It was a natural for Katharine I. and William C. Filsinger to follow in the footsteps of Bill's family owned winery in Germany. Kathy and Bill began by purchasing 35 acres of vineyards in the Temecula Valley in 1978 and as the grapes thrived, they started their own winery two years later. Their youngest son, Eric W. Filsinger, came on board 10 years ago as cellar master in 1990 and in 1992 was promoted to assistant aker.

The first planting were made in 1972, the Zinfanel and Sauvignon Blanc. The other varieties were planted much later. Dr. Filsinger was a physician practicing in Orange County for 35 years and has now retired from medicine to devote all his time to making fine wines. Dr. Filsinger's parents emigrated from Germany after World War I and settled in Ohio. The family had a large winery in Mainz, Germany before World War II but it was confiscated by the Nazis. Because the family was always interested in wine and because of the loss of the winery in Germany. The Filsinger family wanted to reestablish the wine making tradition taht they once had in Germany.

Filsinger Vineyards & Winery is currently producing about 7000 cases of wine annually, with a goal of 10,000. With Bill as the winemaker, present production includes seven different varietal wines: Chardonnay, Cabernet, Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Zinfandel, Merlot and Viognier (pronounced vee-oh-NYAY). They also produce four different types of champagnes. The Filsingers grow 90 percent of their own grapes and buy 10 percent from local growers.

The Filsinger Winery was the First Southern California Winery to grow and produce "Gewurztraminer", a grape that usually grows better in the cooler climates, but has done well for the winery winning many medals for excellence and has become Filsinger Winery's most popular wine. Though Bill considers his Cabernet Sauvignon and Gewurztraminer his top wines, his champagnes should not be over-looked!