Wine Country Spotlight

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Temecula Valley Ballon and Wine Festival

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Central Park Grand Opening Ceremony

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Spring Has Sprung Clean

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Sunday, 21 February 2016 10:00

Wine Country Spotlight

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA'S FIRST MINED WINE CAVEOPENS FOR TOURS AND EVENTS

Oak Mountain Winery is celebrating the premiere opening of the area's first mined wine cave February 13 and 14, 2016 with tours of the 10,000 square foot cave. While wine caves are common in Napa and France, this is the first cave to be dug into a hillside in the Temecula Valley.

"It was a first for Riverside County so the planning process took about two years," stated Valerie Andrews, who owns and operates the winery with her husband Steve.

Underground mined caves are considered to have the best environment for aging and storing wine. Using geothermal technology, Mountain Winery's cave will provide consistent temperatures in the 60s and ideal humidity. The cave runs 104 feet underground and is steel reinforced with eight to 10 inches concrete. Condor Earth Technologies of Northern California built the cave which took eight months to excavate.

With two entrances, a full commercial kitchen, a banquet room and tasting rooms, the cave will also store over 400 barrels of wine. Oak Mountain Winery currently produces 10,000 cases of award-winning Bordeaux-styled wines including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. Their production facility 12 miles east of Oak Mountain provides Rhone-styled wines such as Syrah and Viognier.

During the cave premiere weekend wine lovers can take a 45 minute tour of the cave and learn details of the cave's construction. Tours will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and include wine tasting, with six tastes of wine and a souvenir glass. Reservations are recommended. The cost is $30 per person. The new kitchen will be offering a menu of tasty treats to compliment your favorite wine.

Be prepared to spend the day enjoying the winery and it's view of the DePortola WineTrail region of Temecula Valley. This part of wine country offers wide open vistas of rolling hills, vineyards and thoroughbred ranches. Oak Mountain Winery is also one of the few dog-friendly wineries in the valley. After the premiere weekend, wine cave tours and tasting in the cave will be open to the public Monday through Friday. Cave tasting room will be reserved for wine club members only on weekends.

Schedule a tour at www.oakmountainwinery.com or by calling 951-699-6102. The winery is located at 36522 Via Verde Road just off Deportola Road.