exceptional example of Willamette Valley Pinot noir, characterized by earth and mushroom with the concentrated red and black cherry notes endemic to the varietal.

The Land of Bounty Loop (McMinnville AVA)

Just southwest of McMinnville sits the same-name American Viticulture Area, known for how the area’s cold nights and sedimentary soil produce a bright acidity in its wines. These are lesser-known wine country roads well worth exploring, rich in landscape and dotted with family farms where you can grab a quick bite.

Start south of McMinnville atFarmer John’s, where you can marvel at the spirit of the seaso, nab ice cream for the road or pick up a few boxes of the latest berries. Continue down 99W and look for Bernard’s Farmon the left, home to a fabulous pick-your-own flowers field (call ahead for availability).

Take a right on SW Muddy Valley Road, right at the Lawrence Gallery, where works by modern masters (think Picasso, Chagall and Dali) hang alongside some of the best regional artists. Continue down SW Muddy Valley Road towards Maysara Winery, a family-owned operation producing classic Pacific Northwest varietals like Pinot noir, Pinot gris and Riesling. The focus here is on wine made in the vineyard, without the addition of any chemicals, and that’s always been the case.

Drive on a few miles and take left at SW Eagle Point Road. One mile down the road on the right sits Coeur De Terre Vineyard, an off-the-beaten path gem where artisanal, organically farmed wines are grown in concert with the climate. Head back towards 99W (SW Eagle Point Road turns into SW Masonville Road). Take a right on SW McCabe Chapel Road towards the most picture-postcard cute church in the valley, McCabe Chapel Church.

Do “The Carlton”: Loop (Yamhill-Carlton AVA)

Do The Carlton for real by looping around this sweet small town just five miles from McMinnville and a few off Hwy 99W.

In Lafayette, take a right on NE Bridge Street, which rolls through the countryside and past a Benedictine abbey and turns into NE Abbey Farm Road. A few miles down the road you’ll see a sign for Abbey Road Farm on your left, site of a destination farm, event center and vineyard. It’s a sweet stop to see alpacas, sheep, geese and donkeys. Go further down the road and take a left on NE Hendricks Road and look for the new modern farmhouse tasting room of Dominio IV, a respected producer of Oregon varietals and, incidentally, my favorite Viognier.

Take a left out of the parking lot and continue down NE Hendricks Road towards Carlton, where you have your pick of wineries and adorable small town sightings. My picks are Cana’s Feast, where the winemaker pays special attention to bouquet (he’s a super-sniffer), Ken Wright Cellars, even if there isn’t any more of that 2012 Abbott’s Claim Pinot noir named #1 in the world by Wine Enthusiast magazine. Take Hwy 47 south as the sun sets and you’re well on your way back to McMinnville.

Don’t want to do the driving? Visit McMinnville recommends Insiders Wine Tour, Custom Valley Tour, Hippie Sip Tour, A Nose for Wine, and Willamette Wine Concierge should you decide you want to concentrate on the view.

Read more at Visit McMinnville.

Baths solve everything, but you don’t need a tub. If you’re traveling to McMinnville, think about weaving in a little forest bathing, a new/old practice that might be the perfect add-on for any trip to the area.

Forest Bathing

Just what is forest bathing? It is both as old as time – people have always lived in relationship to nature – and as new as the 1980s. During that go-getting decade, people in Japan developed the idea of Shinrin-yoku as a way to combat the stresses of modern life through regular immersion in the woods.

In the period since, studies have noted specific health benefits beyond the catchall term stress reduction. They include benefits you can feel in your body directly, like improved mood, increased ability to focus, increased energy levels, and improved sleep, to improved indicators for overall health like reduced blood pressure and a boost to the body’s ability to combat disease.

These are all great, but personally, I’m just as hung up on the intangibles, the things harder to measure, which have been reported with forest bathing. These include benefits like clearer intuition, better ability to communicate, deepening social ties, and an increase in overall happiness. 

If you’re suddenly thinking: “Get me some woods, stat!” then I have some places for you.

Best places and events to forest bathe in and around McMinnville

Forest bathing series:
Yoga teacher and owner of 4 Elements Yoga Erin Bowman brings regular forest bathing group sessions to local parks this summer.  Check in for guided forest bathing events on July 6, 13, 20, and 27 and August 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31. Contact McMinnville Parks & Recreation for more info.

Summer Event (July 19-21):
Artist Day Schildkret, a creator of impermanent earth art, comes to McMinnville for a weekend immersion with 4 Elements Yoga. The event includes a community creation of impermanent nature-inspired art, forest bathing, and a weekend workshop. Contact 4 Elements Yoga for details.

Miller Woods
This nature reserve located three miles west of McMinnville features 130 acres of woodland, grassland, as well as miles of unpaved forest paths with possibilities for hikers of all abilities.Commune with the majesty of native oaks right near the parking lot, or immerse yourself completely in a forest bath of Doug fir.

Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge
Bird is the word, but native oaks are the silent speakers here. This refuge was set aside as a habitat for bird species, but includes a native oak savanna perfect for forest bathing. The trail you want is called the Rich Guadagno Memorial Loop Trail and leads you through a sumptuous white oak perched on one of those classic Willamette Valley hilltop.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Trappist Abbey
Silent walks and forest bathing are a pure delight at this abbey between Lafayette and Carlton, where visitors can spend an afternoon in quiet reflection among the trees, the sun, and the passing clouds. Be cognizant that you are sharing space with a monastery as you enjoy the reflection pond and the trails around a restored native oak savanna.

Where is your favorite place to forest bathe? Have you tried it?

Read more at Visit McMinnville.

Sometimes you just want the perfect picture for your Instagram feed so you can spend the rest of your time just living your best life. Check out these sweet backdrops in Oregon’s coolest historic small town Main Street for an easy photo op. Then you can get back to doing what you do best: Actual travel.

1. The Secret Room at the Atticus Hotel

Where: Off of the lobby, to the left.
Why: It is impossible not to feel like your most glamorous self in this place.
How: Wear your best clothes to fit in with the darkly nostalgic hidden parlor.

2. Love Where You Live mural by Zachary Hixon and Mitchell Charles

Where: On the side of La Bella Casa home goods store on Davis Street and 3^rd
Why: You’re a local here, whether you’ve lived here forever or just a weekend.
How: Don’t get hit by a car! Watch for traffic as you back up to get the perfect shot. Or: Selfie with the tiny, in-sign landscape by Zachary Hixson.

3. McMinnville Lady mural by Ashley Hope

Where: Right behind The Oak on Cowls Street
Why: This larger-than-life lady knows how to do McMinnville best: With a drizzle-friendly attitude and a bouquet of flowers.
How: You’ll have to get this one at an angle from Evans Street sidewalk.

4. Associated Gasoline Sign

Where: At the Barberry Restaurant
Why: With its old-timey appeal and its strong, contrasting color, graphic style, this makes every person look and feel cooler than they are.
How: Really get a streetside table for drinks and ask your server. Everyone does it.

5. Thistle Cocktail Bar

Where: In one of wine country’s most lauded farm-to-table restaurants
Why: Two words: Tufted couches.
How: First invite mixologist Patrick to make you his favorite cocktail that day and then set up your shoot in your own rustic glamour lounge.

6. Marquis Moment

Where: You, under the classic Mack theater sign.
Why: Because now you know that everyone calls this place Mac and you’re ready for a Marquis moment.
How: Stand near the Mes Amies store sign and you’ll have the same shot that’s been featured in many a national magazine.

7. All about the Benjamin (Franklin, that is)

Where: In the US Bank plaza.
Why: Apart from being your patriotic duty, it’s a swell sculpture and you can insert your favorite Franklin quote in the caption. Here’s a good one: “Well done is better than well said.”
How: Any angle will do. This is America, after all.

Read more at VisitMcMinnville.com.

Wine is a full-body pleasure, in the making as well as consuming. You can learn and experience a ton by visiting these artists and learning from their approach to a product that engages all the senses.

Sight: Patrick Reuter of Dominio IV

Winemaker Patrick Reuter was a senior studying at the University of Oregon the first time he tried to translate the experience of wine visually. He has spent the decades since painting visual descriptions of his wines, even turning one of the paintings into a label for the winery’s Scorched Earth Syrah. The labels he paints show, in visual language, the way someone might experience one of his wines. They are a marvel.

“The visual powers of the brain are enormous, lightning fast and magnificently perceptive,” Reuter says. “Why struggle with words when you can just see it and immediately, intuitively understand it?” 

Where to go: Dominio IV tasting room, 11570 NE Intervale Rd, Carlton, OR 97111

Taste: Maria Stuart of R. Stuart Wines

Food and wine are Maria Stuart’s love languages. Each harvest season, she feeds the R. Stuart harvest team dinner every single night, based on the recipes she develops for the enormously beloved food and wine pairing newsletter she sends to the R. Stuart wine club. It’s a massive undertaking, with giant heart behind it. 

“Wine tasting is the thing, isn’t it? We don’t go “wine smelling” or “wine touching,” we go “wine tasting.” However, our tasting experience actually includes both aroma and texture and can’t truly be separated from either. Our sensory experiences encompass the senses of our body and also what’s going around us. We absorb it all and it all plays into our experience of a wine.”

Where to go: R. Stuart Wine Bar, 528 NE 3rd Street 

Hearing: Nathan Klosterman of Argyle

It takes a patient soul to wait out the three years for sparkling wine to develop, but winemaker Nate Klosterman never had a problem with this particular Marshmallow Test. Raised by a kindergarten teacher and a veterinarian, his ability to experiment, taste, and wait for that perfect, clear pop of bubbly is the foundation of Argyle’s nationally renowned sparkling program. He’s quiet and thoughtful, the anti-party animal making the world’s best party beverage.

“The sound of a popping cork universally means “time to celebrate,” Klosterman said. “That celebration can take many forms—birthdays, weddings, anniversaries.  For us it means celebration of the vintage and all of the work that went into each and every bottle of our sparkling wine.” 

Where to go: Argyle Winery, 691 OR-99W, Dundee, OR 97115

Smell: Patrick Taylor of Cana’s Feast

Winemaker Patrick Taylor tends to announce himself in every room he enters, wearing vetiver-based colognes he develops himself. Super-sniffing is just one of the talents he brings to Pinot noir — the world’s most fragrant varietal —  at Cana’s Feast. For Taylor, the scent of a wine (let’s call it the bouquet), is the first indicator of a wine’s character, triggering long-ago memories, creating pleasure, and inspiring connections we can’t always pinpoint with words.

“Our sense of smell and taste are primitive senses – the wiring was developed before our higher cognitive functions evolved,” Taylor said.  “We tend to “react” more viscerally to flavors and aromas rather than to make judgments of reason about them.”

Where to go: Cana’s Feast, 750 W. Lincoln Street, Carlton, OR 97111

Touch: Rollin Soles of ROCO Winery 

Soles is the suburban cowboy of the Oregon wine industry, whose jokes belie the seriousness of the has brings to the craft, first at Argyle Winery, which he founded, and now at ROCO Winery. At ROCO, he’s experimenting with adding aged stems to wine to change to texture and structure in The Stalker, a Pinot noir that earns 91 points by Wine Spectator.

“This produces a Pinot noir wine that hits all the levels of texture that tannin can offer,” Soles said. “Skin tannins for smoothness, brown stem tannin for a middle, spiced grip, and seed tannin for just a touch of strong handshake type  to the wine.” 

Where to go: ROCO Winery, 13260 NE Red Hills Rd, Newberg, OR 97132

Sixth Sense

Winemaker Meg Murray’s catchphrase should probably be “I see wine people.” In the runup to the 2016 election, Murray launched Nasty Woman Wines, a wine label featuring a range of varietals that are “unapologetic” in their expression. Wine, she says, has a tendency to spark discussion.

“Wine naturally brings people together and stimulates conversation,” Murray said.  “NASTY WOMAN WINES was created to not only help get more women to the table in policy and leadership by donating 20% of net profits towards that end, but to also get more people around the table and talking about feminist issues.”

Where to buy: Harvest Fresh Grocery & Deli,  251 NE 3rd St, McMinnville, 97128

To learn more, go to Visit McMinnville.

Right on the heels of a case I had closed like Forever 21 I got a hot tip about a place out northeast of McMinnville that has tongue’s wagging and wine lovers up in a tizzy. They call it Stoller Family Estate. I’ve read in the local rags that it’s been raining awards over there. Best Tasting Room in the Country. One of the Best Family-friendly Wineries. First winery in the world to achieve LEED Gold certification.

I don’t like to be rated. I like to get out in front. Get a little lead, take a little breather in the backstretch, and then come home free. But there’s one thing that I can’t figure out. What makes Stoller run. The wine country detective is on the case.

Like a painter repainting the same canvas all over again, I follow a series of clues that can only add up to a full picture.

It’s the drive in.

You might call it a long and winding road. I might call it deliverance. The drive in might have enough curves to soften the most hard-boiled of detectives. Farm country bucolic with a finish in a parking lot pointed towards Mt. Hood. She doesn’t always show up though, that femme fatale. As a wise friend once said, when you’re an ancient mountain, you do what you want.

It’s the place.

You might find it funny. Look at a mountain in the parking lot, gaze at the hills once you’re in the place. But here, the eyes are on the prize. Rows of grapes planted on a family farm that’s been around since 1943. I’ve heard it’s founder Bill Stoller’s favorite view. I stopped liking things in 1997 but if I know people, I’ll say you’ll like it, too. You can’t tell just by looking at it, but that’s planted 70% with Pinot noir, 25% with Chardonnay, 5-8% with 10 other varieties going about their business in plain sight.

It’s the people.

Inside, I turn my attention to the staff. They’ve got their stories straight. It’s a tale of a farm where 700,000 turkeys once lived, transformed in 1993 to a family estate vineyard. First vintage in 2001. A new net-zero building. LEED certification. B-Corp status. By all accounts, Stoller’s one of the good guys. I tease out more and find they are helpful sources. They’ve learned on the job. They know the wines. They don’t hold back. I hear them send tasters to friends at other wineries down the road like it isn’t a dog-eat-dog world we’re living in.

It’s the wine.

I try a flight and end with a 2015 Reserve Pinot noir. I remember that summer. Hotter than a July blacktop. The nose is perfume. Aromatics of black cherry, cedar and licorice. It’s tannin on the tongue. Hints of ripe red fruits. I’m a tough guy. I’ve been sapped twice, choked, beaten silly, shot in the arm until I’m crazy as a couple of waltzing mice. But now I’m going to do something really tough— not ask for another.

It’s the Adirondack chairs.

This is one mystery where the clues add up. I take a seat on one of the rows of white Adirondack chairs pointed towards the hill. Down below, a tire swing hangs from an old oak. A family plays frisbee golf on the lawn. Pooches curl around their owners legs as they sip. Cloud tendrils float across the sky. Did I just say “tendrils?” A man’s in danger of getting a little sentimental. It’s a done deal. In the case of Stoller, it’s not one thing. It’s all the things.

Read more at Visit McMinnville.

The Tiny Travelers love to tell people where to go and what to do. But this month’s adventure takes on a particular sense of urgency. In this month of Thanksgiving, there might not be anything more meaningful in travel than to take a group of your family or friends to the Chachalu Museum and Cultural Center in Grande Ronde, just a short drive from McMinnville. What you’ll get is an immersive experience in the living culture of Oregon’s Native American people, the kind of un-textbook learning that might just change your life.

The museum opened two years ago with the name Chachalu, a Kalapuya word meaning “place of burnt timbers,” which referred to a devastating fire that burned through the Grande Ronde Valley shortly before several regional Native American tribes were relocated by the U.S. government in 1856. Today, the 4,000 square-foot museum honors the idea that just as the forests and streams have replenished themselves in the wake of devastation, the tribe is actively at work revitalizing its cultures and impacting education about tribal life in Oregon. 

In the spirit of inciting you to get there pronto, I’m going to tell you about six moments we had there recently as a family.

Moment 1: The gallery

Right now, an exhibition of contemporary art holds space in the museum’s rotating gallery. It’s a special selection of hand-made, useful objects and artistic expressions, many of which are taken right off the walls and used in ceremony by tribal members. That reed skirt, so delicate and lovely, might next week be worn at any number of events where the tribe practices its culture. The best art feels alive, and these objects particularly so.

Moment 2: The map

Two giant walls are given over to an aerial image of the lands once occupied by one of the tribes that were forcibly removed and relocated to Grand Ronde. It’s an astounding emotional moment when you realize just how much land these people once called home. 

Moment 3: The canoes

Living culture means that the giant, hand-carved canoes in the museum are frequently taken out for ritual gatherings with other tribal groups. The museum is staffed largely by tribal members, so all you have to do is ask what it’s like to row that thing upstream.

Moment 4: The language app

Try the in-museum app (called Chinuk Wawa) or you can download it at home. Created by the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community, it teaches the chinuk wawa language through practice, games and quizzes, and has a section on basic tribal history, songs and stories. The real tiny travelers, my kids, are obsessed.

Moment 5: The Bentwood Box

Two years ago, the museum opened with an exhibition called “Rise of the Collectors,” which was a show of loaned objects taken from the area by British ethnographers in the early 20th century and now owned by the British Museum.  It’s a longer story worth revisiting in this excellent piece by OPB. Suffice to say that the objects have returned to the British Museum but are curiously and powerfully honored in the Bentwood Box space at Chachalu. It’s a gut punch of a presentation.

When you go:

• Consider going with a group and getting a group tour. Stopping by is just fine, and still very much worth it, but you’ll get more value when you engage people involved with the museum.
• Pack a lunch and eat outside if the weather holds up. It’s a really cool building.
• You get to pump your own gas at the nearby gas station in Grande Ronde. This holds much novelty for young Oregon children by the way.
• The museum is one minute off of Hwy 22, making it the perfect stop on your way to the beach.
• Tell everyone you know about your experience here.

Read more at Visit McMinnville.

Every year, the tiny travelers seek out great gifts you can buy locally this holiday season, presents your loved ones can’t help but sing about. 

On the 12th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… 🎵

Twelve Cases Aging
Take your pick from among 20 downtown tasting rooms, or pick one from each and take a full case of McMinnville home with you. 

Eleven Scarves for Swishing
Scarves are the perfect gift. Seasonal. Flashy. Cozy. Infinitely variable in texture, print, material and affect. Nab some great neckties at Mes Amies, Accessory Appeal, Many Hands, and Yamhill Valley Dry Goods.

Ten Luscious Lattes
Take your bestie out for coffee anytime they want with a gift card from Flag & Wire, home to award-winning baristas and single-origin brews. If you buy the coffee, you can take credit for their big project, new promotion, or college degree.

Nine McMinnville Candles

These heavenly hygge-makers come from Landmark Fine Goods, available at the Mac Market, and are, I’m predicting, going to be the go-to, catch-all gift for 2019.

Eight Gripping Novels

Slow down with some literary therapy from Third Street Books this season. Here’s our picks:

Colson Whitehead’s Nickel Boys, Steven King’s The Institute, Margaret Atwoods’ The Testaments, J.K. Rowling’s Illustrated Harry Potter (the 4th is out!), The Water Dancer by Ta-Nahasi Coates, The Dutch House by Ann Patchett, Elizabeth Strout’s Olive, Again, Joe Wilkins’ Fall Back Down When I Die, and Juliet Grames’ The Seven Or Eight Lives of Stella Fortuna.

Seven Stylish Vases

Go the extra mile for someone special with a handmade vessel at Currents Gallery; or, if you prefer DIY gifts, head to Golden Girls Pottery to paint-your-own. Stick some flowers in that baby, and you’re golden. 

Six Sexy Bracelets

Or necklaces. Or earrings. Or pendants. Word on the street is that the styles of the season call on trends like rough gemstone pendants, geometric shapes and variations on the classic hoop. Mes Amies, Accessory Appeal, Many Hands are your go-to places.

FIVE SASQUATCH THINGS!

When you give the gift of Sasquatch, you say as much about yourself as you do about the receiver. Find imaginative offerings for the lover of all things hirsute at Many Hands Trading. How about Sasquatch trading cards, giant bigfoot slippers, decals, posters, or an enamel pin?

Four Jars of Jam

These jam-makers from Alchemist’s Jam are home-grown (as are the berries) for this adorable stocking choice. I recommend the morning marionberry. You can pick it up locally at Pierano & Daughters. 

Three Cool Plants

Thistle and Pine has a lovely pop-up flower bar at the Mac Market, and should be your destination for all of the Instagram-worthy houseplant love. 

Two Groovy Gloves

A pair of hand-warmers are an auspicious choice for the darkest of seasons, and they carry an implicit message: Don’t meet me with cold hands. Pick up a pair at: Yamhill Valley Dry Goods.

🎵 And a pound of that CALMING TEA!!! 🎵

Seriously, after this season we can use all of the nerve tonic we can get. Local tea emporium Velvet Monkey’s got the goods: Three varieties of calming looseleaf, including my fave, Lazy Daze Organic Tea. Throw in a gorgeous tea pot while you’re at it and you’ve got the perfect gift.

Happy Holidays from All of the Tiny Travelers!

Read more at Visit McMinnville.

When chef Jesse Kinchloe wants to show some love to his wife and business partner, Erica, he knows just what is on the menu: hand-rolled gnocchi. They know more than a little something about romance and food, being the visionaries behind Valley Commissary, one of Willamette Valley’s must-visit restaurants.

“The ingredients or “stars” of a dish make it romantic,” Jesse said. “But far more important these days is having a dinner focused around your loved one’s wants and desires is way more romantic and endearing.”

Yes, the way to someone’s heart might be through the stomach, but these days, simply focusing on what your beloved desires best could be the most amorous choice, whether that’s the adoration of a specific specialty ingredient — oysters, anyone? — the most invitingly intimate setting, or the vision of a distinctive voice in the food community.   

Who’s having a special Valentine’s Day menu in and around McMinnville?

The Joel Palmer Housein Dayton is having what might be a BUCKET LIST four-course, truffle-themed dinner to coincide with the Oregon Truffle Festival. 

Bistro Maison is running its three-course prix fixe menu of French classics and other items to be enjoyed à deux.

Red Hills Kitchenhas the coziest booth — it fits just two! — along with elevated dishes featuring PNW food stars and a bucket of gluten-free donuts to share.

La Rambla has the town’s favorite two-person dish, a paella of shrimp, clams, mussels, chicken, Spanish and house chorizo, pork shoulder, green peas, piquillo peppers, caramelized onion, saffron, and tomato. 

The Barberrypresents a panoply of Pacific Northwest-inspired ingredients making starring turns, like oysters, salmon, Dungeness crab, diver scallops, black cod, and lamb. 

Thistle, home to one of the Pacific Northwest’s most-admired cocktail bars, always has extraordinary, ingredient-forward dishes like garlic soup with duck egg and truffle.

Cuvée in Carlton is always a good choice for an intimate dinner, and has a chef who loves to accommodate menu restrictions.

Pura Vida is the choice if you want the sexy factor of eating with your hands (if you get the legendary tacos) and the unforgettable punchiness of South American flavors.

The Diner is a sweet option for upscale comfort food. 

Here are some other ways to serve your beloved in McMinnville this Valentine’s Day:

• Stop by Velvet Monkey Tea for a truffle by Moonstruck Chocolates
• Grab two donuts at Mac Daddy Donuts. 
• Share a wood-fired pizza at Pizza Capo. 
• Pick up some Baci (Italian kisses) at Pierano & Daughters.
• Pre-order some cupcakes from Confetti Cupcakes.

Spread the love, but remember the napkins!

Read more at Visit McMinnville.

Here’s a fact about DIY personal retreats: You don’t need much more than a place with a desk, a bed, and a way to get food. But what about what you might want? If we are talking about a slower pace, time for creativity, access to great food, and elevated particulars, McMinnville earns a lot of checks on the retreat lover’s questionnaire. 

What you need: Accommodations.

What you really want: A place that inspires you. Whether you’re making goals for your business, taking some journaling space, or composing the next great novel, there might be no more inspiring space than The Atticus, a boutique hotel where every single detail has been thoughtfully considered for you.  It feels less like a hotel than a chance to live a more glamorous, inspired life in a place that takes care of you. 

What you need: Provisions.

What you really want: How about a single street with two dozen restaurants, a grocery store, charm galore, a foodie sensibility, and a luxury hotel with in-room delivery? Yes, please.

What you need: Pens and pencils.

What you really want: Access to the widest range of fancy modern writing implements, notebooks, and analog tools at places like an old-timey office supply store (Oregon Stationers) and an art supply store (The Merri Artist).

What you need: Books.

What you really want: All the books. At the Atticus, each hotel room has hand-selected favorites by locals. The Helen Hunt Suite has a collection of old and new classics like Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, and J.D. Vance’s Hillbilly Elegy; or you can pop down the street to Third Street Books, for well-loved, intimately curated books from across genres. The McMinnville Public Library is just a two-minute walk from downtown.

What you need: Caffeine.

What you really want: The perfect place to reflect while caffeinated. You can always write in your quiet hotel room, but creativity experts say that the best ideas happen in a setting of about 70 decibels of white noise, which means that coffee shop work really might bring you forward. For a place where the WIFI is verboten, head to Velvet Monkey Tea Shop, the novelist’s favorite haunt, or try Flag & Wire Coffee for a buzzing atmosphere. Mac Market can accommodate people who stand while writing and has a great magazine selection for use on-site. 

What you need: Exercise.

What you really want: Movement.Steven King walks every day. David Sedaris gets in  his 50,000 steps. Dani Shapiro makes yoga a part of her daily writing life. Healthy mind and healthy body can be had at three yoga studios in town: Yoga Joy, 4 Elements Yoga, and Boho Yoga. Get strong at the McMinnville Pilates Center. Walk the track at the McMinnville Community Center if it’s raining, for just $1. 

What you need: Relaxation.

What you want: A massage. And you can get one, either delivered in your hotel room, or at Breathe Body & Spa, Spa Bliss, Key to Health Massage, or any number of local licensed practitioners. 

What you need: A break.

What you want: A glass of wine. Or beer. Or even gluten-free beer. Or cider. A late-night cup of tea. Even the most diligent retreat-goer needs a break from all that reflecting. Solitary work, even if desired, can do with an injection of conviviality. Meet people at the Bitter Monk, the Hotel Oregon, Nick’s Backroom, the bar at Thistle, Blue Moon Lounge, or just walk 3rd Street and flaneur your way to a sweet escape.

Read more at Visit McMinnville.

I say it every time I meet someone new in this small wine country town with a name that sounds like it’s from a different century:

There are only five people to meet in McMinnville.

I say five people not to minimize the contributions of the thousands that live here but to show the impact of small town living on its inhabitants. You can meet five people and feel like you understand a place, and that those five people probably connect you to the other 33,000.

Small town travel is different. Given just a few days, you start to feel like part of the wallpaper. You start seeing the same faces passing you on the street, you already know the barista by name, and you are going back to that cozy restaurant for breakfast because it’s already your favorite.

With small town travel, you don’t feel compelled to check items and places off a list. It is a state of being, of stepping into a lifestyle that feels maybe a bit slower, and definitely a whole lot more connected.

Everyone’s list will look different, but here are my Five People:

The Winemaker

Winemakers aren’t hard to find in this town — there are twelve tasting rooms on 3rd Street alone. But it never ceases to amaze me that you can meet a winemaker like Rob Stuart of R. Stuart & Co. Winery at one of the winery’s sumptuous food events and then the next day run into him again at the Grain Station Brew Works grabbing a lager at an outdoor beer garden.

The Foodie

Not at all a rare bird McMinnville, the award-winning chefs are everywhere if you pay attention. It might be Carmen Pierano of Pierano & Daughters picking up vegetables at the local CSA, or maybe Emily Howard, owner of Thistle, hanging out on Evans Street before serving you the meal of your life. It might be Jesse Kincheloe of Valley Commissary who seems to befriend every diner who comes into his restaurant in the Pinot District. The bar for food here is very high.

The Local Celebrity

The other night I was out with a friend staying at the Hotel Oregon, and he just happened to be staying in “Nick’s Room,” the 4th floor room dedicated to Nick Pierano, the founder of James Beard award-winning Nick’s Italian Café. We took pictures with a mural of his face on the west wall of the room. Then we went down to Nick’s Backroom bar behind the eponymous restaurant (now owned by his daughter, Carmen), and took some pictures with the actual Nick.

The Shopkeeper

As a child, we used to play this game with my siblings where each of us owned a shop, and had to pick a day of the week to shop at the other shops. This is exactly how it works in McMinnville. It’s a place made for strolling. So if you encounter a shop that is closed, chances are good that you’ll meet your own personal Mr. Hooper at one of the other shops. Mine is Sylla McClellan, who owns two downtown charmers, Third Street Books and Yamhill Valley Dry Goods. With people like this, small towns start to feel like a circle of love.

The Townie

I have my favorite McMinnville townies — the people who seem to be everywhere, who you pass walking Third Street, see at the grocery store, you seem them having breakfast at Community Plate, you run into them at night at the Bitter Monk. I’m talking about the people who seem to spend 100% of their waking hours in downtown McMinnville. For me, this is McMinnville City Club President Zack Geary. Sometimes it feels like there is a blip in the Matrix. Didn’t I just pass that guy? Yes, I did.

Indeed, there are only five people you meet in McMinnville, and once you’ve met all five, you are very close to situating yourself in the heart of this place.

It may take a weekend, it may only take an afternoon, but it will happen.

Who are your five people you meet in McMinnville? Who knows, the next townie might be you!

Read more at Visit McMinnville.