Monday, July 7, 2008

Why Not Here?

Ranch at the Canyons, Terrebonne, Oregon
Like most of us, I love living in Central Oregon.  But there is one thing I still miss about my old life in San Francisco.  In a little over an hour, I could be in the heart of wine country.  In just a few hours, I could visit several wineries, tour their vineyards, sample their wines and chat with the winemaker or owner and still be home for dinner. 
Why can’t we do that here?  After all, we live in an area where lots of other crops grow.  We have innovative entrepreneurs.  We have Oregon State University extension agents.  So, where are the wineries?  Why don’t we have a wine industry?