Support Local by Reading Local

Celebrating Oregon wines

By Michele Francisco, OWP Editor

You likely already know May is Oregon Wine Month, a campaign dedicated to fostering our state’s wine. Wineries across Oregon mark the occasion in many memorable ways. Check our directory for exciting events over Memorial Day and the previous weekend. Join our statewide celebration!

Did you also know economic activities centered around grape growing, wine production, sales and promotion within our state generated $8.1 billion in 2022? And, as demand increases for Oregon wine, vineyard plantings have grown by nearly 20 percent since 2021. Currently, grapes comprise the state’s most valuable fruit crop– valued at an astounding $330 million. The strides made by our nascent industry during the last 50 years are truly incredible.

Here, at Oregon Wine Press, we know our state’s wines are worth celebrating every month. We feel humbled by the opportunity to present interesting stories and wines to you. To my knowledge, no other state has a more robust publication dedicated solely to its wine industry. That’s pretty special.

Acclaimed wine writer, Karen MacNeil, recently wrote how few publications grant any compensation for well-crafted wine stories. I’m grateful we can pay our freelance contributors for their valuable content. While other print magazines fold, Oregon Wine Press perseveres. As a small family business promoting Oregon’s wine industry, we hope you support the many wineries and businesses sustaining us. We can’t do this without them, or you.

Michele Francisco spent her childhood reading and writing, eventually graduating from UCLA with an English degree. She attended graphic design school and began a career in design and marketing. After moving to Oregon in 2010, Michele studied wine at Chemeketa Community College and began Winerabble, a Northwest-focused wine blog. She has been a cheerleader for Oregon wine since her arrival.