Gilroy Garlic Path to Spiritual Enlightenment

http://www.gilroydispatch.com/news/259200-from-garlic-to-grapes

"Everybody in San Francisco, they think of garlic and then outlets when they think of Gilroy," said Tim Slater, owner of Sarah's Vineyard. "My hope is that they think of wine, and then garlic, and then outlets."

Seventeen wineries lie within minutes of Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy, but south Santa Clara Valley faces challenges in marketing itself as a new wine country.

Vinegar Alley

In the early 1900s, Santa Clara and Napa counties were the two earliest premier grape-growing regions in California. Vines were first planted in Gilroy by Italian immigrants who settled along Hecker Pass Highway because the rich soil and warm climate reminded them of their homeland.

The nearly half-dozen wineries along the winding highway were small, family-owned operations quietly making many of the traditional red wines from Burgundy. At Live Oaks winery, wine was sold by the half-jug and tastings were offered in shot glasses.

"It was an old Italian style of making wine," said Vic Vanni, owner of Solis Winery on Hecker Pass Highway. "It wasn't super-high quality, and it was very inexpensive."

Meanwhile, Napa was exploring new grape varietals and revving up its marketing engines.

"Napa in the '80s and early '90s really took off," he said. "We were behind the curve in this area."

Gilroy's wine industry is breaking from tradition thanks to a younger generation taking over the established wineries and countering the lingering perceptions that led one wine critic to call the Hecker Pass area "Vinegar Alley."

Brothers Mike and Vic Vanni took ownership of Solis in 2007 from their parents, who operated the winery since 1989. The brothers invested in new equipment, remodeled the tasting room and added a courtyard for picnicking. Mike Vanni became the winemaker.

"We've narrowed the scope of our product line," Mike Vanni said. "We're focusing more on the high-end stuff, whereas before we had some value wines that we've done away with. Basically, we're working with only super-premium wines."