A quiet berg of antique shops, art galleries, and family-owned eateries, Los Alamos lies only slightly off the beaten path. On the sleepy main drag of Bell Street, things got a lot more animated in January, when Bedford Winery reopened its tasting room.
Located next door to Café Quackenbush, the tasting room provides a friendly venue where visitors can sample a range of fine wines seasoned with lively conversation. Recently, the Los Alamos fun factor jumped another notch with the release of the winery’s first vintages under the new Bedford Winery label.
Owner/winemaker Stephan Bedford introduced three barrel fermented beauties, including a remarkably crisp Chardonnay, an elegantly dry Gewurztraminer, and a delightfully fruity Alsatian-style Riesling.
“I like making the Alsatian-style wines,” Bedford said. “I think there are so many people interested in these wines. When they see a dry, barrel-fermented Gewurztraminer, some people’s eyes are going to pop open and they’ll think ‘Alsace, Strasbourg, Colmar, butter!’
“Los Alamos is off the beaten track a little bit,” he admitted, “and it’s got a little different attitude, it’s a little more straightforward. [We hope] to attract serious wine tasters, people who like interesting varieties.”
Using fruit grown primarily in the Los Alamos Valley, Bedford excels at crafting a number of different grape varieties into memorable wines. In addition to Chardonnay, Riesling, and Gewurztraminer, Bedford makes Grenache, Syrah, and several lesser-known varietal grapes.
“I like Grenache, arguably the most widely planted wine variety in the world,” he said, “and Mourvedre is phenomenal. Syrah, you can make really imposing styles of wine with that, and we’re now doing a little Carignan as a varietal.
“For me,” he added, “our signature is the whole spectrum, from dry Riesling and Gewurztraminer to Syrah and Mourvedre.”
Bedford, a Renaissance man with kind eyes and a bright smile, reads several books at a time, can wax poetic about everything from baseball to politics to cod, and cooks extravagant meals in cast iron Dutch ovens set over glowing coals. A winemaker for 30 years, he opened his winery—then known as Bedford Thompson Winery—in 1993.
The winery began as a partnership between Bedford and grape grower David Thompson, whose family farms a vineyard near Los Alamos. The two pooled their resources to set up a winemaking facility on Alisos Canyon Road, and opened a tasting room a few doors down.
The partners went their separate ways, and by July 2003, Bedford had taken over the winery. About a year later, he moved the tasting room to Los Alamos, where he and his staff continue to regale customers with marvelous wine and cutting-edge performances.
During the tasting room’s brief closure last year, Bedford, along with his trusty crew of friends and relations, gave the tasting room a fresh coat of paint, installed ceiling fans, and added furniture crafted from barrel staves by artisan Richard Motz. They spruced up the patio area
with new lighting, furniture, and a
fountain, and expanded the non-wine inventory with a selection of embroidered Bedford wear.
“No drastic changes,” said Bedford Winery’s tasting room manager, Helen Daniels. “It still has that ‘Bedford’ feel, with a sufficient amount of reference material and cast iron handy. But it’s even more inviting and comfortable.”
Famous for its creative events, which range from live radio shows to wine, chile, and chocolate pairings, Bedford Winery hosts the Artful Tomato on Sept. 4. Guests can taste heirloom tomatoes, such as Cherokee Purple and Yellow Taxi, many grown by Bedford himself in his one-acre garden, and sample dishes (including pizzas fresh from the wood-burning oven) made with tomato varieties hailing from around the globe.
“There’s this whole controversy about what constitutes a good tomato,” Bedford said, “and how what we call hybrid, modern varieties will be tomorrow’s antique varieties. So we’ll stage a discussion—with our actor friends playing the parts—between someone representing the heirloom seed-saver and someone who is more of a modern horticulturist.
“Reading though old seed catalogs,” he added, “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen more witty or lively correspondence than these guys have with one another. It’s going to be a fun event!”
On Sundays, stop by Bedford Winery’s tasting and chat one-on-one with the winemaker, who is happy discussing just about any subject, including food, wine, gardening, history, science, baseball, you name it.
“I’m the only one I can talk into working on Sundays,” Bedford laughed, “so stop in, say hello, and taste some wine. Our new wines are pretty fun!”
K. Reka Badger is happy working Sundays when wine is involved. Grab a glass with her at rekabadger@hotmail.com.
This article appears in Aug 26 – Sep 2, 2010.