So. Cal. Winery Review
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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WINERY REVIEW

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Introduction
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Welcome to Southern California Winery Review!  I started this website in late 2017 because I kept finding really bad wineries getting rave reviews, while some very, very good wineries were totally ignored.  So, I've spent quite a bit of time visiting wineries in Southern California (over 60).  Of these I've found about 40 pretty good wineries, certainly worth my taking the time to write them up.  I know what you are thinking -- it's a dirty job, but someone has to do it....  These are summarized in the Wineries section of this website. 
Now wineries in Southern California  are rapidly becoming the centers of social activities.  Not just for special events (weddings and the like), but as a place to go on weekends with friends, to enjoy good wine (ok, that's pretty obvious), good food, and even good entertainment.  While most wineries have some sort of wine club, no two are run the same.  Some wineries have restaurants.  Some have entertainment on weekends.  Some even have hotels.   So I have included information on all of this, both in the Wineries section and in the Winery News section.
If you are looking for specific varietals, you can find long lists at the beginning of the About section.  Not just what varietals are available in Southern California, but which wineries are offering them.  The About section also includes info on wine storage, corks, the Sommelier test, how to cool your wine to proper serving temperature, and other little tidbits.

Wine quality determines which wineries I review, though I also pay attention to the wine tasting room, personnel, location, view, et al.   I should add that I am very much a red wine enthusiast....
And speaking of red wine, I shall now expound on my pet peeve -- namely, drinking red wine at "room temperature"!  Red wine should be stored and drunk at a temperature below 65 F.  If you don't believe me, I suggest you run a little experiment -- I like experiments, in fact I'm a retired experimental physicist.  Pour red wine into two glasses in a warm room.  Chill one to below 65 F (put it in the fridge for about 20 minutes) and let the other glass warm up.  Then taste them both.... 
See picture below for recommended drinking temperatures.  By the way, what you see in the picture is the back of a wine temperature gauge, one of many wine-related paraphenalia in the Gadgets section.
IMPORTANT NOTE:  At the end of each post is a small Facebook Like box....  Would really like a lot of likes....

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 NEWS FLASH:  Worried about brown-outs ruining your wine?  Well, Chateau 55 has added a generator so your wine will always stay coo.  Mention our name and get the first month of storage free and a 5% discount for the next 11 months storage.  To check them out  click the link below. 
Link to Chateau 55 Website
33% Discount!  Save $20 on a $59.99 Priority Wine Pass by using the link below and entering the code scwr.
Link to Priority Wine Pass

  • So Cal Winery Review has joined the American Institute of Wine & Food, San Diego Chapter.  AIWF was founded in 1981 by Julia Child, Robert Mondavi, and others.  Read more about it in our About section.
  • I got another gadget for Father's Day.  See it in the GADGETS section.
  The Latest Blog
New winery:  Bastian's Vineyards in Escondido, subject of my latest blog.
Site News​​
Links to special blogs:​
  • The Italian Connection
  • Purchasing Wine
  • Tasting Wine
  • Tastes like Marsala
  • And the beat goes on
  • We are the future
  • To taste or not to taste
  • Three years
  • Doc Ed's Excellent Adventure
  • Wine, food, and music in Ramona 
  • The Guadalupe Valley -- First Visit
  • Halloween 2021 -- Revenge of the Spirits




Hyland Estates (from Doc Ed)

10/29/2019

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​If you are visiting the Willamette Valley, Hyland should be one of your destinations.  It is about 40 miles southwest of Portland, and situated among several fine vineyards. I first found it about two years ago, and it has become my first stop every time I return to the area. 
Hyland is one of the oldest and largest wineries in the area, with 180 acres that were planted in 1971.  Like other vineyards in this region, Pinot Noir is the main grape varietal that they serve.  For you white-wine lovers, they also produce Gewürztraminer, Riesling, Chardonnay, and Muller Thurgau.  Hyland wines regularly win awards, and commonly have a 90+ rated wine listed in leading publications.  Some of the fruit from their property was used in the 1985 Burgundy Challenge in Paris!
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Unlike the practice at most of the other vineyards, Hyland distinctively serves several single-clone wines rather than blends composed of multiple clones.  Here you can taste pure Wadenswil clone, a cold weather grape registered in Switzerland that can have an interesting pepper finish.  Also available are pure clones of Pommard, Coury, Dijon 115 and others.  I like this approach, as it lets me taste the pure flavor of an individual clone, rather than mixed blends which tend to blur together in my mind and in my mouth.  See tasting menu below.
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​Hyland has a friendly staff with much better credentials than I have found at other places.  The person I most commonly see serving the wine is a sommelier (level 3) which is rare in my travels in Oregon and California.  Rebecca is very knowledgeable and makes the tasting very educational.  Also at the winery is a sommelier (level 4) who teaches monthly classes at the tasting room, among his many other duties.
The wine club has several options ranging from 2-3 bottles every quarter, up to 4-6 bottles per quarter.  Both provide free tastings, and 15% to 20% discounts on the wine.   While Hyland suggests the composition of each wine club shipment, they freely permit substitutions to customize the wine shipment order.  Hyland (hylandestateswinery.com) is open for tastings from 10:00 to 5:00 daily.
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    Jim Treglio

    retired physicist and wine lover

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