San Diego’s northern neighbor is a destination in itself

Anthony King | Downtown News

Undoubtedly the biggest draw to the Temecula region is the Temecula Valley – from large-scale wineries with high-end resorts to smaller, family focused wineries and posh restaurants – and visitors to San Diego’s neighbor resting a short 50-minute drive north are bound to do a bit of tasting. But that’s not all the city has to offer.

Temecula Valley is quickly becoming the center of Southern California wine production. Of the 35 wineries a part of the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association (temeculawines.org), all winemakers are working hard to make their mark on the industry. And that is certainly the main focus: good, high-quality wine.

Representatives from the Winegrowers Association recently organized a multiple-day trip to the Valley, in order to highlight just what the region has to offer. First stop was Maurice Car’rie Vineyard & Winery (mauricecarriewinery.com), where the group met winemaker Gus Vizgirda for a barrel tasting and detailed explanation of the harvesting process.

“It’s a really interesting kind of work,” Vizgirda said from the warehouse where they crush the grapes and make the wine. “During this time of year, I’ll peek around in the tasting room, and if there’s a group of people I’ll tell them to come back here.”

The next stop was Wilson Creek Winery & Vineyards (wilsoncreekwinery.com) and their Creekside Grille, where owners Bill, Gerry and Rosie Wilson ate lunch with the group. Bill Wilson originally planted the seed in his family’s mind of buying the property to start a winery and – though there were several setbacks at the start he can laugh about now – his family’s estate has grown to be one of the preeminent destinations in Temecula Valley.

Wilson Creek Winery produces the popular Almond Champagne, and hosts live music, weddings and special events, including a sold-out Mother’s Day brunch, to help up the profile of the Valley. But it was the wine, of course, that he most wanted to discuss.

After stops at Lorimar Vineyards & Winery (lorimarwinery.com) – where sommelier and manager Patrick McIlvain gave a private tour of the vineyard, showing their varietals grown on site – and a wine and cheese pairing at Miramonte Winery (miramontewinery.com) on their newly designed patio, it became clear that one day in Temecula Valley would not suffice. Miramonte owner Cane Vanderhoof, who joined in the wine tasting, agreed.

“I think there were 14 really recognized and fully functioning wineries, and probably a few other small up and comers, when I first came,” Vanderhoof said. “It kind of seems like in our generation, a lot of stuff is kind of starting to come together.”

To round out the first evening, a private dinner and wine tasting was held at Bouquet, the Ponte Family Estate’s (pontewinery.com) outdoor restaurant at their Vineyard Inn. Winemakers from Doffo Winery (doffowines.com), Wiens Family Cellars (wienscellars.com) and Mote de Oro Winery (montedeoro.com) – all resting in the 35,000 acres of rolling hills in the Temecula Valley – joined to talk more about wine.

The following day the group diverged to Old Town Temecula, a broad 12-block shopping district nestled near Interstate 15. Leah Di Bernardo, owner and executive chef of EAT: Extraordinary Artisan Table (eatmarketplace.com) catered an organic, locally and responsibly-sourced meal of fresh tomato salad, gluten free muffins and bacon quiche, highlighting something other than wine.

Di Bernardo, who said she is looking to open EAT locations in the San Diego region, said shopping and supporting the local economy is not just good business, but also good health.

“I have a fascination with quick, healthy to-go food and I’ve also seen this deterioration [in health] in our country over the past 15 years,” she said.

After the tour it was back to wine country, where the Winegrowers Association was busy organizing that evening’s CRUSH Gala event and winemakers roundtable, featuring all 35 wineries in one place: Callaway Vineyards and Winery (callawaywinery.com).

Phil Baily was one speaker for that evening’s roundtable, and before heading into official panelist duties, he sat with the group for his new Baily Estate Club Tasting, held at Baily Vineyard and Winery (bailywinery.com). Here, Baily offered several wines from his estate’s cellars, giving the opportunity to taste subtle differences in wine throughout time. This tasting is for serious wine lovers and “knowledgeable wine consumers,” he said, recommending those interested to contact Estate Club Director Lisa Jane Long at 951-972-9768 for reservations.

The group then stopped to visit another winemaker speaking at that evening’s CRUSH, Nicholas Palumbo, owner of Palumbo Family Vineyards & Winery (palumbofamilyvineyards.com). Palumbo moved his family into the Temecula Valley in 1998, and is now president of the Winegrowers Association. His small, family farm – first and foremost, they are farmers, he said – is slightly off the beaten path.

“When I talk about wine, you’re not going to hear the normal flowery, schmooze-y wine speak,” Palumbo said, who grew up in the San Diego region. “I’m going to talk about wine in terms of music and in terms of food.”

The winemakers roundtable – Baily and Palumbo were joined by Drake Enterprises, Inc. (drakeent.com) owner Ben Drake, Callaway winemaker Craig Larson and Heart Family Winery (heartfamilywinery.com) owner Joe Hart – as well as the CRUSH Gala could only be topped by an early morning hot-air balloon ride over the quiet Valley, as the sun rose.

Vindemia Winery (vindemia.com) and California Dreamin’ owner Dave Bradley took several from the group on a hour-long “float” above several wineries, including day one’s Ponte Family Estate and South Coast Winery & Resort (wineresort.com) before returning to his winery for a walk through the vineyard and a capstone wine-crushing contest.

For those who missed the Winegrowers Association’s September California Wine Month CRUSH Gala, the next big event is the 23rd annual Harvest Celebration Barrel Tasting Weekend, scheduled for Nov. 2 and 3 from 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Ticket holders can visit all 35 wineries during the two-day event, tasting wines and celebrating the Temecula Valley the entire time. Information and tickets on this and all the wineries can be found at temeculawines.org or by calling 800-801-9463.