Visitor Reviews

David S.

My son and I were tasting wine most of the afternoon but decided to stop at HillCrest based on a recommendation from another winemaker.  We said we would taste but not buy.  We had a wonderful time meeting the DeMara family, plus a little extended family, and tasted wonderful wine and got to hear how they are made.  We purchased a case and joined the wine club!  We live in the Midwest but can't wait for a return trip.  I would highly recommend HillCrest.

Tori M.

My husband and I visited the Hillcrest Winery last summer and this summer, most  recently yesterday.  We really enjoyed our experience, the wine presentation was  wonderful...We enjoyed several wines and look forward to ordering online.  Take  time to visit this family run winery-perfect!

A Yahoo! Contributor

I know some of the family members of the original owners and they are proud of what Dyson & Susan (& family) have & are doing to the winery. I am not usually fond of reds BUT I like them all. This was a real surprise to me.

Mike

Grew up in the area and didn't know this existed! We had a wonderful time and the owner/operator was extremely friendly and informative. The biggest surprise was that we tasted 6 or 7 wines and truly enjoyed every single one. I have never experienced that before. Usually you'll hit on a couple that don't do it for you, but the variety and span available at Hillcrest is amazing. We even sent a case + home! The story about the local cheerleading squad getting all clean and sterile to stomp grapes for one of the vintages was pretty funny! Me and mine will be back to see them every time we visit family. Highly recommended trip...

For some further info since I grew up here. The drive to the winery is quite simple for folks passing through Roseburg. I-5 splits the town in two and the winery is about a 15 minute trip west of the freeway off the Harvard exit in a smaller town called Melrose. There are numerous wineries in town (7 I think within 15 mile radius) that are good as well and they even have a little map and guidebook at all of them so if you wanted to make a day of it (as we did) it would be worth your while to do so. In my humble opinion, Hillcrest was top of the heap, but there were a couple wines at the others that could be in the same game.

Jeremy J.

Family run vineyard as it was meant to be. From the children helping the parents with the vines to the dog running along the side of the tractor the extra few miles out of the wine loop is well worth the trip for their explosive 2003 Pinot Noir.

Julian H.

The tasting room experience is among the best we've had, the winemaker is always there and shares an enthusiasm for and knowledge of his craft that blows away everywhere else.  This place is special because it was at the forefront of Oregon's notable wine industry, but they've chosen to dry-farm in the European style, which is very rare here in the U.S.  It produces rich, tasty wines that we always look forward to.  Although the Williamette Valley is better known for its pinot noir than Umpqua, Hillcrest's pinot is exceptional.

I can't do better than to unabashedly quote the website:

"Oregon's oldest vineyard and winery, HillCrest Vineyard was established in 1961. Family owned and operated, we specialize in small lot wines handcrafted from the state's oldest vineyards. These hillside vineyard sites, with their low yielding dry farmed vines, are naturally grown allowing each of our wines to develop their own unique personality and character. In the cellar we honor Old World traditions, employing gentle gravity flow winemaking techniques and a hands-off approach that allows the perfume and supple texture of our wines to be captured in every glass."

It's true!  And you can't get these wines anywhere except the tasting room.  It's a little ways off the main road but well worth the diversion.