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When you first pull into the gravel lot at Abbey Road Farm (10280 NE Oak Springs Farm Road, Carlton, 503-687-3100, abbeyroadfarm.com) and spot your overnight accommodations—the backside of a trio of stout, silver silos next to a sheep pasture—you might assume you'll be using a pile of grain as a pillow. But as soon as you circle to the front of the building, it's obvious these vessels haven't seen a single grain in years. Instead, they now store wine lovers and couples celebrating anniversaries.
A creative redesign turned the hollow cylinders into a collection of five suites. Indulgent details, like oversized jetted bathtubs and a Chihuly-like chandelier cascading like a waterfall from the lobby ceiling, make it easy to forget you'll be snoozing just feet away from Old MacDonald's barnyard rooster.
It's best to begin your stay on the 82-acre property by walking up a small hill to a sprawling horse arena. The stalls are swept clean of straw and outfitted with chaise lounges and antique dressers. During a drippy visit in early June, Abbey Road Farm was pouring flights in its spacious event space instead of the cozy tasting room in order to provide enough room for guests to safely spread out.
No matter where you drink here, you'll always start with a complimentary sip of sparkling pinot gris, whose bottle features a sassy portrait of one of the llamas that help look after the sheep (coyotes, I'm told, are afraid of the tall, territorial camelids). After that, you can customize your samples of wines, two of which are owned by the farm and an assortment of others that are part of a collective and made onsite.
From there, hope for a generous pour to take on a stroll of the grounds, which include 14 varieties of grapes planted on 43 acres once used to grow grass seed. While it will take a few years for those vines to produce fruit for estate wines, virtually every other aspect of the farm is growing, breeding or laying in harmony—from the bodyguard llamas to the 40-plus chickens, all named Betty, that provide your breakfast.
In fact, mornings in the bright dining room and subway-tiled kitchen are where you'll find the only non-farm-related form of entertainment: a turntable that plays records from a collection that includes John Coltrane, Willie Nelson and a John Denver album given to the innkeepers by a rowdy Canadian oil worker, who declared, "I'm donating it to the cause!" after spotting the vinyl.
But the best sounds at Abbey Road Farm originate outdoors. Winemaker Luke Wylde says he loves how quiet it is out in his slice of rural Yamhill County. But don't assume that means silent. Without the din of the city, you can appreciate the symphony of chirps, warbles, bleats and clucks coming from the animals around you. During my stay, when the rain began gently tapping the tin roofs, it was like nature's applause for the performance—a soothing rhythm if there ever was one to lull you to sleep back in the silo.
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