...any wine made south of Santa Barbara sucks.
I wouldn't know either way. I went to a few places outside Julian and thought that their wine was pretty good. :^)
I love red wine and I want a good price...I have never been up to this area so I would really appriciate some advice ( good price).
Thank you,
mara
-- Modified on 1/8/2003 2:34:50 PM
Mara;
I don't know much about Temecula but generaly you will not get a great deal at the wineries. They usually charge retail. I get all my wine (I have about 500 bottles in my cellar) at Vintage Wines in Miramar. They have the best selection & prices in town.
Thanks for the e-mail you sent me about my family.
sdracer
My suggestion is to hook up with a designated driver or book one of those wine tours and check out most of what Temecula has to offer. Maybe a TER member would want to go with you and make it a Fun tour. There are many quality wineries and depending on your particular taste you should find some great values. Enjoy!
Mara,
Temecula is a fun place to go for winetasting but you won't find any bargains there. I've heard Hart Winery and Palamar Winery make some good reds. The Callaway and Thornton wineries are worth visiting but I think they make better whites than reds.
For bargain hunting, Vintage Wines on Miramar Road is definitely the place to go. The salespeople there are friendly and knowledgeble-without-being-snobbish...they never seem to mind answering my stupid questions. If you tell them what type of wine you like and your price range, I'm sure they'll have some good suggestions. They also have a monthly newsletter with a list of the months best buys so be sure to get on their mailing list.
By the way, Happy New Year!
...any wine made south of Santa Barbara sucks.
I wouldn't know either way. I went to a few places outside Julian and thought that their wine was pretty good. :^)
I would definitely recommend doing some serious taste testing. I was at the wineries 2 days ago.
It'll run you about $5.00 to test about 5-6 different wines at most of the wineries. You can do all reds if you want. They have some great dessert wines there also.
At Wilson Creek they give you a complimentary wine glass that you can take home for that 5 bucks.
Taste testing at Maurice Carrie is free so you can't beat that. Most of their wines are reasonably priced too.
As far as a discount store to go to I'd hit Longs Drugs in Temecula. Alot of employees of the wineries buy there because even with their discounts its still cheaper.
Hope that helps. PM me if you want more info.
The whites, particularly Viognier and Chardonnay and sparkling wines, can be quite good. But the reds range from mediocre to absolutely HORRID. When buying California RED wines, keep these regional guidelines in mind, in declining order of typical quality -
Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa, Sonoma (especially Alexander Valley), Mendocino
Merlot - Sonoma (Esp. Alexander Valley and Dry Creek Valley), Napa
Pinot Noir - Russian River, Santa Barbara-Santa Maria, Monterey - Pinnacles area (Chalone, Calera), Mendocino (esp. Green Valley region), Carneros region of Napa
Syrah and other Rhone style Reds - Sonoma, Napa, Santa Barbara, Mendocino
RED Zinfandel - Sonoma (esp. Dry Creek Valley, Alexander Valley and Russian River Valley), Napa, Mendocino, Amador County
Whites - Chardonnay appears to grow well like a weed anywhere in California, including even Temecula.
Is this just for a visit, or is your move permanent. We could always use another wonderful lady up here.