Help me plan my Santa Barbara Weekend

A group of my friends (8 total) and I will be going to Santa Barbara for the weekend at the end of April. Most of us are pretty experienced tasters. Three of us are Pinot drinkers, four of us will drink anything, one will drink anything but Pinot.

We’re planning on using the Santa Ynez Valley as a base–probably via airbnb. But we’re open to a hotel.

In terms of wineries, I’m thinking we’ll do Los Olivos on Sunday–hopefully visit Tercero, Dragonette, and possibly Brander or Beckman.

We’re not sure about Saturday, I’m thinking we can either hit up the Lompoc wine ghetto or meander about foxen wine trail.

In terms of restaurants, we’re going to do the Los Olivos wine merchant for Sunday brunch, and then industrial eats and the hitching post for dinner.

Any suggestions, recommendations, or other help would be appreciated. Thanks!

I love the Santa Ynez Valley, an amazing wine region without all of the “lifestyle” BS of Napa.

There are so many tasting rooms and restaurants in Los Olivos within walking distance of each other - I would get an Airbnb there if I could… it’s also right below the mountains if you want to go for a hike or scenic drive.

Les Marchands wine bar in Santa Barbara is great.

I had one of the best sandwiches of my life at Bell Street Farm in Los Alamos.

In addition to the wineries you list in Los Olivos, I really enjoyed Samsara (very cool climate Sta Rita Hills pinots and syrahs) and Tensley (powerful but still lean syrahs).

In the Lompoc area, I’ve heard good things about Arcadian and Piedrasassi is fantastic if you can arrange a tasting. Melville is a stand alone winery outside of Lompoc, really nice Sta Rita Hills syrah, chard, and pinot.

The drive from Lompoc back to the 101 is neat… right through the heart of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. A remarkably different winegrowing region than the areas just to the east of the 101. Much cooler and windier, despite only being separated by a handful of miles. I believe that it is also the only transverse (east to west) mountain range in the state.

Few hundred feet away from Dragonette and Tercero is Crawford Family. They have access to the top Pinot vineyards and are doing good things with the fruit. On the way to the Ghetto is Melville and Babcock. My wife likes Babcock with all the flea market type stuff for sale in the tasting room. There’s enough variety there to keep a group happy as well. The Ghetto is always fun, but groups of 8 may be a problem with the smaller places.

I guess you are not actually doing SB, but you should. If you go, check out Au Bon Climat downtown. A great tasting room and they pour such a great selection. Down the road is Sanguis which covers a bigger style but very well made. Walk State Street and eat at Sama Sama or The Black Sheep.

A beautiful city that everyone should check out.

Hi Danny,
Here’s a thread I started last year and got a bunch of great advice in. Industrial Eats is a great restaurant.

I’d go way out of my way to hit Whitcraft Winery. They are standouts amongst a bunch of heavy hitters every year at PinotFest, and I’ve had a pretty brilliant chard from them also. I’m surprised they don’t get more buzz here since their wines seem right up the alley of the AFWE Berserker contingent. It looks like they are right in Santa Barbara (36A S. CALLE CESAR CHAVEZ).

Don’t miss Tercero.

Do you mean Lompoc on Sat April 29? I should be around and could do barrel tasting with your group at our winery that day. We are almost all Pinot though… So your anything but Pinot person might not be so thrilled - but we have “turned” a few of those folk to the dark side before

one will drink anything but Pinot.

He’s my favorite guy in your group, but you should take Brian up on his offer. First, he’s maybe the quintessential CA Pinot Noir guy. Second, he makes some pretty good wine from other grapes too. Third, he’s worth talking to.

Oh man, thanks for the offer Brian, but we’re going up the weekend before, 4/22. I think we might stop by your tasting room in Buellton–after we torment someone with the ostriches and emus.

Bummer. I’m in Dallas that weekend

Drop me a PM and let’s connect please!

Danny,

We visited about a year ago. Stayed in Santa Ynez for a couple days and then went to Santa Barbara for the rest of the week.

Stopped in about two dozen wineries in Lompoc and Lompoc Ghetto, Buellton, Solvang, Foxen Canyon Trail, Los Olivos and Santa Barbara.

All around fav - Melville, everything we tasted here was top shelf, the setting was beautiful and the folks pouring were fantastic.
Favorite tasting experience - Demetria, not necessarily the best wines but the setting and the seated tasting were first class.
Favorite Chardonnay - Liquid Farm, all of them, not much of a surprise here.
Favorite Whites (non chard) - Tercero, Viognier and the Roussanne were excellent
Favorite Pinot - Au Bon Climat, 2012 Isabelle.
Favorite Syrah/GSM - Melville 2012 Syrah, High Density.
Favorite Bordeaux varietals - Happy Canyon Vineyard, 2011 Piocho Reserve.
Nicest tasting room - Alma Rosa, once we found it on Santa Rosa Rd, next to Industrial Eats.
Most unusual offerings - Kenneth Volk.

Hope this helps a bit, have fun!

First of all, I think local guys like Larry Schaffer and Brian Loring are in the best position to advise you on this. I would not miss a chance to visit either of those guys. That said, my wife and I love going to Los Olivos and Santa Barbara. Here’s what we have discovered that we liked best (so far) when we go for the Late-April SB Vinters Weekend (which it sounds like you’re attending)

Here’s our typical itinerary to get the best of everything…

SATURDAY

MORNING

Breakfast: It’s worth trying the Buellton Danish-style pancakes at Ellen’s Danish Pancake House if you don’t mind a touch of unique diner food.

This heads you in the right direction to hit…

Ste Rita Hills Tasting Rooms / Vineyard (Between Buellton and Lompoc)
Clos Pepe
Dierberg
Babcock (Babcock is the coolest and they do an open house one of the two days with some library wines available for tasting: Upcoming Festive Events – Babcock Winery )

Then back to Buellton for lunch at…

Lunch: Industrial Eats in Buellton, hands down

Then back to Los Olivos for Tasting Rooms…

Los Olivos Tasting Rooms
Tercero
Larner
Dragonette
Stolpman


Los Olivos Dinner: Do Sides Hardware over Los Olivos Wine Merchant (better food) if you can only do one. But also check to see if THE BEAR AND STAR has opened at Fess Parker hotel in Los Olivos by the time you go. They are supposed to have amazing food (wagyu beef etc.) once they open OR you may want to attend the Saturday Night “Big Bottle Bash” dinner in Solvang: Big Bottle Bash - SANTA BARBARA VINTNERS FESTIVAL


SUNDAY

MORNING

The Educational Hike and Wine Tasting at Stolpman Vineyards
We did this last year and loved it. Beautiful vineyards, nice villa. Peter Stolpman, his Dad, and wine-grower Ruben Solarzano (of Coastal Vineyard Care, and who manages vineyards for some of Central Cali’s biggest labels) do a great job talking to the guests about what they are doing from the ground to the glass.
http://shop.stolpmanvineyards.com/res-374422/Educational-Vineyard-Hike-424.html



LarnerFete
Last year Larner Vineyard had a winemaker BBQ called LarnerFete. 7 wineries who purchase fruit from the vineyard were there: Jaffurs, Kaena, Larner (obv.), Tercero, McPrice Meyers, Central Coast Group Project & Casa Dumetz. Check with Larry Shaffer from Tercero and see if they are doing one again. Doing the hike, then the BBQ would be wonderful, efficient, relaxing and honestly all that outdoor fresh air and walking is a great way to detox from a lot of Friday and Saturday eating and drinking… while continuing to do more eating and drinking. lol.


NOTES:

1. Really Handy Tasting Room Maps
   http://www.sbcountywines.com/wine-tasting-routes.html#losolivos

2. I would not do winery tasting rooms in Santa Barbara itself because I prefer going out to the vineyards. For that reason we also skip Lompoc’s wine ghetto. That said, if you find yourself in Santa Barbara here is what we have liked in town:
   SB Tasting Rooms: Grassini, Riverbench, Jaffurs (this more a production facility than a tasting room, btw)
   SB Restaurants: Stonehouse at San Ysidro, or The Lark (next to Les Marchands and the somm sometimes raids their cellar for special wines)

3. Brewer-Clifton, which does more balanced pinots instead of fruit pie pinots, does do barrel tasting and/or vineyard visits by appointment. Inquire here if that’s of interest:
   Visit | By Greg Brewer

4. Cambria tasting room is 30-40 mins up from Santa Ynez at 5475 Chardonnay Lane, Santa Maria, CA 93454. Paul Lato is also up there at 2705 Aviation Blvd Suite 100, Santa Maria CA

5. There is a nice Olive Oil tasting place our there in Santa Ynez too:
   Greek Olive Oil Lady 2450 Alamo Pintado Road
   Here are her instructions if you go: “Please make sure you insert “Road” as GPS will, unfortunately,
   default to Alamo Pintado Avenue which is about one mile from us!
   You will also need to input “Solvang” (even though we’re technically in
   Los Olivos—someone please tell GOOGLE!) Our cross streets are
   Santa Barbara Avenue & Grand Avenue. Call us if you get lost, 800.307.0447”

6. JONATA in Buellton is available weekdays only by appointment

7. If you are a beer person (I no longer am), the Firestone Barrelworks facility is there and supposedly amazing.

8. Also, I am not sure, but Uber may have its Wine service where you get a driver for the day. It can be cheaper and more flexible than paying for other services, or requiring party members to not drink. YOu’ll know when you get into the area and check the Uber app. If it’s available it’ll show up. They have it in San Luis Obispo. Not 100% sure about Santa Ynez.
   
   
   Some Accommodations Stuff:

Santa Ynez Inn - approx $600/nt

• This is an upscale bed and breakfast vibe hotel/inn
• If you want more the ‘countryside’ getaway vibe

Ballard Inn - A bit less expensive, less modern/luxe than Santa Ynez Inn but very cozy
about $285/nt

• Bed and breakfast

Mirabelle Inn - Solvang - Kinda cute but kinda touristy Danish style town
http://mirabelleinn.com - Very cute B&B with upscale touches - amazing Weekday special $149/nt


Good Coffee/Cappuccino

Downtown Santa Barbara: HandleBar Coffee (Good)

Santa Ynez: Corner House Coffee (Decent)

Just know that WHATEVER you do you will miss out on something else because there is so much to do.

And know that no matter what you choose to do you will have an amazing time.

Have fun!

Barry

If you are interested in beer, also try Figueroa Mtn. on Industrial Way in Buellton. It is down the street from Industrial Eats. We are by appointment only. You can call or schedule an appointment on our website. www.clospepe.com . We just bottled our 2016 EVOO. If you want to try our estate olive oil, please let Andrew know when you make a reservation. Besides Pinot and Chard, we pour Grenache Blanc and our GSM Rhone blend and bubbles.

Thanks everyone!

Let us know what you end up doing!

I am going up there at the end of May, so I’m curious to hear what you like and what you don’t.

really liked Les Marchands on a recent visit, however it seems like it’s going through a lot of changes? The somm in the wine shop part of Les Marchands was new, and the menu seems like it varies a lot (which can be a good/bad thing). They had an interesting selection of wines both for sale as bottles in the shop and in the restaurant by the glass/bottle, some nice aged selections as well.

Really agree with visiting Tercero in Los Olivos – great wines, great experience. Also liked Stolpman out of the limited tasting rooms that I was able to try in Los Olivos.

Visiting Arcadian in the Lompoc wine ghetto was perhaps the most surprising; I hadn’t heard of the Bratcher wines that they were pouring, but they were surprisingly our favorites of the ones we tasted there, and we picked up a Bratcher pinot/chard.

You’ve definitely done your homework! Great itinerary.

The special at Industrial Eats on Sunday is their burger. This is not your daddy’s ground beef, it’s a composite of cuts including prime rib as I recall and is epiphany inducing food. I’m not really much of a burger guy, but this thing is frick’n amazing.

The next stall over to Industrial Eats is Alma Rosa’s tasting room. An easy stop with your burger.

As others suggested, a stop into Downtown SB is worthwhile. El Paseo has Au Bon Climat with Margerum, Grassini and Happy Canyon (Margerum was/is? winemaker). El Paseo is also host to the Wine Cask restaurant and its Intermezzo cafe (some interesting BTG). Sanford has a tasting room a short walk up State too and Jaffurs is off Milpas and could be a good stop on the way into town if you’re coming from Socal on the way to El Paseo.

I know we have a fellow berserker who works at Zaca Mesa. If you happen to do the foxen trail and get up that far, you should see if he’s going to be around. ZM is a great property with so much history and a nice hike trailhead from the tasting room if you’re able.

Industrial Eats is serving Arcadian Clos Pepe Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from kegs at $9/glass. Sweet deal. We stopped in for dinner last night and had the Sunday Burger. it is great.