Biggio-Hamina Cellars

After stopping by the Horse Radish in Carlton we realized one of the wines we really liked was right here off of Highway 18 at Biggio-​Hamina Cellars. We decided to stop in and try it.
The hours vary here so it’s best to call ahead. In looking on the website it said open some Sundays call first. Well, since we had to be out that way anyway we drove by and they had some excellent signage on Highway 18 letting us know they were indeed open.
The place looks fairly incognito and unremarkable as you drive past you would not notice it if it were not for the highway signs and on the day we went over there a great deal of sandwich boards on the shoulder of Highway 18. Not sure what ODOT would or did say about that but it aided our mission on that day.
We went in and the place is really a cute little spot in a strip mall. It’s the only thing open there on this particular Sunday so parking was not a problem.
There is a bar right as you walk in and some table seating as well. We walked up to the bar and inquired about the tasting fees. I think I recall there were about $ 10 for around 5 wines but they had other people from smaller boutique wineries there as well showcasing their wines. Some of them charged additional fees but as they were fledgling wineries it was fine.
The wine I thought I loved when I was over at the Horse Radish didn’t do it for me on this day. I don’t know if I was tasting a different year or what the difference was but I didn’t love most of their wines as much.
The two boutique wineries were offering futures on their wines and we declined even though some of their wines were very tasty and it was interesting to hear the stories of how the folks got into the wine business. One woman told us how it was a complete and total family affair complete with a book detailing their start. It was fun to hear about.
There was signage up stating that you could rent the location out for parties, so I made a mental note to follow up on that.
We ended up buying a couple bottles of wine and we were on our way.
I emailed them the next day asking about renting their place for a party and that was about two weeks ago and I’ve never received an email back so I don’t know how much that is. I could call them but I haven’t had the time with the holiday season and such.
A nice place, check it out.

We’ve now had both a lunch and a dinner at Todd and Caroline’s winery/​bistro and I have to say both experiences were an absolute delight. It is now my go-​to recommendation for a lunch spot in the Willamette. Not east to spot from the road — maybe a quarter mile south of the Lowes in McMinnville on HY 18 next to a lumber yard. If coming from the south it is about a quarter mile north of Durham road. It is on the east side of HY 18.
Todd is showing both the 2008 and 2009 Zenith Pinots and I think both are wonderful. He is my most «involved» winegrower. Probably walking my vineyard once a week in the season. His style of using about 30% whole cluster is very interesting — If you like Cristom (I do very much) you will probably love Biggio-​Hamina.
Caroline does amazingly interesting things — I had a pulled pork sandwich that had a bourbon and cherry reduction — the flavors were wonderful and the company is fun cause Todd is kind of a wack-​job and he is usually there to hold court.
The winery/​café is very stylish with a lot of touches that are delightful.