My cruise blog keeps veering towards being a wine blog this winter. Blame it on the Temecula Valley being a quick escape for Southern Californians.
Invited to the wine pick-up party for the Falkner Wine Club, Mike, Linda, Julie and I headed over to Rancho California once again this past Saturday.
Julie and I made our now usual stop at Jack In the Box at the Green River offramp of the 15 freeway. Their staff is friendly, their bathrooms clean, and their breakfast menu not only features inexpensive specials but has proven to be consistently well-cooked. A guy about my age on a ten speed bike had ridden there from Newport Beach, making me think I should start riding a bike again to get into shape to make long rides. As my dad used to say, I guess I better lay down until that urge goes away.Anyway, after breakfast we continued our drive. A major traffic jam forced us off the freeway, and of course that is the systemic condition that has dulled Southern California's luster for tourists in recent years. Nonetheless, as my brother-in-law Brooks says, you can't let the challenges of driving somewhere stop you from going. We found driving on the side roads actually more pleasant than the freeway would have been even without the clog, and eventually we made it out to Rancho California.
Getting on with the signficant part of the story, we visited the Baily Winery. Small but attractive and classy, the tasting room includes some interesting gift items, like a wick kit that converts an empty wine bottle into a candle lamp. More importantly, Baily features consistently great wine. While other wineries have definite specialities, Baily's wine is excellent across the board.
We had the good fortune of being served by Ricardo for our ten dollar tastings. Ricardo is a youthful octogenarian oenophile with a sharp mind filled with encyclopedic knowledge of wine and memories of a fascinating life. Born in Brazil, he traveled the world as an international consultant. With one child who lives in Florence and one in Stuttgart, he spoke of flying to Germany, renting Porsches to drive through the Alps between his children's homes, and sampling regional wines en route.
Ricardo told us how the Cabernet Sauvignon grape is believed to be the result of a natural grafting of nearby vineyards, one planted in Cabernet Franc and the other in Sauvignon Blanc. The field between the two pure vineyards created the new grape which became extremely popular worldwide. In fact, while there are now over 2900 varieties of grapes, originally there were only six, according to Ricardo, and he rattled them off. When we drank a Baily Sangiovese, Ricardo shared that this is the grape at the heart of Italy's famed Chiantis. He spoke in glowing terms of Italian wines which are not exported and require visits to Italy to enjoy, but as he rapidly swirled each glass of Baily wine to ensure the perfect release of aromas for perfect tastings, he also proudly presented these locally produced wines.
I asked if he was the owner of Baily Winery, because he certainly had the knowledge and love of his product. He replied with a smile that he had a small stake in the winery, but mostly he just enjoyed working in the winery to keep his mind sharp and give him something to do. I think I speak for all of the people he has served in saying that he is a true professional in a world of amateurs. We weren't the only ones who walked away with more than a case of wine to share with friends after being dazzled by his show of knowledge and flair.
While all the wines are excellent, the dessert wines proved to be of particular note. We all felt Baily's port to be the best we have tasted anywhere. Baily also has a white dessert wine called Serenity, which is a sweet, late harvest Sauvigon Blanc with a strong shadowing of hazelnuts due to the grapes having been planted near the nuts. Ricardo suggested it be used not only as a dessert drink but as salad dressing, either alone or mixed with olive oil.
For passengers going on cruises from Southern California, a side trip to Temecula Valley including the Baily Winery is an extra treat.
