Temecula Part III

For Mrs. Wine Guy and I Temecula is sort of the Seven Eleven of wine regions. It is overpriced, the quality is mediocre, but since iis so darn convenient (only about 6 hours from home) we keep going back.  This was our third trip to the area if you want to find out about our first two trips you can click one of the following links:  Trip1, Trip2.

As convenient as it is for us it is only an hour or two from LA or San Diego so it is only a day trip for those folks.  Add to that the fact that most of the tasting rooms range from very nice to spectacular, there are great restaurants, the views are magnificent, and that many of the tasting rooms feature music and other entertainment, it is no wonder it is a lot of fun even if the wine is so so.

This trip  we visited Ponte, Baily, Robert Renzoni, and Oak Mountain for the first time, and revisited Wiens, SC Cellars, and Europa Village.  While we were not impressed with most of the wines there were a few standouts.    

Our first stop driving into town before checking in at our Bed And Breakfast (The Inn at Europa Village...Fantastic!!!) was Wiens.  We have enjoyed some of their wines in the past and because they can’t ship to Arizona they made us “virtual” members” because of our past purchases.  They have a spacious contemporary tasting room that was able to accommodate the crowd that had gathered to taste. One of the perks of membership is that they give you 8 free pours each and throw in a couple of more for the fun of it.  Because of that it was our one and only stop of the day.  Most of their wines were undistinguished but we were impressed with their Sangiovese.  It was rich and flavorful and was a welcome relief from the bland wines that preceded it.  Their Alberino was also quite nice and their Ruby Port would pair nicely with chocolate or a cigar.  

Our first stop the next day was Ponte.  Their spacious tasting room was packed wall to wall with people paying an extra ordinary $20 to taste very ordinary wine. Their restaurant had a two hour wait. People love it. I don’t get it. None of what we tasted was worth half the $35 a bottle or more they charged for any of their wines.  Nothing we tasted was worth recommending. We walked away empty handed.  

We then went to Baily.  They are Temecula wine pioneers and based on some friends recommendations, their impressive castle like tasting room, and generally good online reviews we had high hopes.  Our hopes were dashed once we tasted the wine.  There was probably something wrong with us but it would be kind to say their wines were mediocre.  They tasted oxidized and were borderline undrinkable.   Again we walked away empty handed. On a positive note they have a casual dining restaurant on site that made one of the best Ruben sandwiches I have ever had.

After those two less than pleasant experiences, and the fact we had only one more stop left in us,  we needed to find a sure thing.  We did that with our visit to our old friends at SC Cellars.  Run by Scott and Colleen Kline, SC Cellars is a small winery that produces about 400 cases per year.  Carol is an artist (she hosts art and wine sessions on occasion) and has designed wine labels for some of her neighboring wineries. They are only open on weekends and then only for a few hours.   We enjoyed all of the wines we tasted there and walked away with their crisp 2013 Chardonnay and their 2011  Cellars Tapestry.  

The next day turned out to be much better.  Our first stop was Robert Renzoni.  Very modern well appointed tasting room with a large on site restaurant. They also had a ridiculous $20 tasting fee but at least the wine was good. We particularly enjoyed the 2014 Cantata a blend of Pinot Grigio and Viognier and their Sonata, a Tuscan blend of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon.  

Our next stop was Oak Mountain . The $15 tasting fee seemed like a bargain after a couple of other places  Nice tasting room that I would describe as contemporary rustic. Friendly service.  Most of the wines were nice and we walked away with a bottle of their  2012 Temecula Hills GSM blend.  It was complex,  flavorful, and would go well with any spicier beef dish.   

Our last stop was Europa Village.  It is called Europa Village because it has distinct brands for their French, Italian, and Spanish varietals (C’est La Vie, Vienza, and Bolero).  It’s tasting room is about to be demolished and replaced with three tasting rooms, one for each of the brands and that's probably a good thing as their current tasting room is hard to navigate when crowded.  They have one of the largest tasting menus in the area, and most of the wines if not great are pretty good especially when you compare them to much of the local competition.  Our favorites were their 2015 C’est La Vie En Vie Viognier, their 2013 C’est La Vie En Vie Rhone Blend, the 2013 Bolero Libito Rojha blend.  

Will there be a 4th visit?  Probably.  The place is a lot of fun and tasting mediocre wine is better than tasting no wine at all.