An Evening at Mount Palomar Winery

As many of you know, Alyssa and I are members at a couple of Temecula Wineries.  We regularly make the hour drive to Temecula to experience new wineries.  It's a little odd to be writing on this subject, as not that long ago, I hated wine.  As I mention in another post, Maui Winery is responsible for opening my palate up and making this article possible.  At any rate, we have been to a small percentage of wineries in Temecula; perhaps 10-12 by my count of the 50+ in the Temecula Wine Country.  We have aspirations to see them all, eventually, and I am sure I'll write another post about other wineries at a later date...

Mount Palomar Winery

...But today, I want to discuss September 11th, 2016 and our evening at Mount Palomar Winery.

We'll begin, earlier in the day, with our visit to my favorite Olive Oil tasting in all the land.  Now, Olivedipity is fine and Temecula Olive Oil Company is delicious, but my dollar, more often than not, goes to Villa Di Calabro.  They are a winery and olive oil company with a tasting room located in the heart of Old Town.  They have the best $5 Peach Sangria you'll ever drink and I must confess, I have yet to try any of their other wines but for $10 you get a tasting of 6.  I promise to do a wine tasting there next time I go.  They make my list of must stop locations because of the free olive oil tasting.

Mike is more than happy to share his knowledge and his product with you while his wife pours you a glass of the sangria.  I have sampled so many oils and vinegar and rest assured, the best is found here. I always leave with a bottle of the Fresh Scallion Olive Oil.

Olive oil and vinegar pairings.

I also just discovered that they offer a club unlike any other in the area.  Every two months, you get 25% off and must purchase two bottle...of anything you want.  That's right.  You can choose to mix and match from their wines, olive oils, and vinegars.  Any two.  You also get free tastings every time you visit for you and 3 guests, plus invites to free events throughout the year.  Tell me that's not a bargain?

I know, I know...the article is titled "An Evening at Mount Palomar Winery" and I promise I am getting there, but first, we made a stop at another winery that we're members at.  That winery is Thornton Winery, home of chocolate wine.  Yes, chocolate wine.  We joined this winery in June and every two months, we get two bottles of chocolate wine.  We also get free flights every time we visit (boy have we taken advantage of that) and a discount on other wines and food at their delicious restaurant, Cafe Champagne.  We also discovered Rose was on sale this time so opted to take home a bottle of that as well.

They have a wide variety of flights to choose from.

Now, I know what you're thinking...Chocolate wine?  It's amazing!  Trust me!  They have two varietals.  A Kiss of Chocolate is tasty as a dessert wine but the Decadent Black Forest is far superior!  I am also sad to report that the menu has recently changed at the cafe and the best goat cheese and bread basket I have ever had is no longer available.  I am hoping they will see the error in their ways soon because that might be a deal breaker for me.

Finally, I am getting to our evening at Mount Palomar Winery.  It's, by far, our favorite winery and obviously, we're members.  Kevin, our first contact there back in June, is the reason we joined the wine club.  He is everything an employee should be and his passion for what he does is evident.

Outside of the fact that I have not found a wine of theirs I don't enjoy, the grounds are some of the most beautiful in the valley and the burger at the Annata Bistro is the best burger I have ever had.  Instead of just picking up our two bottles every other month, the winery throws pick up parties.  These parties include wine tastings with food pairings and are highly entertaining.

Each September, they go one step further with a Member Appreciation Dinner.  This is a 4 hour buffet dinner with an open wine and beer bar and live entertainment.  I value, as a wedding and event planner, the ticket price at $80 per head yet the winery offers it free to members.

Alyssa and Andrew at the Wine Appreciation dinner.

Ava and Richard at the Wine Appreciation dinner.

The event takes place on the top tier of the property in the wedding and event area.  Upon entry, you're greeted by appetizers and champagne.

A sample of my first plate of appetizers.

After an awkward CD playback of "God Bless America", (instead of just using the great band that was there or at the very least, announcing that we should stand so half of us weren't trying to figure out what's going on), the owner of the winery made a lovely introduction and dinner was served.  The buffet included chicken, vegetables, potatoes, salads, beef, meatballs, sausage and peppers, and the list goes on...

Buffet Dinner

I went back twice excluding the trip to the dessert table.  I can't recall how many times I went to the bar but I am sure I had full pours of each of the nine wines on offering that night.  They also had 5-10 beers, soft drinks, and water available and yes, all drinks were included.  We mingled with the owner, several employees we've come to know including our favorite, Kevin, and the winemaker who is just the right amount of sarcasm for my liking.

We ended up dancing the night away with Black Hat Patsy.  They were an underutilized cover band that provided those of us dancing with a great selection of classic rock and pop songs.

Black Hat Patsy

Rocking the night away once the Squares left.

There were a few flaws in a pretty flawless evening. The staff could have done more to encourage dancing.  I would have liked to see the owner or some of the higher ups dancing.  I also feel like the way they split the wine club members up over two nights (September 11 and September 18) could have been handled better. It was split up alphabetically with "No Exceptions".  The problem is that we joined the club with friends that have, gasp, a different last name.  We can't be the only ones.  It makes much more sense to just say "First come, first served" and let us live with our choices.  They send out RSVP notices on the 1st.  Once a date fills up with a set number of RSVP, that date should be closed.  The final flaw is a flaw with the winery itself but thankfully everyone else makes up for it.  There's one employee there that is a horrendous human being.  I actually think she's related to the owner.  We have had nothing but problems with her every time we visit.  She's been rude in the tasting room by essentially pushing me out of her way, talking back to customers, and generally creating a bad feeling in the air.  Other employees are regularly apologizing for this woman.  At the dinner last night, she was making her way around the tables to greet members and very intentionally skipped ours.  I have never bothered to get her name but you'll know her when you have the displeasure of running into her.  We're grateful that the winery has so much more to offer and she hasn't spoiled it entirely yet but if it keeps up, we will likely consider cancelling our membership.

All things considered, the evening was a phenomenal experience and we ended up with a bottle of the Cortese and a bottle of the Miscela Buona, the blending competition winner.  We also bought a case of the 2009 Kyanti.  A truly great evening from a truly great winery.