California - Temecula winery recommendations

We are gonna be in San Diego the first two weeks of August and looking for recommendations for which wineries to visit and which to avoid (if there are any) in Temecula. We are planning spending one night, so we should have the better part of two days there. Also whats the best way to do it? Use a tour that takes you to a bunch of them, or can we walk to a bunch ourselves? I would prefer the latter.

I was surprised to hear some charge for tastings (the ones I've been to here in FL dont) so if there are some deals anyone knows about, I'd love to know about those as well.

I am going to ask for B&B/Inn recommendations in another forum and topic as well, but if anyone has recommendations, I'm all ears.
Thanks in advance....

Most wineries are concentrated on one area, so no need for a tour. It used to be outside of town, but town is slowly circling them. Old town has an old west feel.

Depends what styles of wine you like, but Mount Palomar and Maurice Carrie both offer nice areas to relax and a snack from their shops to compliment your wine purchases (the fresh garlic bread at Maurice Carrie is very tasty). They feature lighter sweeter wines (Palomar also has port/sherry), while some other wineries specialize in sparkling wine or serious reds. Lots of variety.

Most wineries do charge anywhere from $2 to $5 for a number of tasting tickets and a glass you can keep.

Take the drive to Julian. Quaint little mountain town. Just a bit further east is the Anza Borrego desert and the Salton Sea. Interesting landscapes.

FYO, it will be quite warm in Temecula and points inland.

the costs for the temecula wineries have gone up. i went to a number recently and the cheapest one was $10.

if you go to maurice carrie you can buy a passport for tasting there & at their sister winery next door so you save some money there

other than that all the ones i went to charged

as far as hotels, i stayed at the embassy suites and it was a huge disappointment. i'd spend a lot less and stay elsewhere. one of the wineries actually has a hotel (i think it is called cheron or something similar - can't look it up right now)...you might look into staying there too

the wineries off rancho california are all the most commercial ones, there is another street called de portola which has some lesser known ones which are also much less crowded. they all still charged though

You can count on $10+ for wine tasting at each of the wineries in the area. While we don't go often, one wine, at Wilson Creek, that you might want to try is a almond flavored sparkling wine. Really different. If you Bing or Google Temecula wineries, you will be able to go thru the websites and verify the price and the list of wines available. Not to start an argument, but you cannot compare FL wines to CA wines and that supports the charges. Generally you will be tasting $20-$50 wines (winery prices). Some of the websites will have coupons for 2-4-1 tastings. I don't think a walking tour is practical, this is CA, and things are spread out. Having said that, there is quite a concentration on Rancho California. Our wines are fairly strong, especially the reds, don't plan on visiting too many wineries, it just is not practical, IMHO. It will be hot.

We stayed at the South Coast Winery during Easter this year.
Get one of the Villa`s. Very nice 4 star hotel. They have a small Spa and Pool that was nice as well.
http://www.wineresort.com/

My favorite Wineries are.

Stuart Cellars. Great Port. Nice blends on the Reds.

Falkner. They have a nice restaurant on the property called "Pinnacle".
Has a great view.

Ponte. Nice tasting room and good service.

All of these wineries are close together on the main drag. Too far to walk.
And way too dangerous. The main drag is like a freeway in speed.
No sidewalks either.

Temecula has some excellent reds. But the climate is far too hot
for a decent Chardonnay.

Have fun.