As if you needed another reason to visit historic Jacksonville, now there’s another draw—Awen Winecraft’s new tasting room located at the landmark McCully House on the corner of California and 5th Streets. Jacksonville, a National Landmark town, has always had the allure of an historic mining town set between two wine destinations—the Applegate and Rogue Valleys—and boasts tasting rooms of its own, two bottle shops, boutique shopping, quality restaurants and charming hotels and B&Bs.

The Awen tasting room and wine garden, called, “The Inspiration Station,” opened in February and features an open-air patio with a waterfall feature, fire pits and patio heaters. The indoor tasting room area features a table crafted from Birdseye maple that must be seen!

Awen owners Tom Homewood and Sean Hopkins are long-time friends who met in the high-tech world and began making garage wine while living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area. Fast forward to today. With both having moved their families to the Rogue Valley, they still have their day jobs—all-the-while taking their winemaking to the commercial level in 2016. You may remember seeing Awen for the first time at the 2017 Oregon Wine Experience, where they medaled on both their wine competition entries. They have remained a strong presence on the local wine scene ever since with growing acclaim, most recently garnering platinum awards for their 2018 Grenache Blanc and 2019 Albarino at the 2020 Best of the Northwest Competition. Their list of awards is impressive—too long to publish here!

“We want the Inspiration Station to be a cool, local hangout where all are welcome,” Tom says. Sean agrees, adding, “It’s a fun, relaxing place where you can get as deep into wine knowledge as you want—from simply enjoying to geeking out on the chemistry.”

While wine is the main attraction, if you get hungry while enjoying a flight, glass or bottle of your choice, guests are invited to bring in food from home or other locations.

“Awen,” notes Sean and Tom, “is a Celtic rune and represents the spark of creativity, divine inspiration or illumination,” and is the perfect way to describe how visitors to Jacksonville’s newest, must-visit wine tasting destination will feel.

Chris Cook: With a 30-year career in marketing, “Capiche” owner Chris Cook focuses on the region’s growing wine industry. Combining expertise in branding with her passion for entrepreneurship, she helps smaller wineries find their audience. When not gardening or hiking, you’ll probably find her in a tasting room doing “research.” Learn more at
capiche.us and capiche.wine.