Winters TempFest

YOLO COUNTY SHOWS OFF SPANISH ROOTS AND WINES DURING FESTIVAL CELEBRATING THE REGIONS’ GLORIOUS TEMPRANILLO

2^nd Annual Temp Fest Organizers Plan Town-Wide Weekend of Events, Expect Huge Turnout

Yolo County, CA – Winters, California will overflow with Tempranillo during a three day festival celebrating Yolo County wine country’s affinity for the Spanish grape, September 7 - 9. This up and coming region, just east of Napa, shares some characteristics with the Rioja region of Spain where Tempranillo thrives, and produces characteristically lush, berrylike, smoky red wines. 

     The idea for Temp Fest came to owners of Berryessa Gap Vineyards and Turkovich Family Wines as a way to attract and educate visitors to the charming, agriculturally-vital town.

     “The foothills west of Winters are proving to be a great location to grow and produce Tempranillo and Temp Fest was designed to allow visitors to experience all of the local variations of these stunning wines.” said Berryessa Gap co-owner Corinne Martinez. “Though we may have come up with the idea, our neighboring businesses made the first Temp Fest a great success by planning all kinds of Spanish culinary specials, live music and other events. The whole downtown really came alive and it was a huge success. This year we’re definitely going bigger.”

     RootStock, the joint tasting room and local gift shop occupied by four family-run local wineries, is the informal epicenter of the festival’s entertainment, but most downtown businesses are participating in the festivities in their own way. Creative culinary specials, live Latin music and winemaking demonstrations are all on the calendar.  Temp Fest visitors will easily be able to walk the entire historic downtown of Winters and taste dozens of Spanish dishes, local Tempranillo and other Iberian-origin wines.

     While celebrating Winters Temp Fest, guests can share their experiences using the hashtag #TempFest.  

ROOTSTOCK SPECIALTY GIFT SHOP & TASTING ROOM will feature gift items from Spain on sale all weekend and Sangria will be available from participating wineries. On Friday, Rootstock hosts Dave Correa & Cascada Latin band, known as the Best Latin Band in the North Bay and for their award-winning Flamenco compilation “Gypsy Spice.” On Friday and Saturday, RootStock will host Winters’ home winemakers Chris Rose and Jeff & Penny Uppington, both of whom make Tempranillo from locally-sourced grapes. Rootstock wraps up the Temp Fest celebration on Sunday with a classical Spanish guitar performance by Gordon Rowland from 12-3pm.

BERRYESSA GAP VINEYARDS TASTING ROOM has been newly renovated and will showcase a wine flight including barrel samples of their 2010 Tempranillo, alongside the 2009 Tempranillo and 2009 ‘Rocky Ridge Collection’ Tempranillo. To pair with the wine flight, Berryessa Gap will have butcher block selections of imported Spanish cheeses, locally-cured olives, fresh Tempranillo grapes off the vine and Martinez Orchards’ roasted nuts. On Saturday, guest can participate as Berryessa Gap Winemaker Mike Anderson leads a crush and berry sampling to show visitors what a great Tempranillo wine is literally made of. Later Saturday night, from 6 – 9pm Yolo Mambo will transport visitors to Brazil, Cuba, Peru, Cape Verde, France and Spain, blending spicy cha-cha, jazz, Bossa Nova, samba, salsa, and folk with the dynamic vocals of Catherine LeBlanc in languages from all over this Earth. Sunday afternoon, the festival wraps with Spanish Guitar at all three Winters tasting rooms.

TURKOVICH FAMILY WINES TASTING ROOM will feature our 2010 Barrel Select Tempranillo wine paired with some zesty Spanish culinary cheese bites guaranteed to tease your taste buds.  For our evening venue, offerings include selected Spanish Wine Flights and lots of good traditional Spanish Favors.   Futures will be sold for this weekend only.  Come enjoy the sounds of the Spanish classical guitar on Sunday afternoon, September 9th as we conclude TempFest in Winters, California.

PRESERVE PUBLIC HOUSE will be celebrating the spirit of Temp Fest all weekend long! Kick off Temp Fest on Thursday, September 6, with a special flight tasting of three select Tempranillo wines. On Friday, Preserve will have live music by alternative singer-songwriter Lish Bills, from 7pm to 9pm.  Throughout the weekend, we will be featuring our local wineries, Berryessa Gap and Turkovich Family Wines, paired with our very own house-made Spanish Chorizo and other treats.  Preserve the Good Life…Cheers!

BUCKHORN STEAKHOUSE will be featuring Traditional Spanish Specialties for all Lamb Lovers! Local Lamb from Superior Farms in Dixon, CA is a perfect pairing with Turkovich Family Wines' Tempranillo and Berryessa Gap’s Rocky Ridge Tempranillo. Tapas will include Lamb Empanadas with Chimichurri Sauce and Lamb Riblets. Rationes of Grilled Lamb Chops, Rack of Lamb and Pan Seared Sturgeon with Manilla Clams and Buttered Leeks round out the Tempranillo-friendly menu. The Buckhorn Steak and Roadhouse is a World Class Steakhouse that serves USDA Prime Beef aged 28-35 days before on-premise journeyman butcher, Joe Bristow, expertly cuts steaks to his signature specifications. Thirty two years in the business have a proven that mouthwatering steaks in the charming town of Winters are worth the drive.

EL PUEBLO offers up traditional Mexican cuisine that pairs phenomenally well with ‘The bite’ of a high-acid Tempranillo, including their very special Chile Verde. Tender pork simmered with tomatillo sauce, cilantro and garlic is 1/2 price Friday, Saturday & Sunday. El Pueblo Meat Market & Deli specializes in traditional Mexican platos, tamales, carnitas, chili rellenos, quesadillas, menudo & much more. In the authentic Mexican deli, you can find a wide variety of fresh meats and friendly, knowledgeable butchers who will special-order anything they don’t carry. At El Pueblo, the food is always tasty and the drinks are always cold!

MAIN ST. CELLARS, the locally owned wine bar and retail wine shop in downtown Winters, is a perfectly casual place to join friends for a bottle of Tempranillo; enjoy a craft beer or two; or to spend an afternoon on the patio playing bocce ball. During Temp Fest, Main St. Cellars will have a healthy supply of both domestic and imported Tempranillo wines along with special promotions all weekend. During your visit to Main Street Cellars, enjoy delicious Marcona almonds, Jamon Serrano, and aged Spanish Manchego cheeses with that glass of Tempranillo.

PUTAH CREEK CAFE will offer Spanish Paella, Cioppino and Cannoli specials for Temp Fest, alongside Turkovich Family Wines & Berryessa Gap Vineyards Tempranillo.

Winters’ newest restaurant FORTIFY is happy to provide health conscious Temp Fest visitors with alternative, organic and whole food Tapas during lunch Friday and Saturday. Ingredients are sourced from surrounding farms. Check them out for creative last minute additions to the festivities.

FICELLE, Winters’ award winning Tapas House  will be surprising locals and visitors alike with a “delightfully random” sampling of the local Tempranillo and tapas drawing on their shared Spanish, Mexican and California heritage.