The 31st Annual International Pinot Noir Celebration

27 Jul The 31st Annual International Pinot Noir Celebration

Now in its 31st year, the International Pinot Noir Celebration (IPNC) is held the last full weekend of July in McMinnville, Oregon. The event offers Pinot Noir consumers and industry members the chance to enjoy an unparalleled selection of Pinot Noir from around the world via a full schedule of seminars, walkaround tastings, winery tours, and unforgettable meals prepared by top Northwest chefs.

Back in late 1985, a small group of people, including restaurateurs, wine makers and simply wine lovers came together with the vision of starting a prestigious wine event. This event was to be held in the heart of Oregon wine country. Since that first event, the IPNC committee made a promise to stay fresh, innovative and relevant. With 31 years under their belt it is fair to say they have obviously achieved just that, year after year continually uniting approximately 800 International Pinot Noir producers, esteemed journalists, Pinot Noir devotees, chefs and food lovers for a celebration of tasting, learning and eating. 

Since 1987, the IPNC has hosted 182 winemakers from France, 39 winemakers from New Zealand, 22 from Australia, 15 from Italy, 14 from Canada, 10 from Germany, seven from Switzerland, seven from Austria, six from Chile, three from South Africa, and one each from Argentina, England, Israel, and Spain for a total of 307 foreign wineries.

Set in McMinnville, Portland, Oregan, this celebration of all things Pinot Noir offers 3 ticket options – Full weekend @ $1,295 (Friday- Sunday), The Salmon Bake @$225 (Saturday evening) or Passport to pinot @$125(Sunday afternoon).

So what can ticket holders expect?

Full Weekend

Guests attending with a Full weekend ticket can arrive either Thursday evening for early registration, or Friday morning between 7:30 and 9:00 and are guaranteed to spend the next three days in a Pinot Noir heaven. Accommodation is not included but there are a number of hotels local to the Linfield College campus, the location for the event.

This years program includes :

2 Large Outdoor Tastings
Numerous Weekend Seminars
Friday Night Grand Dinner and Saturday Night Salmon Bake
A Vineyard Tour & Winery Lunch
An afternoon University of Pinot Course
An Array of Wine Related Activities and Small Format Tastings
Friday and Saturday Breakfast on the Patio
Sunday Sparkling Brunch Finale
Opportunity to Celebrate with over 70 International Pinot Noir Winemakers and 60 Northwest Chefs

The Salmon Bake 

Saturday night’s Salmon bake has evolved in to something of a tradition of the IPNC. 

The Salmon bake dramatically showcases wild salmon roasted on alder stakes over a huge custom-built fire pit. Bask in the warm glow of a lantern lit Oak Grove where cellared Pinot Noir and wines from around the world will accompany an extravagant outdoor buffet designed by local chefs, followed by an extraordinary assortment of hand-crafted desserts. After dinner, relax to music and dancing under the stars. 

Passport to Pinot

An almost mini version of the weekend, the passport to Pinot provides guests the opportunity to attend an incredible outdoor wine tasting experience, with wines being sampled from over 70 wineries being showcased at the weekend celebration.

The Passport to Pinot takes place in the beautiful Oak Grove of Linfield College, a wonderful setting for this relaxed outdoor tasting. In addition to over 70 wineries, 15 local Northwest chefs will be preparing culinary treats to pair with your Pinot.

This now famous event, is clearly an incredibly popular one too, being completely sold out this year for each of the 3 programs. If this event sounds like the one for you, you may want to book early next year to avoid any disappointment.

Over the past 31 years the Internation Pinot Noir Celebration has attracted over 14,000 people from all over the world, here’s to many more Pinot loving years!