Clesi Estate Winery — Attraction in Templeton

Clesi is a fun and authentic experience. Highly recommended. The facilities are modest, there are no marble floors, gold chandeliers, or fancy furniture. The Director of Wine Making and the Director of Viticulture are the same person who was driving the tractor down the row when you arrived. The focus here is on the wines, which are marvelous.

I'm awarding four stars for the wines, which exceed expectations. Numerous Italian varieties, some grown on the Ferrara Estate just yards away from the tasting room, others from nearby vineyards, and a few Bordeaux grape varieties just because. Several wines are fermented in large terra cotta amphorae using techniques that go back to ancient Rome and before. You can easily taste the difference between the amphora wines and the conventional fermenting.

The extra star is for the people. It's a place where the winemaker himself might be pouring your tasting and sharing insights on the details of the process. Or you might arrive at the end of the day and Becky will graciously pour for you and not complain that the full tasting ran past closing. Definitely not a "corporate" winery.

An above average...

My wife and I stopped in unannounced this past Sunday morning. Adrienne was out front doing some work with their son (?Gio) and their australian sheep dog McCoy. Adrienne was kind enough to stop what she was doing, greet us warmly, and guide is through a delightful wine tasting over the course of an hour. We learned a great deal about a family operated vinyard, having fun playing fetch wtih McCoy a good bit of the time. Adrienne was genuinely engaged and lovely to chat with. We walked away with some bottles of tasty sagrantino and felt like it was a 100% worthwhile, enriching experience. We hope to return if we pass through Paso...

I loved visiting this winery! We stopped in during spring 2022, and were able to make a tasting appointment for the same day. It was a drizzly day but it made the surrounding land even more picturesque. The tasting room was open and plenty dry! There is also a very enthusiastic winery dog that will play fetch with you forever! He was great and I had so much fun sipping wines and tossing the ball for him. The owner was also wonderful to chat with, very relaxed and friendly. The wine itself is tasty and we went home with a few bottles. Definitely plan to visit again the next time we...