Fazeli Cellars

When we visit wineries we often meet people who have been visiting other wineries.  Sometimes they have good things to say and sometimes they have bad things to say – and, on rare occasions, they rant and rave about how great such-and-such winery is.  One winery that received such a recommendation was Fazeli Cellars.
Fazeli is a Temecula winery, sitting on a hill above de Portola (next to Robert Renzoni).  A little dirt road takes you up to their dirt parking lot, which sits below their absolutely magnificent facility.  You walk up winding steps to a great patio (see pictures).  Now, Fazeli is a Persian winery, with a Persian restaurant.  I don’t know how good the food is – we didn’t eat there – but it sure smells good!  So we followed the aroma of Persian food into their rather large tasting room.

The tasting room is largely a bar-type affair.  The patio that we passed through to get to the tasting room was loaded with tables, and there is a second patio on the other side of the tasting room with tables as well.  Great views from both patios, of course.  I need to mention that the restaurant (Baba Joon) is integrated into the tasting room and patios.  If you’ve read my previous reviews, this is something I really like, being able drink your tasting samples while you eat.  Wine tasting is $20 weekends, $15 Monday through Friday – and they offer a 2 for 1 tasting with Priority Wine Pass.

OK, so far so good.  But how about the wine?  I mean, yes, the Fazeli facility is exceptional (maybe the best in all of Temecula), and the food sure smelled good (and, according to the couple that ranted and raved about the winery, tastes as good as it smells), but if the wine wasn’t any good, well…  So we tasted six red wines.  Now sometimes a winery just doesn’t get the message that they exist to produce good wine, so all of the wines are, shall we say, not up to snuff.  Where they get the message, they seldom bat 1000.  Well, Fazeli bats 1000!  Six wines, and all ranged from pretty good to very good!  See the tasting menu below.

So naturally we asked about the temperature that they serve the wines at.  Ours were a bit warm, so this was a concern.  Well, in the summer, they keep the tasting room at barrel temperature.  In the winter, they just don’t turn on the heat.  As we were visiting on a particularly warm winter day….
They have two wine clubs, Turquoise and Diamond.  Both entail purchase of 12 bottles a year, two every other month, but the Diamond members by the more expense wines.  Both get 20% discount on wine, 10% on restaurant, with 25% discount for Turquoise members on cases and 30% for Diamond members.  Free tasting for 8 per month for Turquoise, 12 for Diamond.  Diamond members also get two complementary tickets to winery events, including their masquerade ball.  Yes, they have a masquerade ball!
They also have a private patio and room for wine club members – their Ruby Lounge.  See picture below.  Oh, I failed to mention that they offer entertainment Saturdays and Sundays (starting at 1 pm).