Wine Country
It's almost harvest time here in Temecula. The wine route on Rancho California provides a great getaway so my friends Vickie and Carla joined me for lunch and a bit of wine tasting. Our first venture was to visit the Rusty Acres Herb Farm which I hadn't scoped out first. We drove about 10 miles (well Vickie drove and did an awesome job) up into the hills on some of the curviest road I've been on in a long time. Imagine taking a 45 degree turn and going up 25 degrees at the same time! Then at one point there was a mirror on the side of the road because you could not see over the hill as you went up...a very eerie experience.
When we finally arrived we found a well landscaped hillside with the owners mobile home serving also as the gift shop, in the living room I think. The cash register was on the kitchen counter. Lots of lavender bunches and wreaths hanging around along with homemade lavendar oils and lotions. It was a pretty funky place. If I'd checked it out first we probably would not have gone, but it was a memorable adventure.
We then went to lunch at Baily's Winery, eating outside in view of these grape vines. We had a delicious salad of mixed greens, grapes, spicy roasted pecans and grilled salmon. The dressing was very delicate and was wine based. Carla said we "dined" because we spent a couple of hours over a glass of wine and salad.
Then we visited three wineries where we would buy one tasting--5 wines for $6. Then we passed the glass for sips. That way we could see more wineries and still drive. At Falkner Winery our host, Bob, showed us how red wines taste different after they have been decanted, in this case that meant swirled in the glass. That adds oxygen and enhances the flavor. We ended our day at Wilson Winery where the finale is the Almond Champagne and the Decadent Chocolate Port.
There are 22 wineries in this area and a few of them have restaurants or offer deli items so you can picnic there. It's a great getaway, best done with good friends or loved ones.
