Two days. Twenty-three wineries. Pinkies up!
It’s time for Passport Weekend, an oenophile outing where grape growers open their doors, uncork bottles and host hundreds of visitors – all of them flocking to South County’s treasure trove of wineries in pursuit of fabulous vino, delicious tapas and good company.
Despite gloomy weather forecasts promising an 80 percent chance of rain on Saturday and a chance of rain on Sunday, too, a handful of winery owners say bad weather won’t rain on their purple parade.
“What else are you going to do when it’s raining? It’s a good time to go wine tasting,” said Dhruv Khanna, owner of Kirigin Cellars on Watsonville Road in Gilroy. “We’re grateful for the rain. It’s no reason not to enjoy some wine along with it.”
Other local wineries including Fortino, Martin Ranch, Solis and Sarah’s Vineyard said the predicted precipitation shouldn’t put too much of a damper on festivities. Candy Andrade, tasting room manager at Sarah’s Vineyard on Hecker Pass, said she might have to cancel the band scheduled to perform outside on Saturday (instruments don’t do so well when wet).
Other than that, wineries appear to have a sunny outlook about the weekend.
“We’re good. We have a barrel room, so we’ll have no problems here,” said Fortino’s Administrative Assistant, Dawn Anderson. “Passport will go on.”
Here’s your winery-by-winery guide for the weekend. Cheers!
Aver Family Vineyards
Location: 2900 Soma Way, Gilroy; 408-203-8575; averfamilyvineyards.com
Goodies: Catering by Diana
Entertainment: Live music (Saturday: Side of Blues and Sunday: Bluegrass)
Special pours: Pourings at the vineyard tasting area
Wine club: 20 percent savings on wine purchases (up to 11 bottles) or 25 percent savings on wine purchases of 12 bottles or more; priority status on all new releases; invitations and exclusive offers to special friends of the family events; free tasting for wine club members plus two guests
Casa de Fruta
Location: 10021 Pacheco Pass Highway, Hollister; (831) 637-9170; calerawine.com
Goodies: Complimentary Casa de Fruta souvenir wine glass
Castillo’s Hillside Shire Winery
Location: 2215 Liberata Dr., Morgan Hill; (408) 776-8200 castilloshillsideshirewinery.com
Entertainment: Vivienne and her acoustic guitar
Wine club: 25 percent off Cab Franc, Malbec, Merlot, Red Table Wines, Syrah for all passport holders and Wine Club Members
Clos LaChance
Location: One Hummingbird Lane, San Martin; (408) 686-1050; clos.com
Goodies: Food samples and wine tasting
Entertainment: Local R&B artist David Johnson will be performing from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday
Special pours: 17 wines available
Wine club: Three different membership levels, between 20 and 25 percent discount. Free wine tasting for the member and three guests every visit, priority access to wine sales, discounts on tickets and table reservations for select Clos LaChance special events
Creekview Vineyards
Location: 12467 Creekview Court, San Martin; (408) 686-0534; creekviewvineyards.com
Wine Club: 20 percent off wine purchases, free wine-tasting, special members-only events
Fortino Winery
Location: 4525 Hecker Pass Highway, Gilroy; (408) 842-3305; fortinowinery.com
Entertainment: Guitarists: Carlos Padilla on Saturday; John Garcia on Sunday
Wine Club: 10 percent off single bottles, 20 percent off cases, invites to exclusive events and free wine tasting
Guglielmo Winery
Location: 1480 East Main Ave., Morgan Hill; (408) 779-2145; guglielmowinery.com
Entertainment: Live music
Special pours: Barrel tasting
Wine club: 20 percent discount on wine, 15 percent gifts and food; 30 percent case discount, mix/match; 30 percent the day you join the club; club only special events and wines; sign up a friend and get a free bottle of wine up to $25 in value
Hecker Pass Winery
Location: 4605 Hecker Pass Highway, Gilroy; (408) 842-8755; heckerpasswinery.com
Entertainment: Meet the winemaker, open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Wine club: 25 percent on six or more bottles, 50 percent on 1 or more cases (mixed cases OK)
Kirigin Cellars
Location: 11550 Watsonville Road, Gilroy; (408) 847-8827; kirigincellars.com
Goodies: Vino de Mocca Ice Cream Sundaes
Wine club: 30 percent off six bottles, 50 percent off cases (12 bottles), and three or more cases are a flat $100 per case
Jason-Stephens Winery
Location: 11775 Watsonville Road, Gilroy; (408) 846-8463; jstephens.com
Lightheart Cellars
Location: 305 Roosevelt Ave., San Martin; (408) 475-8463; lightheartcellars.com
Goodies: Chef Eichelberger will provide gourmet foods paired with our wines
Entertainment: Entertainment playing 1 to 4 p.m. both days with Top Shelf Saturday and Bodfish Creek Sunday (featuring Colombard Vineyard owner).
Wine club: 25 percent discount per case; 20 percent discount on less than a case.
Martin Ranch Winery
Location: 6675 Redwood Retreat Road, Gilroy; (408) 842-9197; martinranchwinery.com
Goodies: Bring a picnic and enjoy the beauty of Martin Ranch Winery
Special pours: Barrel samples with Dan Martin. Taste all the San Francisco Chronicle award winning wines: Best of Class, Double golds and golds
Wine club: Three membership levels – 20 to 35 percent discounts, special events
Morgan Hill Cellars
Location: 1645 San Pedro Ave., Morgan Hill; (408) 779-7389; morganhillcellars.com Goodies: Pasta, meatballs, garlic bread and sweets
Entertainment: Live music Saturday and Sunday
Wine club: 20 percent on all wine purchases and other discounts on our events
Rapazzini Winery
Location: 4350 Monterey Highway, Gilroy; (408) 842-5649; rapazziniwinery.com
Goodies: Gourmet grilled cheese and jam Panini bar
Special pours: Fruit wines and Chateau de Garlic wine
Wine club: 25 percent discount on wine purchases
Sarah’s Vineyard
Location: 4005 Hecker Pass Highway, Gilroy; (408) 847-1947; sarahsvineyard.com
Goodies: Serving appetizers all day. On Saturday, gourmet wood fired pizzas ($10 each)
Entertainment: Saturday live music by Daze on the green 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.
Special pours: The 2010 Central Coast Pinot will only be available for purchase in the tasting room during Passport weekend.
Wine club: Wine club discount is 20 percent. Receive Wine Club exclusive wines available to members only. Wine club release parties and discounts on event tickets.
Satori Cellars
Location: 2100 Buena Vista Ave., Gilroy; (408) 848-5823; satoricellars.com
Goodies: Passporters are invited to bring a picnic, if they like, and there will be plenty of Adorah’s Homemade Chili & Cornbread to enjoy with the winery’s “Big Reds.”
Entertainment: Their outdoor “Tasting Cabana” will feature live music both days, including local rockers Blue Dog Band on Sunday.
Special pours: Monterey County Chardonnay and four of their award-winning estate red wines. If you buy any three bottles of wine, you get the fourth one free, and can take them home in Satori’s colorful four-bottle carrier bag. If you are also a member (or want to sign up to be a member) of Satori’s Wine Club, there will be a special wine tasting inside the winery’s barrel room.
Wine Club: 20-35 percent off, depending on level.
Solis Winery
Location: 3920 Hecker Pass Highway, Gilroy; (800) 917-0901; soliswinery.com
Special pours: Special wine tasting, barrel tasting and great prices for passport holders
Wine club: 10 percent discount on wine club selections plus deep discounts on wine and logo items.
Sycamore Creek Vineyards
Location: 12775 Uvas Road, Morgan Hill; (408) 842-7016; sycamorecreekvineyards.com
Entertainment: Live music and will feature local artists in a temporary gallery at the winery.
Wine club: Special discounts for passport holders in the tasting room
Thomas Kruse Winery
Location: 3200 Dryden Ave., Gilroy; (408) 842-7016; thomaskrusewinery.com;
Special pours: Barrel tasting
