Winemaker Jeff Fadness was thrilled to see a familiar face approaching the recently reopened La Vie Dansante tasting room out on Dryden Road in Gilroy, in April. It was none other than the local legend Tom Kruse, who began making wine in the Santa Clara Valley in 1971. In 1993, [...]

We desperately need some bright spots in the news these days. Among the cheery tidings is word that many Santa Clara Valley tasting rooms have once again reopened after a long hiatus. We can only hope it remains so. One of the region’s brightest spots is Lightpost Winery on [...]

Forced to do pickup only beginning in early December, our local wineries have sure been whiplashed by the pandemic. But it doesn’t stop them from pressing on. While the winegrower’s association has taken a temporary pause, the wineries are doing what they can to keep their [...]

Harvest has been relatively painless for some in the Santa Clara Valley. For others, it’s been painfully difficult. It’s all a matter of where grapes are sourced. Most of Santa Clara Valley escaped the scourge of smoke, but other grape-growing regions weren’t so lucky. [...]

Nobody likes to kick off the harvest season with wildfires ablaze, but such is the continuing series of delights that has marked the year 2020 from the outset. Some local wineries were already cleaning their presses, doing last minute bottling to clear tanks and dragging out [...]

Santa Clara County’s oldest continuously operated family winery since 1925, Guglielmo Family Winery, is reeling from the sudden loss of Gary John Guglielmo, the youngest of the third-generation to helm the business. Gary, who was born in San Jose on April 26, 1956, to George [...]

Santa Clara Wineries are finally being allowed to open without the burden of having to serve food. Let’s hope that lasts.  “Our winery members have patiently waited out one of the longest shelter-in-place orders in the state,” said Calerrain Winery’s Geoff Mace, [...]

The Sunset International Wine Competition attracts wines from all over, with great depth in Oregon and Washington; even Arizona and Idaho. This year, the 2018 Gracianna Pinot Noir from Russian River Valley took Best of Show, and the 2019 Brecon Estate Albarino (Central Coast) [...]

If you miss relaxing with wine in the vines, head to Fortino, where they’ve begun table service on the Redwood Terrace, by reservation, Friday through Sunday, from 11am-5pm. Guests can enjoy wine by the glass and by the bottle; no wine tastings as of yet.  Regulations [...]

Tasting rooms are starting to reopen in California, but it’s a county-by-county situation. Initially, wineries were required to serve a “full meal” in order to reopen, but that was fortunately scrapped. According to Geoff Mace, president of the Wineries of Santa Clara [...]