Welcome to Phil’s Blog on the Baily Vineyard & Winery site where every once in a while I share my thoughts on one aspect of wine making or wine appreciation.  My goal is to make it interesting for people who like wine and want to know more about it, and to present a little different take than you get in the conventional wine media.

Because I am doing this myself, and I still have to make the wine, market it, and wash the tanks and barrels, I will not be able to respond to everyone, but you can communicate with me at [email protected] and I will do my best to reply.

If you like the wine, then it’s a good wine! Part Two

      In the last post, I ended by giving my definition of a good wine:  one that smells good with no disagreeable odors, one that is smooth in the mouth, and one that leaves a pleasing and lingering aftertaste.  Then I asked “Why do you like my Riesling and not my Cabernet Franc,…

If You Like the Wine, Then it’s a Good Wine! Part One.

Often I hear winemakers and other winery representatives tell consumers that what determines if a wine is good or bad is whether you like it or not – end of conversation.  At best I find this condescending, and at worst, downright insulting.  What they’re telling you is that you’re not smart enough to understand all the things they know about wine,…

The Early Days of Baily Winery

A MESSAGE FROM CAROL It’s early 1987.  Our old tasting room is only reachable from Rancho California Road via 2 -1/2 miles of dirt road.  I’ve peppered the countryside with unpermitted signs encouraging people to have patience and keep driving till they find us. We’re only open weekends; Phil covers the bar one day and…

John Moramarco

A MESSAGE FROM PHIL As we celebrate 30 years of winemaking here in the Temecula Valley, we thought it would be appropriate to revive our monthly newsletter in the form of a blog, and share some remembrances of those years.  In the next few months we will talk about the people who established this wine…