A Winery (🍷) in the middle of Urbane Southeast Portland? It cannot be, you say! Oh, but folks, it’s true, it’s delicious, and it’s all ours for the evening after our big day at WordCamp Portland 2015! Yay!

We are very happy to announce that our venue for our WordCamp Portland 2015 After-Party will be held at the highly-rated Enso Winery, a wonderful Portland Urban Winery right here in town.

What is an Urban Winery, you may ask? Enso sources grapes from the finest vineyards all around our local region, from across the river in Washington along the Columbia River Gorge down to Portland’s own Wine region throughout Yamhill County and beyond. They create in micro-vats their own special, limited edition bottled vintages for their label at the Stark Street location, as well as keeping on hand well-chosen vintages from other top, local wineries and some great micro-brew beer.

Enso is a classic Portland start-up story: they started in the garage of their winemaker, Ryan Sharp, and grew quickly into… another garage! Well, what used to be an automotive garage/storefront on S.E. Stark Street. WordCamp Portland is pretty choosy about our after-party venues, and this is no exception — Sharp’s Enso Winery was named Willamette Week’s 2014 Bar Of The Year. Here’s a quote from their article —

After just shy of three years on Southeast Stark Street, Enso has evolved into nothing less than a new model for what the wine bar can be.

This is not merely because Enso is part of that new wave of urban-winery garagistes — although, we’ll admit, we’re suckers for looking up from our cheese plate and seeing 120 pounds of grapes being crushed in the backroom, right by a piano that the winery stores for a musician friend as a favor.

And it’s not just because of the quality of their wine, although if they hung their hat on their full, fruity zinfandel or their tannic, leathery mourvèdre, we’d shamelessly drink it right out of that hat.

What Enso has created is a bar full of excellent local wine that is casual and pleasant and, most important, completely unpretentious. It’s comfortable both for the snob and the casual happy-hour drinker. You could bring a 22-year-old fashion-plate date, your stern-minded boss or your next-door neighbor, and all would find themselves served well.

Enso also features their own Tasting Lounge and Barrel Room (which WordCamp Portland will be completely taking over for the evening!), “The Inner Circle” Wine Club, which, for agreeing to purchase a certain number of their bottles per month or quarter, gets you special discounts and tasting events, and great cheeses, meets, fruit and other snacks to pair with their absolutely delicious vintages. In other words, the perfect place to kick back and enjoy after a full day of WordCamp.

Do check out Enso’s menu of Table Blends, Varietal & Signature Wines (Bubbles even!), and food & snack plates all at their web site. You’ll see Enso is just the place to get your wine on!

Concerned because you don’t imbibe alcohol or are under legal drinking age? No worries, friends! Because we have booked the entire venue just for ourselves that evening, Enso has a special permit from OLCC to accommodate all ages, and there will be plenty of non-alcoholic drinks and great food trays to enjoy; as well as, of course, hob-nobbing and networking about everything you’ve learned and are now planning with your fellow WordCampers — the real reason for any after-party!

Directions and Details to Enso Winery after WordCamp Portland 2015 at the Eliot Center are below. We hope to pop quite a few corks, let the vino pour and enjoy the wind down after a big WordCamp Portland day. See all of you there!

Location

Enso Winery
1416 SE Stark Street (Google Map)
Portland, OR 97214
(503) 683-3676
ensowinery.com

Driving Directions

From the Eliot Center, head North on S.W. 12th Avenue to S.W. Alder Street, and make a right on S.W. Alder. Head East on S.W. Alder Street and continue as it takes you over the Morrison Bridge to the East side of Portland (over the Willamette River). Continue now on the East side on S.E. Belmon Street to S.E. 14th Avenue. On S.E. 14th Avenue, make a left and head North. Continue North on S.E. 14th Avenue to S.E. Stark Street, and make a right on S.E. Stark. Enso Winery is just a few doors down on the right, 1416 S.E. Stark Street.

Tri-Met Transit

Very Convenient! Simply take the #15 bus east at Trimet Stop #5012 on S.W. Salmon & 12th, right next to the Eliot Center venue, and stay on the #15 all the way over to the East side, and get off at S.E. Belmont Street & S.E. 14th Avenue, Trimet Stop #402 (Google Map). From there, walk three blocks North on S.E. 14th Avenue to S.E. Stark Street, make a right, and Enso Winery is just a few doors down on the right, 1416 S.E. Stark Street (Google Map).

(Psst! Life Hack/ProTip!— life in Portland getting around is so much easier using the 1-2 combination of the PDX Bus iOS app or Android TriMet Tracker, and the Global Sherpa TriMet Ticket app, both for iOS and Android.)