There are few places in the world more enchanting than Oregon Wine Country. As stewards of the valley floor, the Wilkens family of Abbey Road Farm are passionate about nurturing the land to its full potential, cultivating over 45 acres of grapes and 16 unique varietals you won’t find elsewhere. Abbey Road is a place to celebrate Oregon’s bounty with exquisitely crafted wines, food pairings from the culinary garden and an award-winning venue nestled amidst tranquil foothills.

In the 1960s, the 82-acre farm was a horse boarding and training facility. The Stewart family purchased the land in the late 1990s and ran it as a wheat and grass seed farm, also adding a bed and breakfast housed in the three grain silos. When the Wilkens bought the property in 2017, they saw the potential in the soil and immediately started planting grapes and transforming the 1960s pole barn that was the horse- riding arena into a winery production facility and tasting room.

Abbey Road is well-known for its distinctive selection of wines. “Our plan from the beginning was to expand the wines Oregon is known for,” explains Operations Manager Kristen Baxter. “We have all sorts of rare varietals we play with. Last year, in our 2023 vintage, we had around 26 different skews.” With the expertise of Director of Wine-Making Blair Rayson, Abbey Road and Wilkens Family wines feature organically grown grapes typically found in other parts of the world, like Trousseau, an old variety of red wine grape primarily grown in France and Portugal. It’s famous for wines deeply cherry-red in color with punchy flavors and high alcohol content.

Open daily from 11 am to 5 pm, the cozy tasting room currently features two flights of all reds or all whites that change about every other week. Indoor and outdoor seating is available, with covered pergolas and picnic tables on the lawn. Guests are invited to explore the farm, glass in hand, free to gaze at the panoramic views of sprawling vineyards, abundant orchards, hiking trails, a hazelnut plantation and the Trappist Abbey Monastery. The Farm Loop is a path for wine-tasters and families to follow through the farm and meet all the animals including goats, alpacas, donkeys, pigs, highland cows, chickens, turkeys, ducks and a few peacocks who strut prettily around the property.

In addition to the grape fields, Abbey Road cultivates a 1.5-acre produce farm, where Chef Will Preisch utilizes the culinary garden and honey from the bees to curate fresh farm-to- fork pairings with Pacific Northwest ingredients for the tasting room, bed and breakfast, and the farm’s sister restaurant in SE Portland, Quaintrelle.

“The menu has fun snacks like a charcuterie board and house-made Chex mix, along with fancier options like chicken liver mousse and a pork rillette,” says Kristen. “The expanded offerings for last winter included an incredible crab linguine pasta. It’s more than just a snack-tasting menu.” Starting in the Spring, guests can reserve a multi- course, sit-down tasting with Chef Will and the farm’s Director of Hospitality. Each course is deliciously paired with complementary varietals.

Housed in renovated grain silos, the five luxurious Bed and Breakfast suites were refinished and decorated over the winter. Abbey Road is excited to re-open on April 24th with a new updated look. The suites overlook the vineyards and the silo garden, a curated garden full of colorful roses and other fun plants, and guests are encouraged to explore the property to relax and soak in the beauty of the land. All stays include a glass of wine at the tasting room and the real treat, an incredible multi-course breakfast from Chef Will Preisch, known for being one of the best in the valley.

The heart of wine country is the perfect backdrop for your next event, and Abbey Road Farm has finished out the former horse-riding arena into an award-winning venue that can accommodate up to 200 guests. Named the best venue in Western Oregon in last year’s issue of Oregon Bride Magazine, it offers a turf lawn that stays green and beautiful year-round, quintessential for any group celebration like weddings, corporate events and farm-to-table dinners.

To support the local community, the farm hosts seasonal events throughout the year, like Silobration NW, a two- day family-friendly festival during the summer featuring a chance for Pacific Northwest makers to sell their artisanal goods. The Holiday Light Wine Walk is a fun and festive event for all ages where visitors can walk the farm at night with music and giant light displays accompanied by cups of hot mulled wine or hot chocolate. The event runs from the weekend of Thanksgiving through the weekend before Christmas, and each weekend supports a different local non-profit.

Yamhill County is home to countless farms, restaurants, and wineries, but where you’d think there’d be competition, they want to support each other. Abbey Road Farm is proud to be part of that initiative. “I think we’ve realized that if we work together, ‘a rising tide lifts all boats,’ as they say,” Kristen says.

Abbey Road Farm is located at 10501 NE Abbey Rd. in Carlton, OR. Please give them a call at 503-687-3100 or visit their website at abbeyroadfarm.com.