DATE NIGHT IN THE ROGUE VALLEY: PHOENIX
Gary and I are always looking for fun and unique date nights so I’m starting a series of stories about just that, kicking off with a night out in Phoenix! For those of you who don't know, Phoenix is a small town that shares its border with Medford, the largest city in southern Oregon. It’s a tiny town in the midst of a lot of growth, especially with its businesses, and we love heading there for date night.
Kick your date off with wine tasting at the Catalyst Wine Collective, a collaboration between two small batch winemakers, Sound & Vision and Goldback Wines. The tasting room is bright and open with large sliding doors so you can enjoy the fresh air while in the tasting room. Enjoy wines by the glass or order their current wine tasting that you can pair up with a fantastic selection of cheeses curated by local cheese expert Melodie, of The Oregon Cheese Cave. The laid back atmosphere makes for the perfect setting to relax and catch up with your love.
When you finish your wine head over to NW Ceramics for some pottery fun. Gary and I tried it one night and were surprised how therapeutic it is. Liz walks you through each step to get you started on the pottery wheel. We started with plopping a big ol ball of clay on the wheel and then started forming our creation. My creations ended up being a pencil holder, and a teeny tiny flower pot. My biggest tip is to give yourself grace. It’s definitely a skill to create pottery, and it’s all about the experience, not creating a perfect pot your first time. Once you get your pots made you get to pick out your glaze color. You don’t get to do that part, the owners glaze it and fire it for you and then give you a call when it's time to pick it up.
We had so much fun, Gary has said that he wants to go do it again. We had so much fun creating, messing up, restarting, and laughing a lot. And now we have our cute little creations to remember that evening!
PRO TIP: If you’d like to join in their Friday night One Time Clay Class on the Pottery Wheel, plan ahead. The classes get filled quickly and while you can go on a waitlist it’s best to plan out a while ahead. You can check out the class schedule and reserve your spot at NW Ceramics here.
To finish off the night you will probably be pretty hungry but we aren’t going to send you very far because you will just walk right over to Clyde’s Corner just a few doors down from NW Ceramics. We love this family-friendly, doggo friendly, date-night-friendly spot because not only do they have great wood-fired pizza and salads, and phenomenal seasonal cocktails, the location is awesome. Enjoy your food in their large outdoor seating area or you can choose to sit inside their open dining area complete with vintage pinball machines. End your evening with one of their house made desserts and a yummy affogato!
With the growth of Phoenix things are looking up and we are sure to have some other great date nights there in the future. Follow along as we share date night itineraries from across the region and state. There is so much to dig into!