Dining Review: SoCal wine in the Foothills

As the days get longer and the summertime attitude starts to wash over us, there’s no better place to be than on a veranda overlooking spectacular scenery with a glass of fine wine in front of you. Wine lovers in the Crescenta Valley know a secret place to do just this, and now I’m sharing the secret with you.

Angeles National Golf Club in Sunland is home to a satellite tasting room of Malibu Family Wines. The home vineyard is up winding mountain roads in Malibu Canyon, but locals can score the same bottles just off the 210 freeway in nearby Sunland.

Perhaps the word “club” has kept you away from Angeles National Golf Club with its rambling, Jack Nicklaus-designed course. The public is welcome here. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served in the Agave Bar & Grill on a daily basis, but the real score is the lounge menu featuring custom-made pizzas. Combine those pizzas with a glass of Semler Syrah, add a sunset over the Angeles National Forest, and you’re all set.

It would be a smart move, in my opinion, if the restaurant and the winery coordinated their hours of service a little better. I’ve pinpointed a prime time that works for me. Every day from noon to 7 p.m., Malibu Family Wines offers tastings of five wines for $12 or $14. From 3 to at least 7 p.m. each evening (except Tuesday), the Agave presents their Lounge Menu of nachos, wings, sliders and pizza. Focus on the pizza. No matter what toppings you choose (meat or veggie), the pizza comes dripping with gooey, tangy cheese straight from a hot oven. The six-slice pies normally cost $7.95, plus $1 or $2 per topping. If you happen to arrive during their Happy Hour (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 3 to 6 p.m.), the Margherita or Italian sausage versions cost only $5.

There are plenty of tables on the wide, shaded veranda. Keep a couple of things in mind, however. The wine tastings can be a hassle because you have to keep going back inside to the bar for your next sample. Maybe share a tasting with a friend inside and then take a bottle of your favorite out on the deck. Secondly, it’s not easy to flag down a waiter from the restaurant. The vibe on the veranda may be a little bit too relaxed, especially down near the winery end. Just smile and be persistent.

On weekends, patrons are treated to live music on the patio between 2 and 4 p.m. Though you’ll miss the Happy Hour deals and perhaps the sunset, the guitar music and the bird song all around make for a lovely afternoon.

A quick word about two other vineyards in the Foothills. Many hikers know of the Stone Barn in Deukmejian Wilderness Park. A beautiful massive stone building constructed by George Le Mesnager in 1905, it’s been recently restored, and the surrounding vineyard replanted in 2004 by the Stone Barn Vineyard Conservancy. They’ve been bottling the fruits of their labor and the wine is delicious. Labeled the Dunsmore Creek Deuk-Amonga Blend, it’s a 50% Abouriou, 50% Cucamonga Syrah blend. It has an obvious and pleasing smoky aroma, a result of the 2009 Station Fire. You could say they’ve captured Crescenta Valley history in a bottle. There’s only one way to get the Dunsmore Creek wines. Well, two ways. Win a bottle in a raffle, like I did, or become a member of the conservancy and receive two bottles per year. Go to www.cvhistory.org.

At a higher elevation still and even harder to come by are the wines from Beinn Bhreagh Vineyard. La Crescenta resident Tim MacDonald grows pinot grapes on rocky slopes at the top of Briggs Terrace. With terrain well-suited to pinot growing, but also to wildlife, MacDonald shares much of his crop with local fauna. Still he bottles a number of supple, silky and yes, smoky, pinot noirs every year. Alas, they’re meant mainly for consumption by family and friends.

Tap into the long history of wine-making in the Foothills by sipping some soon in the shadow of the local mountains.

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What: Malibu Family Wines Tasting Room/Agave Bar & Grill

Where: Angeles National Golf Club, 9401 Foothill Blvd., Sunland
When: Prime time is daily from 3 to 7 p.m. (except Tuesdays)

Contact: www.angelesnational.com, (818) 951-8771

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LISA DUPUY welcomes comments at LDupuy@aol.com.