Think of wine, vineyards, wine tasting or wine tour in California and the first name that comes to mind is Napa. Whether you refer to it as Napa Valley or Napa County, it is indeed the wine capital of the golden state. Most tourists in San Diego are drawn to the zoo, safari, aquarium, water park, museums and national monuments, all the while being slightly unaware of its wine culture. San Diego may not be a wine country in the strictest sense of its classification, but it has over a hundred and fifteen wineries. Surely, there are plenty that offer world class wine tasting and fascinating wine tours.
- The first thing you need to know is the variety of grapes that San Diego wineries produce. Unless you identify and understand how one variety of grapes differs from another, you would not fully appreciate the wine you would taste. For instance, there are over sixty varieties of vinifera, which is the common grape vine. Familiarize yourself with the distinctly different grapes that grow along the coastline and in the canyons, in the mountains and in the mesas, in the dry washes and even in the desert.
- Delve into the popular European varieties that are grown in San Diego. The Mediterranean climate of the region certainly helps. You would come across syrah, marsanne, petite, roussanne, sangiovese, barbera and montepulciano among others.
- There are two wine growing regions identified as American Viticultural Areas in San Diego. One is San Pasqual Valley and the other is Ramona Valley. Learn more about these to choose which one you wish to explore or if you want to tour both.
- Wines produced in San Diego are concentrated, with rich flavors and aromas. The popular wines are floral viogniers, dry roses, sassy chardonnays and grassy sauvignon blancs. Popular red wines are chunky syrahs, fruited sirahs and softer medium bodied montepulcianos and sangioveses.
- Napa Valley and almost every other major wine region around the world have fancy tours, most of which will cost you a lot of money. San Diego doesn’t have such expensive wine tours. You would actually get to talk to warm friendly winemakers and get an almost personalized tour, including wine tasting. The only thing you need is a limousine in San Diego to make the tour an experience to remember.
- Choose wine tours partly based on what you like and partly being influenced by what is available. For instance, if you are already in love with zinfandel then you should choose the vineyards on the mountains where you can find vines as old as eighty years at a height of three thousand five hundred feet.
- You may want your wine tour to include some more entertainment or recreation other than the imperative tasting. Choose tours where you may get to enjoy some live music.
- You should look for a limo service in San Diego that can offer you bespoke tours, so you can visit whichever vineyard you want, not necessarily in any particular order or confined to any specific area.
- Finally, prepare for a day of wine tasting. Do not have anything else planned when you hop into a limousine in San Diego to explore the wineries. The last thing you want is a hasty walk through the vineyards and gulping down some fine wine because you have to be elsewhere.
MIB Transportation is happy to provide luxurious vehicles that you can count on to get you from winery to winery. Book with us today to enjoy a stress-free experience.