Cordiano Winery, A Gastronomic Delight with Taste of Tuscany

Gerardo & Rosa Cardiano, the first generation winemakers & vintners moved from Calabria, Italy to New York in early 1970s. As a new immigrant, Gerardo picked up his first assignment and worked at a pizzeria in upstate Syracuse. He worked long 16 hours a day practicing his culinary skills from home and created an authentic Italian taste for food lovers in New York. The pizzeria became very popular and with Gerardo’s hard work and dedication, the luck turned in his favor. Gerardo became the owner of the pizzeria serving best Italian pizzas in Big Apple.

All these years when Gerardo was putting long hours at work and bringing food to the table for his family, his wife Rosa was working as full time soccer mom raising their 3 beautiful children Francesco, Joe & Jennifer. Rosa learned the language and while embracing American culture and life she consistently supported Gerardo to grow his business. Hard work and will to succeed was embedded in the DNA of Rosa & Gerardo. The couple moved to Southern Louisiana and started New York style pizza chain by the name of Dante’s Pizza. The business flourished and the pizza chain grew to 35 restaurants spanning across the states of Louisiana and Florida. Rosa and Gerardo did not stop. Living the American dream and strong passion to make their own wines one day, life brought them to Southern California. In 2008, the couple opened doors of their Cordiano Winery to the public.

Situated in the hills of San Pasqual Valley Cordiano Winery is now a family-owned and operated boutique winery in tranquility of Escondido’s suburbs. Surrounded by the foothills and 35 acres of lush vineyards, Cordiano produces some of the best vintages using grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Syrah and many more. Cordiano offers the most glamorous and unique experience of outdoor wine tasting and dining. Relaxing on their gorgeous terrazzo with a glass of wine on the plateau of the hill overlooking vineyards and mimicking Tuscan-style backdrop is one of its kind in the entire valley.

The restaurant @ Cordiano serves excellent wood oven pizzas, salads, mouth-watering Tuscan-Style pastas, lasagnas and breads. A treat for dessert lovers, their authentic Italian tiramisu tastes heavenly and is to die for. Rosa and Gerardo are fun to be around. They sat with us and shared some of their favorite wines with us. Cordiano Family is very passionate about their winery and they believe in hosting the guests with utmost attention and Italian hospitality. The winery and its facilities are being constantly remodeled. While speaking with Rosa about new extension of their terrazzo she said “ Gerardo will keep remodeling and adding more space to outdoor dining till he touches the Pacific” 😊. Such an amazing, simple and fun loving couple, simply loved them. Francesco (Frank) their oldest son is super cool and is always seen mingling with guests at the winery.

Though there are several wineries in the region, but Rosa & Gerardo have established an aura of sophistication, fun and relaxation that is hard to beat. The winery is located at convenient location in Escondido and is easily approachable from Fwy 15. A visit to Cordiano is a must for wine & food lovers. The variety of their distinct reds and whites including dessert wines will compel you to make Cordiano your favorite haunt for your family getaways and to entertain friends in Tuscan- Style. Saluti (Cheers In Italian) 🍷🥂🍇🍁🇮🇹🇺🇸

Photos: Cordiano vineyards, winery, grounds, outdoor restaurant & terrazzo.