All jokes about wine as “mommy juice” aside, sometimes it’s just lovely to take a trip to a winery without having to book a babysitter for the whole day. Luckily for us moms who love wine AND love bringing kids along for an adventure, kid-friendly wineries do exist! It turns out that there is one such estate only 15 minutes from my house: Villa Catalana Cellars, the most family-friendly winery near Portland I’ve found.

Located about a half-hour from Portland, Oregon in Canby, Villa Catalana Cellars pours delicious wine within its gorgeous grounds. When Hubs, a friend and I recently visited Catalana along with my kids, we immediately noticed how many other families were enjoying this kid-friendly winery, too.

We soon realized why: Villa Catalana is full of thoughtful details that appeal to children as well as the 21+ set. Thankfully, the wine doesn’t suffer: The estate has made gold medal-winning Pinot Noir and liquor.

If you’re looking for a family-friendly winery near Portland, OR, then read on. You’ll find all the details you’ll need to visit Villa Catalana Cellars with kids (or without!). Regardless if you go wine tasting with kids, head out with some girlfriends or take a romantic weekend outing with your beloved, I’m pretty sure you’ll love Catalana as much as we did.

I was not compensated in any way for this post. I discovered and paid for everything during our visit to Villa Catalana Cellars on my own.

Villa Catalana is about to become your new favorite family-friendly winery near Portland

Are you ready to fall in love with this family-friendly winery? Good.

Just be prepared that you might spontaneously crave a glass of wine while reading this blog post.

How to visit Villa Catalana Cellars with kids

When you arrive, you’ll park in a gravel lot and probably be underwhelmed—but don’t turn around! It gets much better than a sad parking lot! You’ll walk up a short hill to get to the estate, which is modeled after a 12th century Spanish villa. Walk around the building to the south side, where you’ll find the entrance to the tasting room.

Your kids will be excited to go explore, but start your tasting or get a glass of wine before you start your adventure! Walking through the gardens with a glass of wine is the best way to wander Villa Catalana Cellars with kids.

Once you have your wine, let your kids lead you throughout the property. You’ll find cacti, a small floating dock on the pond, arbors and a spooky cave guarded by a dragon! (More on that below.)

One safety note: Make sure to keep a close eye on your kids at all times. The pond and the cacti could be dangerous for littles who wander away.

Kid-friendly features of Villa Catalana Cellars

Explore the wide-open grounds

Your kids could care less about Villa Catalana’s award-winning wines; however, they’ll love exploring the estate! Explore the terraced hill overlooking the pond, the olive grove, the covered picnic area and even a little dusty building my kids pretended was a witch’s house.

Play bocce ball

A bocce court alongside the pond is the perfect place to let the kids play—and learn a new game! If you’ve never played bocce before, here are the rules to bocce ball.

Have a family picnic

Large picnic tables are set up under a sprawling arbor next to the bocce court. This is the perfect scene to pop open a bottle of wine and unpack a picnic for the whole family.

Sneak into the Dragon Cave

As you walk alongside a rock-landscaped hill, you’ll come across a cave complete with pretend skulls and creepy candles. Best part, of course, is the 15-foot-tall metal dragon at the cave’s entrance. My girls incorporated the dragon into pretend play the entire time we visited Villa Catalana Cellars.

Discoveries everywhere

Kids who are observant and curious will find plenty to discover at Villa Catalana Cellars. For example, at the end of the uppermost pond, a small outbuilding is open to explore (where my kids pretended to be witches). And in the tasting room, look up—you’ll see gorgeous lamps as well as rare tropical plants the owners of this kid-friendly winery grow on-site.

What you need to know to visit Villa Catalana Cellars

I’m pretty sure you’re ready to zip on over to Villa Catalana Cellars right now. (I am! Want to meet up??!) Here’s what you need to know to visit Villa Catalana Cellars with kids—or without.

• Open hours: Villa Catalana Cellars is open only Saturdays from 1-4pm.
• Address: 11900 S Criteser Rd, Oregon City. The winery is located about a half-hour south of Portland.
• Tastings: Tastings are $10. You can also get a glass of wine for $10. I had a glass of their 2015 pinot noir and loved it.
• Dogs: Dogs are allowed on-leash. It goes without saying you’ll need to pick up after your dogs; I didn’t see a ton of trash cans throughout the property, so you’ll need to carry the waste bags until you find one.

Now you totally get why Villa Catalana Cellars is my new favorite family-friendly winery near Portland. It has everything I’d want when I go wine tasting with kids: A kid-friendly vibe, tons of open space, features children get excited about and, of course, delicious wine.

The next time you go wine tasting with kids near Portland, then, make sure Villa Catalana Cellars is on your route. Maybe I’ll see you there!

Do you have a favorite family-friendly winery near Portland? Have you ever gone wine tasting with kids? I’d love to hear about your experiences below in the comments!