After officially welcoming everyone with a toast to set the tone for a night of creative luxury, the table was revealed from behind curtains draped over the entry to an adjacent atrium. It was set as a still life of its own, with frothy white silk tablecloths and opening bites of French cheeses, fruit, and toasts in served in silver coupes and baskets scattered between dramatic florals in rich shades of green, gold, and wine. Chef Brooke Faudree’s meal of classic French cuisine unfolded in similar style, each course presented like a perfect little painting, wine glittering against white marble walls in the warm light of the atrium, and conversation raising to gently reverberate around the room.

As the light faded in the fields, the sky flamed bright blues and oranges sweeping across the expansive sky, a late-summer sunset that seemed specially designed to match the bright tablescape. We dined until well after dark, uninterested in the wonderful evening ending too soon, much more inclined to linger in good company, listening to the soundtrack of singing crickets as the stars began to blink on above.

The sweeping view of the Columbia Gorge from the porch of one of the guest cabins, even swathed in a thin sheen of wildfire smoke, is one of the most beautiful landscapes one could ever hope to see. On this ranch, though, the views continue as they wrap around, transforming into rugged mountain ridges as Wind Mountain stands sentry over the vast landscape. It’s nothing short of spectacular, even without the sentimental attachment we carry.