Creating Sip the Gorge: How a Hyper-Local Wine Event Became a New Holiday Tradition

As a destination marketer and content creator, I spend a lot of time helping communities tell their stories—but occasionally, the best way to do that is to create an experience from the ground up.

Sip the Gorge started as a simple idea: bring people together to celebrate the Columbia Gorge AVA in a way that felt intimate, authentic, and rooted in place. What it became was something even more meaningful—a well attended inaugural wine tasting event that raised $1,000 for downtown White Salmon beautification and helped launch a new holiday tradition for the community.

From Concept to Community Event

Sip the Gorge was designed as a hyper-local wine tasting and pairing experience, held for one day only at the historic Mountain View Grange in White Salmon. The goal wasn’t scale—it was connection. Attendance was intentionally capped at 125 guests to create a relaxed, personal atmosphere where conversations could flow as easily as the wine.

Thirteen boutique, small-batch wineries came together under one roof, each pouring wines made exclusively from Columbia Gorge AVA grapes. Guests were able to meet winemakers face-to-face, discover new favorites, and experience the depth and diversity of this remarkable growing region—paired with thoughtfully curated small bites and live music from the 3 Rivers Jazz Project.

Timing, Place, and Storytelling

Sip the Gorge was intentionally scheduled alongside White Salmon’s inaugural Village Lights celebration, creating a full weekend of festive energy. The result was more than a wine tasting—it was a shared moment in time.

Set against twinkling lights, holiday décor, and live jazz, the event blended small-town charm with indie spirit. It wasn’t about trends or mass appeal. It was about craftsmanship, community pride, and telling the story of the Columbia Gorge through the people who grow, make, and love its wines.

Impact Beyond the Glass

One of the most rewarding outcomes of Sip the Gorge was its tangible community impact. The event raised $1,000, which will go directly toward a new mural in downtown White Salmon, scheduled to be painted during the Wildflower Festival.

This was always part of the vision—using experiential events not just to attract visitors, but to reinvest in the places that make them special. Every ticket sold contributed to beautifying downtown and reinforcing a sense of shared ownership and pride.

A Blueprint for Experiential Marketing

Sip the Gorge is a reminder that successful events don’t have to be large to be impactful. When you focus on:

• Authentic storytelling
• Thoughtful curation
• Strong partnerships
• And a clear connection to place

You create something that resonates long after the event ends.

For Pacific Northwest Marketing, Sip the Gorge represents the intersection of destination branding, content creation, and community building—proof that when you lead with intention, creativity can translate into real economic and cultural value.

Looking Ahead

Held on Sunday, December 7, 2025, from 2–6 PM, Sip the Gorge proved there’s a strong appetite for intimate, meaningful experiences rooted in local culture. Paired with Village Lights, it laid the foundation for a new holiday weekend tradition—one that celebrates wine, music, art, and the people who make the Columbia Gorge such a special place.

And for me, it reinforced something I believe deeply: the most powerful marketing doesn’t just tell a story—it brings people into it.