UVAS Winery makes the most of its prime location in the heart of Old Poway by hosting neighborhood activities that change with the seasons.
Being close to Old Poway Park means UVAS can piggyback on area events such as the Saturday morning farmers market on Midland Road.
As fall sets in, UVAS will be hosting several Halloween events.
On Saturday, Oct. 24, UVAS will engage customers in cookie decorating as the staff hands out candy to the kids. The patio will be decorated in a haunted Halloween theme in conjunction with Old Poway Park’s annual “Once Upon a Hallowe’en.” Two TVs will be set up with Halloween movies.
The following day, on Sunday, Oct. 25, UVAS will host a Witch’s Brew Tea Party. The highlight for customers will be homemade appetizers, various teas, wicked wines and the chance to decorate a witch’s hat.
The revelries culminate with a second annual Halloween party and costume contest at the winery on Oct. 31.
Last year about 40 people showed up in costumes and stayed for the wine and music, said UVAS co-owner Alishia Zaldivar of Escondido.
Julie Gallant
Tristian Zaldivar pours wine that he helped make from grapes sourced locally. (Julie Gallant)
When Christmas arrives, UVAS can host a holiday party synced with the park’s annual “Christmas in the Park” celebration featuring caroling, live music, craft boutiques and train rides.
When the city hosted a Fourth of July event at Old Poway Park, UVAS served its Spirit of ’76 Madeira sweet dessert wine. Kids joined the festivities by signing a replica Declaration of Independence at the winery. Staff jumped in dressed as characters who signed the Declaration of Independence – founding fathers John Adams, Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson.
The authentic Jefferson was a wine collector back in the day who shared his Madeira wine with the historic document’s co-signers, said Lloyd Roberts, UVAS’s sales and marketing consultant.
“It was considered the celebratory wine of the American Revolution,” the Poway resident said. “That’s why our Madeira wine is called Spirit of ’76.”
Regular live music on Friday and Saturday evenings is another draw for customers who sip and relax to the sounds of classic rock, country, jazz and occasional Spanish music during Latin nights.
“Some customers come multiple times a week, hang out and have a grand time,” Zaldivar said.
Julie Gallant
Tristian Zaldivar and his mom, Alishia Zaldivar, run UVAS Winery in Old Poway with Alishia’s husband, David, their daughter, Ashlyn, and grandmother, Ada. (Julie Gallant)
UVAS Winery opened at 14053 Midland Road on March 24, 2025 after the former owners sold their Mission Cellars business at the same site.
Mission Cellars had previously opened on the Fourth of July in 2018. A few years later, in 2021, the Mission Cellars owners took Zaldivar’s son, Tristian, under their wing for training in the winemaking industry. He learned the craft from the ground up: harvesting grapes, caring for the vines and guiding each wine through fermentation and the aging process.
“Mission Cellars told everybody they were selling the business and Tristian got wind of it,” said Alishia, who co-owns the business with her husband, David, who hails from Cuba. “It was his dream to run this place. We had a family meeting and decided to front the money for the enterprise. We’ve been having a great time.”
Roberts, who is involved in buying some of the wines and planning events, said running a winery is hard work but it’s a fun profession. Everybody who comes into the winery is friendly and in good humor, he said.
“You see the best side of everyone,” he said. “It’s a gathering place.”
Julie Gallant
UVAS Winery finds creative ways to entertain guests in a cozy wine room. (Julie Gallant)
Some of UVAS’s specialties on an extensive menu are traditional red berry and sweet white peach slushies along with wine-based mango margaritas. Seasonal wines available this time of year include apple pie Sangrias and a Season’s Greetings cranberry rosemary wine sold December through January.
The urban winery may lack its own vineyard, but it sources its grapes locally from Ramona, Julian and Escondido vineyards. Recently, UVAS began extending its reach for grapes as far away as Temecula in Riverside County and Santa Barbara, Alishia Zaldivar said.
“Tristian does make some of the wine and sometimes we partner with other winemakers to help us,” Roberts said.
UVAS gives its slightly more than 100 wine club members a vineyard experience with occasional Dinner in the Vines excursions at a partner vineyard in Escondido, Zaldivar said. Guests are treated to a catered dinner, wine and music performed by the Zaldivars’ daughter Ashlyn. Guests wander among the grapevines, talk with the vineyard’s owner and are treated to a beautiful sunset.
Courtesy Lloyd Roberts
UVAS Winery hosts Dinner in the Vines events for customers to experience a vineyard at a partner winery in Escondido. (Courtesy Lloyd Roberts)
The family has also brought the vineyard experience to their winery with a Stomp the Grapes event in September. About two dozen customers who were a mix of wine club and non-club members stomped their way through a trough of grapes while enjoying a catered dinner, Zaldivar said.
“It created a great memory for them,” she said. “We had a blast.”
Some of the standard items customers can order day-to-day include Chardonnays, white blends, a Rose from Temecula and two sparkling wines – a regular Blanc de Blancs and a Rose. The menu also has a Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, a Petite Sirah, and warm or chilled red Primativo.
Just this year the Zaldivars became the proud winners of five ribbons – a silver and a bronze ribbon from the San Diego County Fair and three silvers from the Grape Day Wine Competition in Escondido.
“When it comes to wine the quality has to do with the grape and making sure you’re doing the proper things to age it,” said Zaldivar, who credits some of their success to partnering with the San Diego County Vintners Association and the Ramona Valley Vineyard Association. “The winemaking industry is a small community and everybody helps each other out and supports each other.”
UVAS Winery is open 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesdays through Fridays and Sundays, and from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturdays. For details, call 858-883-4276 or visit uvaswinery.net.
Courtesy Lloyd Roberts
Customers enjoyed a Stomp the Grapes event at UVAS Winery in September. (Courtesy Lloyd Roberts)