Testarossa Winery is located in Los Gatos, California. It is about a 20-minute drive from the San Jose city center and San Jose airport. The winery is family owned and operated. The owner’s, Rob and Diana Jensen, began their wine making in their garage in 1993.

History:

The winery was originally built in 1888 by Jesuit fathers and brothers from Santa Clara College (now Santa Clara University). The purpose was to provide additional funding for the seminary college and its students. For over a 100 years, the Jesuits used the winery to make altar wine and sweet dessert wines. The winery was best known for its fortified Black Muscat dessert wine at that time. 

🌟Fun fact: It is California’s fourth oldest continuously operating winery house and tasting room. 

After 98 years of winery operations, student attendance declined and the Jesuits discontinued producing their Novitiate wine in 1986. 

In 1997, the Jensens, after only four years of producing their wines, purchased the old winery and began a huge renovation.

The restorations honor the old ways, and yet incorporate the new. The winery exudes a family owned business. You feel a relaxed atmosphere through the great attitude of the employees.

The tours are quite interesting, and you learn all about the history of this notable building. The tours begin in the cave and bring out the rich past of this special winery.

The winery is very large and contains many different areas to enjoy tasting their wines.

These are the menus of the wines I tasted on my visit: 

🌟5StarTip:

I highly recommend the Salon Tasting. This tasting take place in a cave where you and guests will have an intimate, private experience. The ambiance is esquisite while you are educated on the wines! 

I was so taken by the beauty within the cave, that I decided to include a few more pictures! 

The table decor really displayed a sense of luxury!

🌟Fun fact: The first-year of production was just 4,000 cases. Today, the production is approximately 30,000 cases a year.

Using grapes from the best vineyards around the state, Testarossa winery combines and concentrates its limited production on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines. 

The winery, and the winemaker Bill Brosseau (who is also a grower), pride themselves on their quality control practices by combining grape growing and winemaking. The utilize a “soil to the bottle” concept. 

I tasted several of their wines, and my three favorites were: 

🌟2015 Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir 
🌟2014 Santa Cruz Mountains Red Wine 
🌟2015 Santa Lucia Highlands Chardonnay

2015 Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

Tasting Notes from Bill Brosseau, Director of Winemaking at Testarossa 

“Deep red hue. Engaging scents of ripe cherry, pomegranate, and orange zest jump out of the glass and are followed gently by notes of nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, and anise. Upon taste, the flavors focus more on red cherry and chokecherry profiles, with spice notes in the background. There is great concentration of fine grain tannins, which provides dimension yet good polish as well. This wine ends with a bright, fresh, and vibrant taste, then fades gently to a smooth and lush finish. Enjoy now through 2025.” 

2014 Santa Cruz Mountains Red Wine

The 2014 Red Wine is a blend of the following varietals from the Black Ridge and Camel Hill Vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains: 

55% Merlot 
20% Cabernet Franc 
15% Cabernet Sauvignon 
7% Petit Verdot 
3% Malbec 

Tasting Notes from Bill Brosseau, Director of Winemaking at Testarossa 

“Very dark red hue. Scents of blueberry, blackberry, and sage portray the initial aroma profile, followed by hints of cocoa, boysenberry, violet, sage, and sandalwood. Upon taste, the flavors concentrate around notes of sage, boysenberry, blackberry, and violets. Bright acidity and lively tannins give a youthful mouthfeel along with the voluptuous texture, providing immediate pleasure. This wine finishes with a long, expansive, and lingering expression. Enjoy now through 2025.” 

2015 Santa Lucia Highland Chardonnay

Tasting Notes from Bill Brosseau, Director of Winemaking at Testarossa 

“Medium yellow color. Scents of grapefruit, kiwi, apples, banana, fig, and cinnamon. With some time, additional notes of vanilla bean, peach, apricot, maple syrup, honey, and jasmine flow from the glass. The complex aroma profile sails gracefully to the palate, with a focal point of grapefruit and maple syrup. Vibrant acidity and a polished texture give way to a full, lingering, and lively finish. Enjoy now through 2025. ” 

There are plenty of picnic areas to enjoy a bottle of wine while finding a comfortable place to listen to the local bands that play here. 

Final Thoughts:

This winery is wonderful place to spend an afternoon enjoying wine. Leave plenty of time to not only take a wine tasting tour, but also to buy a bottle and enoy it outside while listening to the band. It is great for a relaxing and casual experience. The cave “Salon” tasting is an Always5Star recommend when visitng this winery. Be sure to make your reservations at least 48 hours in advance as this is quite popular. Cheers to enjoying the Testarossa Winery! 

Two final 🌟fun facts that I hope you enjoy:

🌟   The winery was named after Rob. His college nickname was Testarossa, which means “red head” in Italian. 

🌟   Testarossa’s “Niclaire” Pinot Noir is named after their children, Nick and Claire. 

🌟 Please note: This was a sponsored opportunity to taste wines at the Testarossa Winery. However, my opinions expressed are my own. I was not compensated for writing this article or endorsing their wine.

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