Grape Escape: Little Uvas Vineyards an Oasis in San Martin

June 6, 2025 – In addition to a sweet vineyard, Rich and Rosy Bergin have an awesome little wine tasting room on Fitzgerald Road in San Martin. Part car museum and part pizza parlor, it’s also a lovely spot to hang out and taste, whether you’re inside their garage turned tasting lounge (which they share with DeRose Winery), hanging out in what feels like a miniature version of a café, or outside at one of their many picnic tables, enjoying the ag views and the breezes shuttled in from the Monterey Bay by a gap in the coastal hills. 

You can also taste inside one of the adorable Airstream trailers they have on property on those chillier days. The ambience is as fun and festive as the couple themselves, who are well-known to the Morgan Hill community as restauranteurs. In 2023, they sold Rosy’s at the Beach to Pam Novak and Vanessa Bermudez and the restaurant was filmed on May 7 for “America’s Best Restaurants.” 

Thinking about retirement several years ago, they purchased this property, which happens to share space with a classic car auto restoration garage, believing it would be perfect for a little pizza oven and a vineyard. They asked other winemakers in the area what they should plant, and got various bits of advice, some useful. 

Advised against Sauv Blanc, they planted half an acre anyway, along with Merlot and Syrah, which were also lobbied against. Talking and tasting with Gene Guglielmo at Guglielmo Winery, Rich learned that Barbera does well here, so he planted a quarter acre. And because everybody needs a Cab, they went with a solid acre of that. 

The Bergin’s thought the wine business would be a lot easier than running a restaurant. It might actually be easier than running some businesses, for example, a state prison or a rocket launching service, but if wine was easy, everybody would do it. Turns out it takes the same kind of selfless masochism as any kind of hospitality. Remember that old saying, virtue is its own reward? 

Once you’ve caught the culinary bug, though, it’s hard to shed, and my group of Wild Wine Women were delighted to visit this sweet spot and charming couple to taste not only their solid selection of wines, but also the amazing food they served us. Their chef is none other than affable and talented Berto Breton, who formerly worked for them at Rosy’s. We were welcomed by Rich and Rosy with the 2023 Sauvignon Blanc from the property, paired with a snappy shrimp cocktail shooter, spiced with fresh peppers and tomato. With its nice range of flavors from slightly lemon grassy to melon to bordering on tropical, the estate Sauv Blanc, made by Jeff Fadness, portended a good start. Most of the other wines are made by Alphonse DeRose.

Next, they served us each a lovely romaine Caesar salad with a tangy dressing and gigantic croutons, paired with the 2024 rosé of Syrah, a brilliant way to use this grape. This was followed by the first of three pizzas, each one a marvel, based on Breton’s recipe for a 3-day sourdough ferment. And of course, there is nothing like a wood-fired brick pizza oven to turn out perfect pies. 

Paired with the salmon pizza was the sensational 2021 Puppy Luv Merlot, which honestly got everyone talking about how they had practically stopped believing in life after Sideways. Perfectly soft, smooth and lush velvety in the mouth without being overripe or green, too tannic, too oaky or just too overwrought, this Merlot may well become one of your favorite reds. One sip, and the swooning started around the room. A bottle went home with nearly everybody. 

Chef Berton then served us what he called a perfect slice of Santa Clara Valley. The pie featured garlic from Gilroy and mushrooms from Morgan Hill, paired with pepperoni to create a savory and earthy melt of yumminess that highlighted the earthy spiciness of the 2021 Syrah perfectly.

Sated though we may have been, Rich and Breton had one more surprise: an apple pie pizza paired with 2022 Chardonnay from Regan Vineyard in Corralitos. This really pretty wine, whose acidity and bright fruit shows nicely through the creamy veil of barrel toast, made a truly divine pairing with the sweet apple pie spice.  

Visit Little Uvas on Friday afternoons for their popular pizza parties or take advantage of their new Thursday night “Corks & Pasta” event, from 4pm until 8pm, where you can enjoy a bottle of wine and two pastas for $50, (upcharge of $15 for the Barbera). Pasta choices are spaghetti and meatballs, chicken and fettucine Alfredo and pesto penne prima vera. All sure to please.

This sweet, unpretentious place invites you to relax and enjoy well-made wines, paired with inspired local food by people who truly know how to make wine tasting a joyful and memorable experience. 

Let’s make wine fun again!

Little Uvas Vineyards | 255 Fitzgerald Avenue, San Martin, CA | littleuvasvineyards.com