Temecula was less than a 2 hour drive north from Santee Lakes. Over the last 25 years we had explored the numerous wineries in the Temecula area. Not only has the quality of the wine improved, but the number of visitors has increased tremendously. So have the tasting fees and price of their wines.
Temecula
The Spanish missions of California were a series of 21 missions created between 1751 and 1833. One of the Catholic priests goals was to convert, educate, and transform the American natives into Spanish colonial citizens. As the missions advanced north, they planted vine cuttings at each location.
In the 1800’s, the California wine industry was concentrated in Southern California. Temecula during that time, was a stagecoach stop. By the 1970’s, Temecula was producing its own commercial wine. Callaway Winery was established in 1974. It wasn’t until 1984 that the area was designated as the “Temecula AVA”. Currently, it’s the largest wine producing area in Southern California. Other major wine areas in California seem to pooh pooh Temecula, but from our experience it has become a contender as a very good California wine region.
Southern California’s population has exploded. The area draws a lot of wine enthusiasts. Many of the wineries offer outstanding food along with their wonderful wines. It’s a beautiful area consisting of rolling hills at 1000 feet elevation. The surrounding mountains rise to over 11,000 feet providing a picturesque backdrop to the acres of vines.
Pechanga RV Resort in Temecula
Pechanga RV Resort is part of the Pechanga Casino. It’s a nice RV park with 168 spacious sites. They offer full hook ups and had decent internet. There is a pool and two hot tubs. Nearby is a Costco and numerous shops and restaurants. Jake loved the dog park and daily walks around the resort.
We limited our tastings to just a winery a day and to a few of our favorites. One day we went to Warner Springs to wine taste some of the wineries we had never been to. Warner Springs is at around 3000 feet elevation, less developed, and produces some very good wines. We stumbled upon a metal sculpture vendor along the way. Michael says I’m no angel!
