The Desert WIne Guy - Temecula California, The New Napa?

   When we think of California wineries we probably automatically think of the Northern California areas of the Napa Valley, Sonoma area. There is however, an up and coming region that is attempting to carve out a nitch for Southern California wine. The Southern California city of Temecula it appears, is attempting to become the next Napa Valley. Temecula is a middle to upper middle class city located in Southern California. The average income is $70,493 and the temperatures range from the mid-70s to the mid-90s. Today’s temperature (June 6, 2013) is actually 75 degrees. The average rainfall is 19 inches a year. According to the city of Temecula’s website http://www.cityoftemecula.org/Temecula/Businesses/demographics/ the population is listed at 103,092. Temecula is approximately 60 minutes away from San Diego, approximately 90 minutes away from Los Angeles and around 5 hours away from Las Vegas (my home) and is located on Highway 15 at the Rancho California Rd exit. Make a left (coming from Las Vegas) and follow the signs. According to the Temecula Visitors site (http://www.temeculacvb.com/visitors/wine-country/) there are 31 wineries located in the city of Temecula.

   In 1820, the first vineyard was established in a mission from Spain to use for sacramental wines. In the 1960s, the first wineries were created. Temecula grows a variety of wines such as; Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Syrah, Grenache, Sangiovese and Tempranillo. All this is possible because the soil is comprised of coarse sand and decomposed granite. It contains little organic material and drains very well (sounds like Las Vegas). Most of the vineyards are planted at elevations between 1,400 and 1,600 feet above sea level. Temecula wine country is growing as shown by the fact that when the county prepared its 2003-2004 plan there were 27 wineries and as of December 2012 there were an additional 15 new wineries with a plan to expand to 105 wineries. I can tell you from a personal observation that the city of Temecula is very beautiful and the wineries are a delight to visit although they do seem to be a little more stuck up, so to speak than Napa wineries. My experiences are that the wineries in Temecula seem less people oriented then the wineries in Napa, possibly because they have had less time to learn customer service, they also seem less willing to deal with customers who are not yet educated on wine. This MUST change and soon if Temecula wants to compete with Napa on a grand scale. These potential customers can either be turned away from the experience of wine or be welcomed into the experience of wine. It is up to Temecula just how serious the region will be taken in the wine world.

   Since I have just started this blog I have not documented any specific wineries with the "attitude" issues but I will start from now on doing write ups whenever I visit the area and I will of course pass this information on to you. I refer you to my article where I review the South Coast Winery where I had an excellent experience and as i've said in the article, actually joined their wine club. Okay folks, that is my little article on Temecula California. If you have any questions please e-mail me and I will try to help you. If anyone has suggestions on an article also please let me know.

                                                                                 The Desert Wine Guy