Cathedral Ridge Winery — Attraction in Hood River

The owner needs to remember when you say you're dog friendly, don't put them next to the dirt road and dying grass. Either allow dogs or not.... Dogs have owners, owners pay yor bills. Since we left feeling sad and disappointment we went to the Hood Crest winery and was treated with respect and kindness to our dog and was not exiled to the rock wall. I've posted pictures , so beware dog lovers.

The response Rhonda, Our apologies. As I replied to your husband Rick, we love dogs, are dog owners and feature our winery dogs on 2 current wines. For 20 years we've struggled to find the best way for all our guests and members to have the best wine tasting experience and accommodate dogs. The challenge is we also have guests and members who have expressed concerns about dogs. Some are triggered by a past biting or other negative experience; others are allergic or view dogs as a distraction during a tasting. We have lost customers due to allowing pets on the tasting terrace and grounds. In addition, our insurance carrier regularly guides us against allowing dogs.

Based on input from guests and members, we compromised and created our pet area that is away from the main tasting areas. We offer 2 special self-tasting flights, pet treats, water and try our best to make everyone enjoy their visit. We have had many members and guests thank us for adding it and we will keep looking to improve it and our communication of our pet area to avoid confusion.

Hopefully this helps explain our approach. As a small family winery we value every guest and member and try very hard to deliver a great experience and avoid negative reviews.

Thanks, CRW Team

The response to the response: Thank you for the explanation. But, sad to say not all dog owners feel this way. The customers who were sitting next to us felt the same as we did. They left as disappointed, but was trying to be positive. . You can't tell me dog owners are happy to be looking at the parking lot, rock wall and dying grass. Please compare the pictures. Please ask your dog owners which view they would prefer. If your owner loves dog then they should find a better solution with a better view. Sad to say you lost a customer who came with a dog. Im sure other dog owners who read this post will stay clear from visiting your winery. Good luck...

Update, January 2025. We've been members now for several years. Cathedral Ridge is still BY FAR our favorite Hood River winery, both for the wine and the amazing customer service (Shout out to Joelle and Sue - Sue is also an incredible artist) If you haven't been, please go! You won't be sorry. In fact, you'll be delighted and amazed and kicking yourself for not going sooner. For an unexpected tasting, try the McDuffy Reserve Chard (which, not gonna lie, doesn't taste like a Chard) and the Zin Reserve. Beyond words. But again, the service is my favorite thing about Cathedral Ridge. There are a lot of places in Oregon with good wine, but the combo of good wine and an amazing staff is what really sets Cathedral Ridge apart!

We enjoyed the wine very much, but the true treasure was the experience with the wonderful people on staff. We had a lovely afternoon, tasting delicious big red wines, while being served by delightful people! We'd sworn we wouldn't join another wine club (because we already have more wine than we'll ever be able to drink) but between the amazing wines and the delightful staff (Shout out to Gina, I think? I'm terrible with names) , we're now members. Can't wait to bring friends in and share the fun and deliciousness!

*(Edit) After being club members for a while, I must reiterate that the attention to detail and customer service is beyond compare. I must especially give kudos to Joelle, who has provided exceptional service every time we've been in. Even if the wine was average (which it isn't - it's among our favorite in the PNW), we would be loyal customers because of the amazing service. Thank you, Cathedral Ridge, for being one of our, hands down, favorite places to spend...

Cathedral Ridge has wonderful wine - so much so that we joined the wine club. The same day we joined, they charged our credit card even though they said they would only charge us once the wine has shipped. That was July 22. It is now August 24th and not only have we not received our wine but our calls go unanswered. We've called 6 times and only twice have I talked to an actual person. The first time we finally reached them (Aug 18th or so) she said it hasn't shipped because the weather was too hot. The 2nd time I reached an actual person she had no clue who we were or where our order was but said "Mary" will call you first thing tomorrow - well, that was about 4 days ago. I've left messages with the manager, with the shipping dept. and no luck. So today I make my final attempt via email meanwhile we now have to dispute over $200 worth of charges on our credit card for wine we never received. They really should hire someone with business skills to run their business and their customer service dept. Like I said, the wine is great but in this competive market there are a lot of great wines out there and other wineries who have much better ethical practices - I will spend my money with...