Homemade Wine in Newport Beach ~ Labor of Love Turns Gold

The highlight of my year was winning a Gold Medal and “Best of Class” for my 2006 Pinot Noir in the California State Fair homewine competition. Made in my garage, the grapes came from Foley Estate Vineyards, Santa Rita Hills in Santa Barbara County, California. The wine lived in a 30 gallon French Oak barrel for about thirteen months before bottling.

Also winning a Gold Medal for my 2006 Syrah made my day because there were eighty entries. This wine also began the journey from grape to bottle from Foley Estate Vineyards in Santa Rita Hills.

While these awards are just for fun, it means a lot to a garage winemaker like myself. We work with the grapes, turn them into wine and fret about so many things along the way. Getting honest, objective, positive feedback feels great.

Homewine making is alive and well in Newport Beach. In fact, the Orange County Wine Society has a very active group of winemakers. The winemaker group has all levels of experience, from beginner to folks with over thirty years of making great wine.

If you are thinking about making wine, or have related questions, send a note or give me a call. It is a lot of fun and you meet great people along the way. I guarantee you, we won’t talk about Newport Beach real estate. We’ll talk wine!

Cheers!