By Rick Riozza
I know it’s still hot out—and we’ve been covering refreshing white wines of the summer, but let’s take a break and get our quick red wine fix on for a moment.
California really has its mark on its own “native” red wine. The low-key arrival of the Zinfandel plant from the Croatia area back around the 1850s was cultivated up in Northern Cal, but there’s no question that everyone cherishes Zin to be our own state wine. Indeed—isn’t the Golden Bear on our state flag caught trouncing upon Zinfandel grapes?
And the wine can be a heavy hitter when it comes to its full-bodied character. It’s been known to take down the richest of barbequed ribs and the most garlicky slew of snails and sausages. But this time of year we’re not looking for all that heftiness in an all-purpose wine.
The Zinfandel that I am recommending is a fairly light medium-bodied red that can be chilled up or left out on the table to warm up and still maintain a tasty wine presence. And the price is a knock-out! I can get one 4 liter bottle—which works out to 5 standard size bottles of wine—for just around fourteen bucks!
Just the other day while coming back from the OC, I was close by the Galleano Winery, and I thought I’d just stop over and say hi to Don Galleano, and pick up my usual four-bottle case of Cucamonga Valley Zinfandel.
I’ve written about this place before. The winery grounds have kept their bucolic grandma’s-house charm. Every time I pull into the winery—and I pull in really slow, I am whisked back to a time in my childhood where we played on swings tied to the thick branches of old trees while soft breezes of citrus and fig-leaf aromas wafted around our little noses.
Galleano Winery is Rancho Cucamonga Valley’s Historic Landmark Winery producing award winning wines since 1933. The winery is located at the southern fringe of the Cucamonga Valley in Mira Loma’s Wineville area and is still much the same as it was in 1927 when the Galleano family purchased the land. The winery produces 200,000 gallons of wine and bottles just under 10,000 cases, including 80 year old vine Zinfandel and Rhone varietals.
People forget that in the late 1800s and early 1900s, there were more vineyard acreage in the Cucamonga wine area than all of the vineyards in the Sonoma and Napa Valleys today!
Third generation wine-maker Don Galleano and his wines have been awarded more gold medals over the years than the Olympic swimmers. When it comes to Southern California wine history, the Galleano family has a few chapters in it. I’ve palled around with Don close to 25 years at various wine events, where he often plays chief wine judge at state fairs and international wine competitions.
He’s a great cook and has a great network of wine & foodie friends who often bring by aged Italian cheeses & meats, truffles from France, local freshly dressed sausages, wild rabbit from Portugal—fun stuff like that! And no matter what time of day or what fun Italian-style-dining-commotion is going on, there is always a refreshing bottle of the beloved Cucamonga Valley Zinfandel on the table.
This engaging vinois delicious and is my house wine too. And most red wine drinkers that I’ve shared this with agree that you cannot find a better tasting Zin in that price range or close to it. I say “most” because I’ve found that those who enjoy “easy”wines—soft tastes with a very round feel, aren’t partial to this Zin, (ifthey drink Zinfandel at all), because this stuff—for as light-bodied as it is—really grabs you!
There’s plenty of red and black fruit flavors all over the place, but some have described it as “rustic”. Now that could be true, but I would use the word “robust”. The wine is from age-old weathered Cucamonga Valley vines (what’s left of them)that are dry-farmed i.e., God does the watering.
It would almost be an insult to call this a“jug wine”,but for the fact the bottle it comes in is traditionally called—well, a four liter “jug”! But don’t confuse this with the cheap stuff. This wine has complexity. With carne asadatacos and pico de gallosalsa, we chilled the wine up and it bloomed mint and lavender notes around a blackberry finish. With Italian sausage and sautéd mushroom parmigiana pennepasta, the wine cradled the meal with aged cherry flavors and anise. Enjoy it with all Italian fare, grilled foods, barbecues, sandwiches, and cheeses.
Perfect for summer, it’s a light old-style Zinfandel with aclassic pepper backdrop. This wine is aged and softened in very large old redwood vats, and that’s why it scores in competitions: there’s great wood backbone here as with the higher priced Zins. One can find a standard750mlbottle at BevMo in La Quinta. However the 4 liter jugs are sold only at the winery.
The Galleano Winery is located in Mira Loma, right at the Interstate 15,and California Hwy 60. It’s about an hour’s drive from Palm Springs: a perfect week-end destination. Or, when driving from Orange County or LA on business or pleasure, it behooves us to stop by to pick-up a case for that dinner party or simply to stock our happy wine bin. Lifeis good.A la salute!
The Historic Landmark Galleano Winery: 4231Wineville Rd., Mira Loma, Ca. 91752 951.685.5376
Tours, Wine Tasting Room, Picnics, & Gifts: Monday-Saturday 9am-5pm Sunday 10:30am-5pm
