How the Willamette Valley Changed My Perspective—Entirely

Why the Willamette Valley is better than Napa or Sonoma

I was born in, grew up in, and then lived in Northern, California for 55 years. There’s another way of putting that: weather-wise, I’ve been spoiled for all of my life. Rain is relatively rare in the winter. The fall is almost always “Indian” in style and comes late. Spring comes in March. Summer is bright—almost always.

But after just four and a half years in the Willamette Valley, I can say with a straight face, this place is better. Hear me out. I want to discuss the impact of deprivation.

What I didn’t mention about living in Northern California weather is that there is no humidity when it’s warm. At least none to speak of. Every time I travel almost anywhere east of the Rockies in the summer I end up thinking to myself (and sometimes saying out loud) “How the hell can you live in this sweaty heat?”

People tend to be shocked when others declare them “spoiled”. They don’t think of themselves as spoiled because it’s the only thing they know. I only knew golf on Christmas day, easy walks in light sweaters on New Year’s Day, pleasant summer nights where I didn’t crack a sweat, and perfect spring and fall days where only the occasional storm or heat wave interrupted the boredom of consistently delightful weather. It’s why the homes are so expensive there.

That weather is a big part of the reason grapes grown in Northern California make such beautiful wines. And it’s why smoke taint is the most common reason Northern California vintage charts have blips that send the vintage rating under 90 points occasionally.

But it’s not just grapes. You can grow nearly anything in Northern California, particularly in its valleys. Fruit Trees, juicy vegetables, lavish shrubs, almost any kind of flowering annual, and even tropical plants if you place them strategically on the south-facing part of the house.

Golfers are not the only beneficiaries of the near-perfect weather in Northern California. Outdoor soccer leagues take place year-round with rainouts being almost non-existent in the winter, spring, and fall. Tennis players, joggers, and baseball players know they can get their practice in all year long. Why, it’s a sporting paradise, it is.

But Oregon is better.

It’s true that any outdoor activity scheduled between October and April has a 50/50 chance of being hit by rain.

It’s true that between those same months, the sky is more likely to be painted grey than to be splashed with blue.

It’s true that during those seven months, a golfer or soccer player will at least have to wear or have handy a warm sweater and head-warming gear. And there is a near guarantee they will not only have to play in brisk if not cold weather but also in wet conditions. It’s one thing to play golf at 45 degrees. I can do that. It’s an entirely different thing to play golf in a wet and drizzly 45 degrees.

It’s true that the Willamette Valley, even on its floors and not just the hillsides, will get snow and ice in the winter, completely putting a stop to any and all movement in our towns and cities. I walked a half mile with my boy this last February to go down to the 7-11 to get stuff after a particularly bad bit of icy weather put a half inch of the stuff on the roads. It took us a good 40 minutes to get there and most of that 40 minutes was spent getting our asses up off the ground.

It’s true that the only reason one wears a tee shirt in spring and fall here is to keep your sweaters from making you itch.

It’s true that there are a number of plants that won’t even consider growing well here because there simply isn’t enough sun or warmth in the spring to let them get off the ground…or they get knocked back by frost that will last into the end of April.

There’s another way of putting all this: I’m no longer spoiled…and now I know what.a perfect summer really looks like. There is not a single Willamette Valley summer day or evening when I don’t literally stop in my tracks and marvel at the perfection of a blue sky, a light cooling breeze, the consistent 55 degrees at night and 85 degrees in the afternoon, and the lack of any humidity at all. The Willamette Valley summer is perfect in a way that the Northern California summer could never hope for because here we have something that no Northern Californian has: A Willamette Valley Fall, Winter, and Spring.

All those years I had no idea. No idea how the perfection of Northern California weather was degrading my ability to give thanks. One does not know how blessed they are if they don’t know the difference between a blessing and the day after tomorrow.

And still, the wine here is pretty damn good. It ripens later than in Napa or Sonoma. Sometimes the crop is hit by thunderous rains a week or two before the grapes are fully ripened. It’s true that frost damage and the reduced crop yield that comes with it is an annual fear. And it’s true that graphs based on Willamette Valley vintage ratings are more up and down than in Napa and Sonoma.

But this is why I think there is a far greater appreciation among the locals here for a fine wine from a fine Willamette Valley vintage. And well there should be.

It’s 8:30 pm here in Salem, Oregon. The temperature is 69 degrees and headed for 54 degrees. There is still a tinge of light blue in the sky and a cooling breeze hits my neck and shoulders as I write this. And I’m smiling because after more than 50 years I finally understand what simple perfection really is.