The entire world, it sometimes seems, knows Bend as a “beer town.” But not everyone sees it that way. That’s why one of the best-known winemakers in Washington’s Walla Walla region has chosen Central Oregon as the location of his first out-of-state tasting room.

Justin Wylie, whose Va Piano Vineyards produce some of the Pacific Northwest’s finest red varietals, will open his Old Mill store next weekend.

“I think I’m going to reach a whole new demographic here,” said Wylie, 43, a Walla Walla native and Gonzaga University graduate who established Va Piano in 1999, with estate vineyards both in Washington and just across the state line in Oregon.

Va Piano is Italian for “go slowly,” and that epitomizes not only Wylie’s winemaking philosophy — he learned traditional Old World techniques when studying in Italy in the 1990s — but also his patience in waiting for the perfect location for his Oregon outpost.

As a child, Wylie said, his family frequently vacationed in Bend to ski at Mount Bachelor and enjoy summer recreation. Now, he and his wife, Liz, and their children remain regular visitors to Central Oregon.

More than two years ago, he said, he began eyeing the Oregon Locker Room, beside the Ticket Mill, as an ideal tasting-room site. When it became available at the start of 2016, he jumped. “The location could not be better,” Wylie said.

Scheduled to be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, Va Piano has seating both indoors and outdoors, on a riverside patio. Tasting-room manager Mauri Brown, formerly of Willamette Valley Vineyards, will offer syrah, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc and rose by the glass or bottle, Wylie said. A tasting fee is charged for low-end (Yellow Label) and high-end (Black Label) flights.

Va Piano is the second winery tasting room to establish a location in the Old Mill, after the Hood River-based Naked Winery. But Wylie isn’t concerned about competition. “The more the better,” he said.

“More wineries breed more awareness,” Wylie said. “I want people to walk away from here with a great experience and an improved knowledge of wine. Let’s take down that wall and make wine approachable and fun.”

Local wineries

There are more than 650 wineries in the state of Oregon, but only three ferment their grapes in Central Oregon. Of those, only Volcano Vineyards is actually located in Bend.

Volcano’s Bend Blend white and red wines are produced from grapes grown at the Monkey Face Vineyard at the Ranch of the Canyons in Terrebonne. Scott and Liz Ratcliff’s other wines are sourced from southeastern Washington and Southern Oregon grapes. A popular sangria, sweet and fruity, is available in eight different flavors.

Before Volcano there was Maragas Winery, established in 1999 in Bend. It moved to a permanent farm location on Highway 97 between Terrebonne and Culver 10 years later. Doug and Gina Maragas grow two dozen different experimental varietals on their own acreage, but most wine grapes are still sourced from vineyards elsewhere in Oregon and in Washington.

Faith, Hope and Charity Vineyards, located near Crooked River Ranch, produces a variety of reds and whites sourced from around the Northwest. Roger and Cindy Grossman’s 15-acre vineyard grows nine hybrid varieties specifically chosen for the High Desert’s harsh growing conditions.

Winemaker O. Jay Merrill (Merrill Cellars) is a Bend resident, but he produces his award-winning wines in the Rogue Valley of Southern Oregon. Although winery owner Drew Bledsoe (Doubleback) also lives in Bend, his cabernets and other varietals are made by winemaker Josh McDaniels in Walla Walla, where they maintain a tasting room.

More tastings

Among unaffiliated wine bars in Bend, two stand out, and both are on the west side. Both Sip Wine Bar, at the “phoenix roundabout” at 14th Street and Galveston Avenue, and the long-established Portello Winecafe, in NorthWest Crossing, welcome patrons to choose glasses or tasting flights from ever-changing lists of domestic and imported wines. Both have light menus to accompany the vintages, along with frequent entertainment.

A handful of specialty wine shops, which offer bottles often unavailable at supermarkets, are located around the region. Two of them, The Good Drop Wine Shoppe and the Wine Shop and Beer Tasting Bar, are in downtown Bend. The Elixir Wine Group, importer of South American wines, is in the Box Factory on Industrial Way, while the Bend Wine Cellar is located off College Way. Sisters’ Cork Cellars also has an excellent selection.

For many wine lovers, of course, the best way to enjoy a new varietal is to get the recommendation of the sommelier or bartender at a favorite restaurant. Many leading Bend restaurants have excellent wine lists: Ariana, The Blacksmith, Brickhouse, 5 Fusion, Jackalope Grill, Trattoria Sbandati and Zydeco are all good places to begin an exploration.

— John Gottberg Anderson specializes in Northwest wines. His column appears in GO! every other week. He also writes for our food section. He can be reached at janderson@bendbulletin.com.

(Editor’s note: This article has been corrected. The original version had incorrect information about the Alabama Shakes concert at Les Schwab Amphitheater. The concert is May 27. The Bulletin regrets the error.)