Santa Cruz Mountains
Wineries
Santa Cruz Mountains Winery Passport. Every third Saturday in January, April, July, and November, the wineries in the area open from 11-5 for free tastings to Passport holders. There are special pourings, discounts, and food as well. The passport costs $30.
Matthew O'Connor recommended Coooper-Garrod vineyards as a fun place to go wine tasting. It's just outside of Mountain View, and there's horseback riding.
On January 19, I visited to the following wineries in the county with Matthew O'Connor, Beth Molnar, and Ken Pier:
- Vino Locale -- Wine bar in Palo Alto specializing in local wines.
- Ridge Vineyards -- Excellent place! I really enjoyed three of the four tastings (2006 Chardonnay Mikulaco, 2003 Lytton Estate Syrah, and 2005 Zinfandel Dusi Ranch), which is unheard of for me. Lots of history too, both with Silicon Valley and the birth of the California wine industry. It was especially fun to go with Ken, who designed the Advanced Tasting Program logo.
- Naumann Vineyards -- basically someone making wine out of their house. The wines were solid, but a bit too sweet and lacking body for my taste, especially for the price.
- Picchetti Winery
At Vino Locale, the owner said that the sparkling wines at Emilio Guglielmo in Santa Clara county were as good as any of their more expensive forebears. He also mentioned Domenico in San Carlos (part of the Passport program) as a place to go to make your own private label wines.
Romaine recommended:
