SPONSORED #TemeculaValleyFAM
Most recently we went to Temecula to visit a friend who just bought a house out there. It would normally take about an hour and a half to get there, but there’s always unexpected traffic along the way so it ended up being two hours from South Orange County. We had brunch in Old Town Temecula and when we started to walk around, I started to remember about a trip I took about ten years ago with a group of bloggers/influencers to Tour Temecula Valley back in May 2015 in partnership with Visit Temecula Valley. We took a walking tour, visited a couple of their wineries, and attended a Balloon Glow for their annual Balloon & Wine Festival. It was dejavu. I went back to this old post and had to update it. I also wanted to see if some of the old places we visited were still there.
Olive Oil Tasting in Temecula pic.twitter.com/22o8BZU0p8
— Mary@LetsPlayOC (@LetsPlayOC) July 26, 2025
Walking Tour of Temecula
The morning of our tour we visited seven stops within our “Walking Tour of Temecula” all before we even checked into our hotel! It was eventful, nonetheless, and we were in for a full day of fun. We started at (1) Temecula Olive Oil Company where we tasted six various extra virgin olive oils from California olives. What a unique experience! After taking several shots of delicious olive oil pairings, we headed to our next destination – (2) Pennypickle’s Workshop Temecula Children’s Museum. This fun house is an imaginative world of Professor Phineas Pennypickle where children can explore inventions, gadgets, and gizmos. A few blocks away, we stopped into (3) Temecula Lavendar Co. which was aromatherapy to our senses.
I thought it was a bit early to visit a candy store before lunch but we stopped into (4) Old Town Sweet Shop which was very tempting before visiting (5) Old Town Rootbeer Company (sorry this place is now closed) for tastings of their famous soda made with honey and cane sugar. They have over 500 choices of soda in glass bottles! One of our last stops was (6) Old Town Spice & Tea Merchants where we tasted tea and admired their spice collection (they have over 250 spices) before we had a delicious lunch at (7) Crush & Brew. Hint: Their Bacon Parmesan French Fries and Lobster Mac and Cheese is a must!
Lobster Mac N Cheese @CrushandBrew @Visit_Temecula #temeculavalleyfam omg yummy https://t.co/JAgQMocZVv pic.twitter.com/LQ96siK1yA
— Mary@LetsPlayOC (@LetsPlayOC) May 29, 2015
Accommodations
After lunch we checked into our hotel at SpringHill Suites Temecula Valley which was super close to Old Town Temecula and in a convenient location. It’s a 15 minute walk to Old Town Temecula or a 5 minute drive. My room had a contemporary design with a separate living space which included a desk, a sofa, and a mini-refrigerator. We had little time to freshen up before Viva Limo picked us up to tour wine country! (We didn’t want to be late to the dinner or the miss the Balloon Glow).
Vineyards and Wineries
Lorimar Vineyards and Winery was devine. We were all given a tasting card which allowed six tastings from their wine menu. I like my wine on the sweeter side and narrowed it down to two favorites: Lorimar’s 2013 Muscat Canelli and 2014 White Merlot. Wilson Creek Winery and Vineyard. Their property is absolutely beautiful. We saw families rehearsing for their wedding, families with children having dinner, and folks enjoying themselves over conversation and wine. After our tour of the vineyard with their infamous Almond Champagne, we stopped in the “Barrel Room” to have a beautiful dinner and enjoyed more wine before our last destination – An Evening Balloon Glow at Temecula’s Balloon & Wine Festival!
Temecula Balloon and Wine Festival
The balloon festival was unique and really fun. This three day festival has live music, food, games, and alcohol. It has camping options and hot air balloon rides. For more information about the Balloon and Wine Festival, please visit https://temeculavalleyfestival.com/. For more information about Temecula Valley, visit www.visittemeculavalley.com.
