Los Pilares Wine

I love finding small lot wineries that seem to be doing all the right things.  Today’s find takes me close to home in San Diego County. Los Pilares is four co-conspirators in love with the winemaking potential of San Diego. I spoke briefly with Michael  Christian  , one of the owners today.  Nice guy – enthusiastic not only about his new venture, but also about the whole Ramona Valley wine potential.  If a winery can  “succeed” on personality and enthusiasm of its owners, this venture should turn out just fine.

As background to the co-owner’s vision, “It has to be local.  For us that means 100% San Diego County grapes.  It has to be the appropriate varieties.  We want nature to choose the varieties, not marketing.  We don’t look for Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay in San Diego’s provençal backcountry; we look for varieties like Grenache, Carignane, and Mourvedre.  There’s not a lot of it growing here yet.  Fortunately, the growers who have it tend to share our philosophy.  The fruit has to be harvested at the right time — that means not overripe; we want to bring you fresh, bright, crisp flavors that show off the variety that San Diego can deliver (variety of the grapes, of the farms, of the vintage), not generic, thick, plummy, hot fruit. ”

No tasting room yet…but you can taste the wines at The Rose Wine Pub in South Park, San Diego.  You might want to try their  50-50 blend of Grenache and Carignane grapes harvested from dry-farmed vineyards in the San Diego area of Ramona and Pauma valleys.  Los Pilares’ 2010 vintage ($22) is a  take on some foreign producers: light, aromatic and low in alcohol.

Stay tuned, Michael says he’ll try to ship me a bottle or so for my wine tasting council to taste.  VERY limited production, so I may have to do a solo tasting with the investors in South Park, but I am thinking it’ll be worth it.  LOT’s of good wine buzzzz on this  San Diego winery.  Can’t wait.