By Athena Lucero
Come winter, snowbirds of all ages leave the season's chill behind for Southern California's sunny beaches, especially Malibu, legendary for surfing, star-gazing — and now wine country.
When snow falls on the local mountains you can have your cake here and eat it, too. Less than two hours away, ski and snowboard at Big Bear, Snow Summit and Mountain High. Back down at sea level in Malibu, a warm-weather version of apres ski (French for after ski) can be had by the beach. This joyous winter tradition from the Alps brings people together for relaxing and socializing.
Winegrowing in Malibu is not widely known, although grapes have been cultivated on its hillsides since the mid-1980s, resulting in award-winning wines and romantic landscapes reminiscent of enchanting vineyards around Europe.
The region has now been recognized as a distinct environment for growing grapes — warm days, nights cooled by ocean breezes, volcanic soils and varying elevations (sea level to over 3,000 feet). Last July it received the designation of Malibu Coast American Viticultural Area, a process that took three years.
Close to the glitz of Beverly Hills and the glam of Hollywood, California's newest AVA, or appellation, is a little bit of country in the city. It stretches 46 six miles along Pacific Coast Highway, eight miles wide inside the Santa Monica Mountains and is home to 52 vineyards. Now labels on wine bottles can proudly bear "Malibu Coast."
Malibu Coast joins two other area AVAs — Malibu-Newton-Canyon (vineyards of Rosenthal Malibu Estate) and Saddlerock Ranch-Malibu (Saddlerock Ranch estate vineyards), both established in 2006.
Malibu's wine country is evolving, a small-scale rebirth in a way, of Los Angeles' rich winegrowing past that existed during the mid-19th century. Acres of vineyards graced the banks of the Los Angeles River and the rest of the region, and Vignes Street in downtown remembers French immigrant Jean-Louis Vignes, a major winegrower during that storied era.
Alas, setbacks through the decades brought the thriving industry to a halt, but only temporarily — Prohibition between 1920 and 1933, root-destroying phylloxera between the 1960s and 1980s, then Pierce's disease spread by the sharpshooter insect during the 1990s.
Despite the challenges, George Rosenthal, Los Angeles businessman, film industry mogul and now pioneer vintner, consulted with experts and diligently studied soil quality and climatic conditions with the hope that grapes could grow on his 235-acre property in the Santa Monica Mountains 1,400 feet above sea level. The stars had lined up, and in 1987 Rosenthal planted the county's first vineyard since Prohibition — before Malibu became a city in 1991.
"Winegrowing is an industry where people are passionate about what they do," Rosenthal reflected as we chatted in the living room of the lovely Mexican hacienda he and his wife Karen built in the canyon. "Mini microclimates — extremely unique here —create conditions for growing variations of the same grape."
Christian Roguenant, Rosenthal's winemaker in the Central Coast ought to know. Born in Burgundy, France, he honed his wine sensibilities and viticultural skills early and has practiced his winemaking artistry around the world.
"George's vineyards have an extraordinary diversity of soils and exposures," said Roguenant, "that allow him to make an array of very different wines."
And glorious they are.
Besides Rosenthal's wine-tasting room, there are three others in Malibu — Malibu Wines, Sip Cielo Wine Bar, and Cornell Winery and Tasting Room.
My husband, Louie, happily volunteered to be my designated driver as we experienced all four, which are easily accessed from Kanan Road, the unofficial wine trail that meanders through the mountains from Pacific Coast Highway in the south to Interstate 101 in the north.
No two are alike.
A stone's throw from Topanga Beach on Pacific Coast Highway, Rosenthal Wine Bar and Patio, the only tasting room on the highway, is warm and welcoming. Riley Rhodes, tasting-room manager, guided us sip by sip as we sampled wonderful and surprising Rosenthal estate vintages from Chardonnay and Viognier to Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot.
Surfrider, another label sold at Rosenthal's tasting room, represents his other passion - the sea. Made from varietals grown on California's Central Coast, a portion of the proceeds from Surfrider wine sales is donated to groups that maintain the quality of the ocean, the planet's most precious resource.
We invited family members to join our soiree that continued on the grassy outdoor patio. Day turned to dusk as we communed, enjoyed fresh ocean breezes, swayed to the tunes of a live band and shared heavenly sweet potato fries purchased at the resident gourmet food truck that complemented the sushi picnic we had brought.
Six miles inland on Mulholland Highway, Malibu Wines is an open-air tasting room with hilly vineyards, lots of shady trees, patio tables and grass lawns.
Amy Lawrence, tasting-room manager, poured delicious Sparkling Brut into our glasses as joie de vivre in the air was becoming more contagious. Guests bring elaborate picnics here, and tourists join the weekend crowds when live music and dancing make it hard to leave.
Semlar and Saddlerock are the two labels poured at Malibu Wines. Entrepreneur Ron Semler and his wife, Lisa, own Saddlerock Ranch across the highway. The 2,100-acre expanse is part of the original Saddle Rock Ranch Spanish Land Grant that existed during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Today grape varietals that grow on the fertile land include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Grenache, Malbec and Viognier. Wines under the Saddlerock label are produced from California and Central Coast varietals - Chardonnay, Sparkling Brut, Zinfandel and Old Vine Tawny, to name a few.
Sip Wine Bar is the low-key tavernlike tasting room of Cielo Farms Vineyards, owned by clothier Richard Hirsch, where we sampled his fabulous Woodstock label, a tribute to the festival of 1969 that changed music history. Reds and whites are named after songs recalling Woodstock — White Rabbit (Chardonnay), Blackbird (Malbec and Petit Verdot blend) and Deep Purple (Petite Sirah).
We found Cornell Winery tucked away on Mulholland Highway. Owned by Tim and Denise Skogstrom, the rustic tasting room houses a large selection of local wines as well as California boutique wines, a gift shop and an art gallery displaying outstanding works by local artists.
If you prefer that someone else do the navigating, a wine-tasting tour is the way to go. Almost seven years ago American Luxury Limousine was one of the first operators to offer wine-tasting tours in Malibu. And be prepared for the pampering that includes door-to-door service, reserved tables at tasting rooms and a private tour of the zoo at Saddlerock Ranch. A South African safari inspired the Semlar family to create the zoo, a way to share the beauty of the region and history of the land where cattle and sheep once grazed.
In Southern California fabulous wine country is year-round and Malibu's bounty is exceptional. But don't look to buy Malibu wines outside of Malibu because wine production is small and sold only through the tasting rooms, wine clubs and local restaurants.
WHEN YOU GO
Rosenthal Wine Bar and Patio: 310-456-1392, www.rosenthalestatewines.com
Malibu Wines: 818-865-0605, www.malibuwines.com
Sip Malibu Cielo Wine Bar: 818-865-0440, www.woodstockmalibu.com
Cornell Winery and Tasting Room: 818-735-3542, www.cornellwinery.com
L.A. Safaris: www.lasafaris.com
American Luxury Limousines: 866-319-LIMO (5466), 805-494-8353, 818-836-9966; www.aluxurylimo.com
Athena Lucero is a freelance writer. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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