Ventura County's grape escape
Local oenophiles can slake their thirst for good local wine right here in their own backyard
By Lisa Snider 06/05/2008
Jack and Miles should have stuck around Oxnard after they paid a visit to Miles’ mother in the 2004 film Sideways.
There are at least seven local wineries with public tasting rooms they could have called on without having to make the hour and a half drive in the little red Saab all the way to Santa Ynez. Had they done so, promoting the Ventura Wine Trail might be a cinch. But they didn’t, so Monica Agyekum, marketing and public relations director for Herzog Wine Cellars, is helping get the word out about the local wineries and spearheading the launch party for the newly released Ventura Wine Trail Map.
“We’re extremely excited about the map,” says Agyekum, “We want to get the word out that people don’t need to travel further north to go wine tasting. They can visit several wineries right here in our own backyard that produce amazing wines.”
Participating wineries on the full-color, fold-out map include: Rancho Ventavo Cellars (Moorpark); Bella Victorian Vineyard & Winery (Camarillo); Cantara Cellars (Camarillo); Stafford Premium Wines & Camarillo Custom Crush (Camarillo); Herzog Wine Cellars (Oxnard); Old Creek Ranch Winery (Ojai Valley), and Casa Barranca Winery (Ojai Valley).
The event, taking place Thursday evening, June 5, at the California Welcome Center in Oxnard, will feature many of the participating wineries, as well as a number of local restaurants, all providing complimentary tastes. Participating restaurants include Herzog’s Tierra Sur, La Dolce Vita, The Sidecar, Capistrano’s and Enoteca Toscana.
Agyekum says Joseph Herzog had an idea to create a map a while back, and then the Whitmans of Old Creek Ranch Winery in Ojai started talking with many other wineries in the area to get the Ventura County Winery Association formed.
“We’ve had quite a few meetings already,” Agyekum says, adding that it’s been somewhat of an evolutionary process. “We’re learning!”
Although the region has a well-established history in agriculture and farming, it’s mostly known for strawberries, citrus and avocados. The map will bring more attention to the grape, which was among the crops planted at the Ventura Mission in the late 1700s. “The goal was to let people know,” Agyekum says. “Most locals don’t know that all of these places are here.”
Thursday’s event will feature some tasty pours, including a 2005 Majecc (a fusion of several different wines) from Rancho Ventavo, named after the owners’ six grandchildren in order of their birth: Michael, Alex, Jillian, Erin, Caitlen and Conner. They will also pour their 2005 Mourvedre, a rare wine, with only around 8 kilometers grown in California.
Get it fast, though, because only 21 cases were produced. And Old Creek Ranch will offer tastes of their Famiglia Del Din, a blend of 70 percent Sangiovese and 30 percent Nebbiolo.
Many of the wineries on the Ventura Wine Trail Map will also participate in the 22nd Annual Ojai Wine Festival, taking place at Lake Casitas on Sunday afternoon, June 8. With 3,000 attendees expected to raise a glass and more than 40 wineries pouring, the festival promises to slake any oenophile’s thirst for good local wine.
Look for the Ventura Wine Trail Map at numerous locations throughout the county, including all participating partners on the map, as well as other hotels, restaurants and informational locales. For more information about the launch party (free and open to the public) on June 5 at the California Welcome Center at 1000 Town Center Drive, Suite 135 in Oxnard from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., and for an online version of the map, go to www.venturacountywinetrail.com.
For information about the Ojai Wine Festival at Lake Casitas on June 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and to purchase tickets, go to www.ojaiwinefestival.com, or call (800) 648-4881.
Lisa Snider is a local freelance writer. For more, go to www.LisaSnider.com.
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