If you’re visiting Temecula wine country for the first time, a tour led by a local expert who takes care of your entire day can be a great way to get to know this beautiful and diverse valley. All you need to do is relax and go along for the literal ride. Though I’m now a local, my introduction to Temecula was on a Grapeline Wine Tour back in 2003 when I lived in Los Angeles and came here for an office outing. Temecula was different back then. Wilson Creek was just a small tasting room, and the Visit Temecula brochure listed only 16 wineries. Now that Temecula has over 50+ wineries, a friendly tour guide can make this ever-growing area feel more personal.
Grapeline Wine Tours was founded in 2002 by Kim and John Kelliher and offers wine country tours—both public and private—in a variety of vehicles, from SUVs, limos, and touring vans to an 18-passenger Mercedes convertible. They provide several tours, all of which are a terrific value once you consider the comparable cost of hiring an Uber or Lyft, plus the wine tastings and lunch.
The Vineyard Picnic Tour
My husband and I were recently invited on Grapeline’s All-Inclusive Full-Day Wine Tasting Tour, ranked in the Top 10 Beverage Tours and Experiences on Viator. (You’ll find the same tour on the Grapeline site listed as the Vineyard Picnic Tour.) Our guide and driver, Mike, who has been with the company since 2003, picked us up at South Coast Winery Resort & Spa in a pristine, white van with comfortable armchair-style black leather seats. This particular tour picks up each guest at their hotel, and since we were the last of our group to be picked up, we were immediately off to our first tasting.
As we made our way, Mike gave us an introduction to Temecula’s growing wine region and a few wine tasting how-to’s. Smell! Sip! Savor! He also let us in on a hidden benefit of touring with Grapeline: a 10% discount on all wines and winery gift shop purchases made that day. This intro was also when we learned which we would be visiting.
Stop 1: Danza del Sol Winery
Our first stop was Danza del Sol Winery, the number one purchaser of Temecula Valley grapes and part of a group that includes Masia de la Vinya Winery, Native Falls Campground, and the equestrian center Galway Downs. We were greeted by Danza’s tour guide, Ben, who handed us tastings of the oldest Sauvignon Blanc in the valley the moment we stepped off the bus. Glass in hand, we followed him along a path that led behind the winery for a brief tour of the grounds. We strolled past the barrel room, which is now an event space, got an up-close view of pile upon pile of recently harvested grapes, and stopped at the steel fermenting tanks to learn a bit about their wine-making process before making our way into the tasting room.
Inside the tasting room, we could select our choice of six wines to taste as part of the tour, and Danza had two servers who adeptly handled our group of 13 plus a few other early tasting room visitors. I have been to Danza, but it had been a few years, so it was nice to be re-introduced to their wines and be reminded how excellent their Petit Sirah is. While we were tasting, our driver, Mike, snuck off to our next stop, Cougar Vineyard & Winery, to ensure our picnic lunch was ready for us when we arrived.
Stop 2: Cougar Vineyard & Winery
Our tour was on an over 90-degree day, so a beautiful table with flowers, wine glasses, and water bottles was set up for us inside Cougar’s large tasting room. We had each selected our lunch preference from Cougar’s Italian Deli menu well before the tour date, so everything was prepared when we arrived. Mike presented leis (see below) to the members of our group celebrating birthdays and anniversaries while we toasted their occasions. After lunch, we took our tasting cards to the bar, where Robin, the tasting room manager, gave us a tour of the wines. The bold and fruity (but not sweet) Lambrusca di Alessandria, a grape Cougar introduced to the U.S., was my favorite.
As we drove down De Portola Road toward our third winery of the day, Mike stopped to point out some Watusi bovines on a farm with horns so big they couldn’t hold their heads straight. He also stopped briefly so we could take a peek at a 28-acre property that actor Jack Klugman used to own. Sometimes it’s fun to be a tourist in your own town. Once we finished admiring how the other half live, we turned up Anza Road toward the north side of the valley to Akash Winery.
Stop 3: Akash Winery
Even though it was a Monday, the tasting room at Akash was busy with other tour groups and only two servers behind the bar. But since we already had tasted plenty of wine, and our tour was timed at a leisurely pace, we were happy to hang out and chat with a friendly Midwestern couple on the tour while we waited our turn for the tasting. Akash also serves Malbec sangria and brews their own beer, so some from our group opted for glasses and went outside to enjoy the tremendous view from Akash’s patio. I persevered with my tasting and was rewarded with pours of Akash’s fantastic 2021 Zinfandel and 2021 Estate Petit Sirah. Mike came in to round us up as we finished our last taste, and off we went to our final stop at Wilson Creek.
Stop 4: Wilson Creek Winery
At this point, I was pretty happy that no one in my party was driving, and we had Mike to look after us. For me, two wine tastings in a day are fun. Three tastings work if I’ve had a meal like we did that day. But at four wineries, I have trouble tasting any difference between the wines, so my husband purchased some pretzels from the gift shop in an attempt to revive our taste buds.
Wilson Creek Winery became famous for its flavored sparkling wines. Still, it also has an extensive wine list that includes nice reds like a fruit-forward Grenache, a bold Syrah, and an excellent Cabernet Sauvignon. Grapeline keeps a box in the back of the van for each party in the tour to safely transport wine purchases made throughout the day.
We returned to South Coast Winery at 4:30 pm, where Mike got off the bus with us to say goodbye. It was clear he took great pride in being a host and ensuring his guests were safe and having a good time. He also mentioned that Grapeline takes requests for wineries to visit if made in advance of the tour day. Similarly, we received a follow-up email from Grapeline owner Kim Kelliher to ensure everything went smoothly. Grapeline lists its top two core values as Safety First and Hospitality from the Heart, and this was clear every step of the way. I’m sure it won’t be another 20 years before we go on another Grapeline tour.
P.S. Don’t forget to tip your driver.
