Before founding Grey Fox Vineyards in 1996, the Arrigoni and Cecchi families spent much of their free time pursuing their passion for flying small planes. It was on these getaways that conversations turned to dreams of planting a vineyard and building a winery. Bruce's family had a tradition of making wine at home and Gary had a good chemistry background. A seed was planted and it began to take hold.
The brilliant white stucco stands out dramatically against the rugged Mayacamas and Vaca mountain ranges that flank each side of Napa Valley. Mount Saint Helena makes a lovely distant backdrop. The tour is self guided so it's at your own pace and the gondola ride is unique for the area. It's also one of only wineries that's on a hill in the middle of Napa Valley so the views are to die for. My only suggestion would be (if you enjoy wine clubs) to join the wine club before you go. You can get on the gondola for free for up to 4 people and the tour is included as well. That pays for one of your months of wine right there. Then, you get access to the VIP tasting room which is fantastic.
Palumbo Family Vineyards This is a smaller, family run winery that is a bit out of the way of Temecula's bigger wineries. Tours don't come here often because they don't allow large busses or limos. However, I was happy that I was able to discovered this place. The tasting room is small, the family that makes the wine and their few employees pour your tastes. You definately get a very intimate feel here. As for the wine, it is delcious and the prices are not too high which is a giant plus given that the quality of the wines is fantastic.
Palumbo Family Vineyards and Winery is committed to small lot, handcrafted wines from varieties that are grown on small block, sustainably farmed wine vineyards.
Nick Palumbo, Owner/Winemaker
is a past President of the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association. The highlights for me were the Viognier/Roussane and the Cabernet Sauvignon. Will definately return when in the area. If you are like me, looking for a winery that is a gem and adds to the winery experience in Temecula, CA I just might see you there one day.
Elegant lovely and the reds wow I just had a moment. Not casual but elegant. Unique tasting room built by a very wealthy Persian businessman. Blocks of travertine imported from Iran, rare blue granite and fine craftsmanship are on full display. The staff is knowledgable and friendly and the cabernets, given some time to age and soften the abundant tannins, are terrific.
The name "Carica" and the fig leaf featured on the label are inspired by the fig trees (Ficus carica) that still thrive on the hillsides of premier northern California vineyards. Historically, both the grapevine and fig tree have symbolized a life of peace and prosperity.
About the Winemaker
Carica Wines was founded in 2005 by Charlie Dollbaum, who serves as both the original winemaker and owner. As a hands-on winemaker, Dollbaum meticulously oversees the grapes throughout the summer, obsessively monitoring ripeness and sugar content as harvest approaches. He is present before dawn during hand-harvesting and personally handles every step of the winemaking process, from crushing and fermentation to barrel selection and aging program design.
With a PhD in microbiology and over a decade of private winemaking experience, Dollbaum established Carica Wines with a commitment to producing wines of the highest quality. His approach focuses on ensuring that each wine authentically represents its varietal characteristics and achieves a perfect balance of flavor and acidity.
Making Wine in an Urban Environment
In 2009, Carica Wines relocated from Sonoma County to San Francisco’s East Bay. Now situated in a newly restored WWII structure in Richmond's historic Shipyards District, the winery and its scenic tasting room benefit from an ideal location. This urban setting provides close proximity to California’s premier wine grape-growing regions, a temperate climate well-suited for winemaking, and a vibrant community of food and wine enthusiasts.
Vineyards
Over the past 15 years, Carica Wines has curated premium northern California vineyards to create small-lot wines of exceptional character. By not being limited to a single estate, Carica Wines has the freedom to source outstanding fruit from various locations, fulfilling the winemaker’s vision of working with the best available resources.
Delicato Vineyards wines are distributed via retail market. See Delicato website for more details.
NOTHING but the best to report to about JUSTIN. The Vineyard and Wine Tasting Room are very nice, almost like being in another country. Peaceful and serene. The wine tasting room is relatively new, I believe we were told they opened about 6 months ago (from their prior location). The room was modern, tasteful, and chic. JUSTIN offers dinning in a beautiful dinning room that overlooks the vineyard. Of course, plan on making reservations ahead of time. The wine tasting was a success. We discovered their 2011 Right Angle and their 2011 Reserve Malbec. Both are AMAZING.
Out back winery in the Apple Hill Area has a large following. The wines are unpretentious and you will likely enjoy their Zinfandels and Syrahs.You will find that the taste of the wine does very considerably year to year, however, they have all been good and at the price point.
Pianetta winery is located on the vineyard, fourteen miles north of the downtown Paso Robles tasting room. The majority of the grapes harvested are sold to a major premium winery. Their success with Pianetta Estate grapes as well as their encouragement inspired Pianetta to develop a small winery so as to identify the wine from this vineyard. The first vintage yielded 370 cases of 2002 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon. Since then, Pianetta has grown to a 2700 case production and added Shiraz, Syrah, a Syrah/Cabernet blend, and a Rose style wine to their Estate wines, as well as Sangiovese, Petite Syrah, Zinfandel, and a Tuscan style blend from the Paso Robles appellation.
When Davis Bynum created Barefoot Bynum Burgundy—the first ever Barefoot wine—in his garage in Albany, California.
We changed our name to Barefoot Cellars, created the famous footprint label and quickly captured the hearts of our fans.
We struck gold. Jennifer Wall, winemaker extraordinaire, joined our team and sprinkled her magic dust on our line of fun, delicious wines.
