The Temecula Valley Wine and Culinary Showcase

This month is California Wine Month, and to celebrate the occasion, Southern California’s only Wine Country, Temecula Valley, is holding the first annual Temecula Valley Wine and Culinary Showcase. The two-part event gives guests a chance to taste the beautiful and varied flavors the region has to offer in one location and on one night, while mingling with the brilliant winemakers and growers that call Temecula Valley home.

Peggy Evans, Executive Director of the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association says, “Our members are extremely passionate about what they do, and have chosen to make wine in Temecula Valley because they recognize that it is really an ideal place to grow winegrapes.”

The area is a beautiful paradise, consisting of a sprawling 35,000 acres of rolling hills and vineyards, with about 30 family owned wineries dotting the landscape. Overseen by the non-profit Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association, whose mission is to “promote the making and growing of quality wine and winegrapes”, the region produces some of the most prized varieties of wines in the world—making the Wine and Culinary Showcase an event that you don’t want to miss.

Peggy Evans explains that one of the best things about Temecula is that “it’s one of the only wine regions in California that is easy to get to from major metropolitan areas. You can get here from San Diego, Los Angeles, Orange County or Palm Springs in about an hour.” So if you live down south, up north, or anywhere in between, you have no excuse. Temecula is closer than you think. Head to Temecula Valley Wine and Culinary Showcase for a taste of great wine, great food, and have a fantastic time.

Evans says, “The Association wanted to offer locals and visitors to the area a chance to really experience the best of wine country in one location. Our other annual events let people visit the individual wineries at their leisure with a tasting passport; but until now, we haven’t pulled all of our wine country restaurants, wineries and winemakers together for a big showcase event like this. We just want to show people a really good time!”

The festivities will begin with a Winemaker’s Roundtable, filmed and broadcasted live from the event between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. Moderator Meredith May from The Tasting Panel magazine will interview Temecula Valley Winemakers, both the veterans and the rookies, in a panel discussion of the area’s winemaking history and the direction the future will bring for Southern California’s most prestigious winemaking region. Guests are invited to watch and listen as the discussion ensues and the stunning variety and rich past of the area’s winemaking processes are revealed.

Following the roundtable will be a champagne reception from 6:30-7:00 p.m., during which guests will check into the event and mingle with one another, after which the real festivities begin: the Wine and Culinary Showcase features a walk-around tasting from 7:30-9:00 p.m., complete with wine and food tasting from more than a dozen restaurants and 30 wineries, with more than 120 varieties of wine for guests to sample. Experience a range of beautiful flavors, from wines that are refreshingly light and flowery to those that leave a deep bloom of taste resonating on your palate long after your last sip has come and gone.

Tickets are available for $65 per person, and the event takes place at the picturesque Monte de Oro Winery in Temecula, CA. So if you love good wine and want to be around people who know it best, head over to Temecula Valley and enjoy a festive night of wine and food next Friday, September 17th.

Photo from Entertianer Photographer AKAPhotoGirl
Logo from Temecula Vally Wine Growers Association