HORACE LANGFORD JR. / PVT Above is one of the two award-filled walls in the lounge at Pahrump Valley Winery. HORACE LANGFORD JR. / PVT Don McCleash and Bob Haas crank down the wine press to extract the juice from Zinfandel grapes grown entirely on winery property while Bill Loken looks on. The juice is put in oak barrels for approximately 18 months before being bottled and released. Advertisement

The local winery has taken on a new look and a new stature in Nevada. These days it rivals wineries in the most elegant of the wine growing regions in the U.S. There is a reason.

Bill and Gretchen Loken have spent nearly $500,000 remodeling and upgrading the winery since they purchased the property from Western Horizon in 2004.

Not only has the facility been upgraded, the service and the food has been improved as well.

The restaurant closed for a couple of months when the Lokens took over while the kitchen was completely gutted to the walls and starting with the walls, everything was replaced.

When the health inspector saw the renovated facility he was so impressed with the cleanliness and organization, Loken said he wanted to make a this-is-how-it-should-be example to set a standard for other restaurants to follow.

The dining room has elegant new furnishings and new décor as well, giving the restaurant an overall upscale ambiance.

The chef, Jim Shovan, is working with the Lokens to provide "good food at special pricing." Shovan has 25 years of experience in the kitchen, the last 17 years as a chef. He said, "I like a small personal restaurant, not a big resort atmosphere."

He has worked in both and returned for the second time to Symphony's in the winery. The smaller, more personal space gives the chef room to be creative and maintain control over the quality of the food and his staff.

A feather in the cap of success for Symphony's is a Zagat rating for the fifth year in a row.

Zagat started in 1979 as a way for consumers to rate eateries and choose restaurants all over the world. Symphony's is the only Pahrump establishment to have a Zagat rating.

Despite popular belief, for a meal with class, the pricing isn't unreasonable. Two can order a three-course meal with a bottle of wine, dessert and gratuity for under $70. It can be done for less if ordering is done a la carte. For instance, during the lunch hours of service, a cup of lobster bisque and a Caesar salad with a glass of wine will cost about $15.

Sandwiches are served with a choice of a cup of soup, steak fries or the chef's choice side dish for around $10. Try doing that in an upscale restaurant in Las Vegas.

Dinner can be elaborate or moderate according to preference. Selections on the extensive menu range from the simple to the elegant. "We are less expensive than going to Las Vegas for a meal of the same caliber," said Bill. "We've had people dine with us who want to know how we can serve this caliber of cuisine at these prices." One answer is the lack of a Culinary Union here. It keeps the overhead low so patrons can dine lavishly and keep it economical.

They are in the process of making some changes to the menu and will begin offering nightly specials featuring entrees which reflect the changing seasons.

Other changes are evident at the winery as well.

Gone is the small lobby and crowded gift shop. The space has been expanded to double the size, making the gift shop more inviting and providing room for the new tasting bar, now covered in granite, to be larger.

A quiet lounge with soft lighting and a fireplace has been added across the hall. A glass wall separates visitors from the temperature- and humidity-controlled wine cellar where row after row of wines provide the décor for the seating area. Adorning the wall at the other end of the lounge is a display of their award-winning wines.

Over the last three years, Pahrump Valley Winery has taken 126 awards. The display covers two walls and because of their success, Bill said they are going to purchase more display blocks. They are 43 short for the awards taken in competitions this year. They still have a few weeks of competitions remaining and hope the number increases.

Bill said, "When we won 32 awards in 2006, I told Gretchen it was something she'd never see again ... it was amazing to us.

"Then in 2007, we did it again, only this time it was 51 national awards. This year so far, we have won 43 national awards," he said.

In 2006, the Symphony wine took a double gold tasting award and did it again this year, with the added designation of "Best in Class."

Judging for awards is done totally "blind," meaning that other than the style of wine, the judges have no idea what they are tasting, the name of the winery or the region where the grapes are produced. To get a gold medal is something special in itself; to get a double gold is exceptional.

Double gold is awarded only when all the judges have awarded a gold medal to a particular wine across the board. The added designation of "Best in Class" is the unanimous judges agreement the wine needs something more in the way of designation, on top of the double gold, to make it stand alone.

Their success is partly due to the hiring of a Napa Valley winemaker who was first a friend and then a consultant. "We hired him to guide us through the winemaking processes," said Bill. "Gretchen is the brains behind the winemaking."

To see the expression on her face as she measures the sugar to juice ratio in the individual vats beginning to ferment in the winery, the seriousness of the winemaking business is evident. She learned well, knows what she is doing and isn't fooling around.

Right now, the grapes ready for the press are all grown in Nevada, some of them produced as close as Amargosa Valley and Crystal. Tempranillo, Barbera, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel have either already gone into oak barrels for the aging process, or soon will. When asked if the Tempranillo and Barbera would be bottled separately, she would only say "it depends on how they turn out."

Loken said the red wines are aged in oak for at least six months and up to 18 months before they are bottled and cellared either for further aging or released for purchase.

Two of the vats contain Zinfandel grapes grown entirely on the property.

Normally, when a grape is grown, harvested, fermented, aged and bottled on winery premises, the wine label will reflect the product is an "estate" wine. Unfortunately, it won't be the case here.

There is one thing missing. The winery isn't designated by the U.S. government as an approved American viticultural area under regulation 27 CFR Part 9.

Bill is trying to change the designation in his position as president of the Nevada Grape Growers Association and it takes time to cut through the red tape.

The winery is an excellent option for dining with friends, enjoying a bottle of wine on the veranda with a good book, an educational tour through the wine-making process or quiet conversation in front of the fireplace in the lounge.

The restaurant is open daily. Lunch hours are 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and dinner hours are 5 p.m. to closing. Winery tours on most days are given at 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. For more information or reservations call 751-7800.

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