Couple blends wine & music to create
upscale Vinters Cellar in Clackamas
Wine and music. That's custom-blended wine to order and acoustic solo and duo entertainment provided at an upscale wine bar in Clackamas area. Located at 15711 S.E. Happy Valley Town Center Drive at the corner of Southeast 157th and Sunnyside Road in Happy Valley, Vinter's Cellar Custom Winery is in its first year of offering custom-blended kit wines to your order.
Jim and Susan McLaren
(Photo by Kurt Johnson)
Owner and winemaker Jim McLaren and his wife Susan (co-owner) have opened the first kit-wine custom winery in Oregon. Customers can choose between red or white, raspberry fruit, a pear reisling and even a chocolate port and a list of others. They can then specify which flavors they want blended, then have the finished wine bottled on-premises. The wine is then labeled with custom-made labels for their own specific events such as weddings, wine-tasting parties and company events by the case. Customers do the actual mixing, bottling and labeling of their own wines. Fermentation usually takes between a month-and-a-half to two months using source wines, juices and materials supplied from Vintner's Cellar.
At the winebar, visitors can enjoy their favorite by the glass and hear top easy-listening or jazz acts in the evening. There is a small food menu offering appetizers and pannini sandwiches that go well with a glass of wine.
For summertime, an outdoor patio is available for enjoyable evenings.
On Thursday nights, there is an open mike evening to spice up the entertainment line-up. Business has been good, with the local community responsive with solid attendance and steady crowds.
As a big proponent of wine culture and wine connoisseurs, the McLarens visited one of the franchises in Northern California and were fascinated with the idea of opening their own in Oregon. Owner Jim McLaren explains the how the winebar came to be; "It was a franchise business. We investigated the feasibility of having one here. This is the first one in Oregon and we had to go to the state legislature to get a minor change for OLCC regulations for wine. We did really well when we first opened. We had a slight slump with the recession, but it's coming back. The weather is changing. The music is a natural. The musicians tell us the room has excellent acoustics. Some of the musicians we've had are Will Coco, Sean Garcia, June Howell and Warren Floyd."
On this evening, singer June Howell and guitarist Joe Howell performed. As they started to perform, customers at the bar began to settle into the comfortable couches at floor level to better capture the sound and ambiance of the music and bar.
Every Thursday, an open mike is featured at 7-9 p.m., hosted by local musician Ken Johnson.
You can see more at the Vinter's Cellar Custom Winery at their website: www.vintnerscellarclackamas.com.