Ranch & Coast Magazine

cattle ranch when his health sent him a stern message to slow things down. Instead, his past came calling in the form of hard work and hands in the soil, and Doffo Winery took shape. Here, the family embraces the vines as an animate member of the family operation. Touring the property, daughter Samantha Doffo describes each varietal and even individual vines as though they have their own personality, and speakers installed throughout the vineyard have played classical music for them to "go to sleep to" from 7am to 7pm for the past 25 years. As exceptional as the wines Doffo produces is the setting in which guests taste. An avid motocross family, the tasting room — in fact, the entire property — proudly displays Marcelo's venerable collection of lovingly restored motorcycles, Vespas, and memorabilia, making it hands-down the most unique setting in which I've ever tasted wines. doffowines.com Global travels continue at Bottaia, a four-years-new winery set on 45 acres that produces fabulous estate-grown Italian varietals. Its bright, contemporary farmhouse-style setting is alluringly serene, as is its reservation-only policy that limits groups to eight or fewer. Guests can also book an experience in the Wine Blending Lab, where they're guided through a barrel tasting to blend and bottle their own creation. ough it's a 21+ destination, it also features a gorgeous pool on-site that welcomes all ages, with Italian cabines (changing rooms), lounge chairs, a full bar serving cocktails, wine, and beer on draft, and a café. bottaiawinery.com e valley's culinary offerings were equally as impressive as the wines I tasted on my visit. At e Restaurant at Leoness Cellars (located within walking distance from Renzoni), the surrounding vineyards. "I tell people, 'You want cabernet, go to Napa. But you want syrah and sangiovese, tempranillo perhaps, montepulciano — OK. You're in the right region for that.'" robertrenzonivineyards.com While the region you're in is surely Temecula, the influences of each winery can transport you across the globe. Just next- door lies Fazeli, founded by owner BJ Fazeli, featuring a heavily Persian influence in homage to Fazeli's upbringing in Persia (now Iran). Even the names of his wines, many of them award-winning, hearken to his roots. (For lovers of the sweeter varieties, I recommend the Norooz, a light muscat/viognier blend named for the spring equinox and Persian New Year). Wonderfully affable and warm, it's easy to see why Fazeli — both the wines and Fazeli himself — has developed a hearty following: As we talk, he greets his tasting room visitors as though they're entering his home. Echoing my hunch that Temecula has evolved in recent history, Fazeli tells me, "It's not that we haven't had [industry interest] here, everybody comes here. It's just now, more and more, Temecula is being put on the map because the wines are getting so much better and people are starting to notice us." To his point, a 2019 Wine Enthusiast article listed Temecula among its 10 Best Wine Travel Destinations, and was the only region in California on that list (gasp!). fazelicellars.com It's a South American influence at Doffo, the family winery on the other main stretch of the valley, helmed by patriarch Marcelo Doffo. e native Argentinian, who spent his childhood on his grandparents' farm, arrived in Temecula by way of Orange County, purchasing and settling on a former Marcelo Doffo and son Damian At Leoness, an antique tractor is a symbol of its founders' focus on farming >> ranchandcoast.com @ranchandcoast RANCH & COAST MAGAZINE MAY 2022 71

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