Santa Barbara Wine Tours
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Tour the Santa Barbara Wine Country
Welcome to Santa Barbara Wine Tours
Santa Barbara is the perfect place for a wine tasting tour. As you can see from the picture at the left, it has verdant hills with picturesque vineyards, and beautiful weather. Santa Barbara City boasts over 300 sunny days a year, and the wine country, located in the Santa Ynez Mountains behind Santa Barbara City, is just as sunny and has comfortable temperatures through most of the year.
The mist you can see hovering above the vineyard is a characteristic of many of the best vineyards in the area, which tend to be located near enough to the sea to benefit from the cooling effects of a morning maritime fog which blows in from the Pacific on most mornings, and burns off by noon. This cooling fog is one reason so many of the area's wineries have had such great success with the two famous Burgundian varietals, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
In recent years, Santa Barbara has emerged as great Chardonnay producing region. According to an article, Tasting Santa Barbara County Chardonnay, written by wine critic Steve Heimoff, "Santa Barbara County is one of California's great Chardonnay areas and a case can be made that it is the greatest."
Many of the area's wineries have been winning accolades for their success with this, as well as many other varietals. Here is a short list of wineries that make great, and usually not particulalrly pricey Chardonnay with grapes sourced from vineyards in either the Sta. Rita or Santa Maria AVAs: Au Bon Climat Winery, Qupe Winery, Gainey Vineyard, Lafond Winery and Vineyard, Alta Maria Vineyards, Byron Winery and Alma Rosa Winery, to name a few.
All of the wineries I've cited also make excellent Pinot Noir, and most of them are not too shabby when it comes to Syrah (another varietal that Santa Barbara County wineries have done great things with) either. Speaking of Syrah, there are wineries in the Santa Barbara Wine Country that are producing Syrahs which rank very highly, not just in California but in the world.The following wineries would certainly be included among them: Jaffurs WineCellars, Zaca Mesa Winery and Vineyards, Tensley Wines and Fess Parker Winery and Vineyards.
In other words, Santa Barbara county wineries produce not only great Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, the two varietals that have made Burgundy world famous, but also great Syrahs - as well as other Rhone varietals, both reds and whites. There are also wineries like Blackjack Ranch Vineyards and Winery that make a mean Bordeaux blend, and ones like Tre Anelli that make some very tasty Italian and Spanish varietals.
So what is really characteristic of the Santa Barbara Wine Country is variety. The regions is blessed with many micro-climates and a variety of soils, so they are able to produce a wide variety of wines in terms of both the grapes they use and the styles the wines are made in.
Bien Nacido Vineyards
2007 Collectors Case
Santa Barbara Wine Tasting Tour
Recommendations from a Local Wine Lover
As mentioned above, Santa Barbara is a wine taster's paradise. Located just 90 miles north of Los Angeles, it is easy to get to by either train, plane or automobile, and it's also one of the most attractive cities in California. As for wine tours, you are pretty much spoiled for choice. There are over 200 wineries, vineyards and tasting rooms in the City of Santa Barbara and the four AVAs (American Viticultural Areas) situated in the Santa Ynez and Santa Maria Valleys.
The four appellations in the Santa Barbara Wine Country are, Santa Ynez Valley, Sta. Rita Hills, Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara, and Santa Maria Valley. But the very fact of there being a such great number and variety of wineries and tasting rooms poses a tough question for anyone planning a Santa Barbara wine tour: With so many wineries to chose from, which ones should I visit?
To narrow things down a bit, Santa Ynez Valley is the best of the four appellations for a wine tasting tour because it has the highest concentration of wineries and is located the nearest to the city of Santa Barbara.
That still leaves a lot of wineries to choose from though. So, if you really want to know which are the best stops on a Santa Barbara wine tour, who should you turn to for advice? The best informant, undoubtedly, would be a native of the region who is well-versed in the wines and wineries of the Santa Barbara Wine Country. Fortunately for the reader , I happen to be on excellent terms with exactly such an individual. It just so happens that my father has been visiting the region's wineries to imbibe their offerings for the past 45 years, during which time the Santa Barbara wine industry grew from practically nonexistent to being the major producer it is today. The following are his suggestions :
"The very best winery in Santa Barbara city is Jaffurs Wine Cellars, on Montecito Street near Milpas. It is kind of funky, but they make truly outstanding Syrah and you will often be able to talk to the winemakers. The rest are over in Santa Ynez Valley, and for ambiance and good wine I would recommend Gainey Vineyards (both reds and whites), Sunstone Vineyards and Winery (reds), Blackjack Ranch Vineyards and Winery (reds), and Rideau Vineyard (reds and whites). These wineries are all situated not too far from each other. The best places for wine and a picnic are Beckman Vineyards (reds) and Rideau. I would recommend Kalyra (reds and whites) in the valley (it's near Sunstone) to the younger set because it's fun, but a bit noisy. For somebody who wants to drive farther out, I would recommend Brander Vineyard (whites), Curtis Winery (whites), Fess Parker Winery (reds and whites), and Zaca Mesa Winery and Vineyards (reds)."
Where to Go Wine Tasting
Santa Barbara County Wineries
Santa Barbara Wine Tours Links
- A and J Limousine Wine Tours
- A and J Limousine is the best service for guided wine tours in the Santa Barbara Wine Country. Listen to this review:
A and J Limousine service was fantastic!
We were 13 girls from Newport Beach. Due to our size, I requested quotes from the following: A&J Limousine, Spencer's limo Services, Go Exec Limo, Zeus Limo, California Star Limo, SB Chauffeuring, Gold Coast limos, SB Wine Tours, A Good Service and SB Limos. A&J gave me the best price with their first quote.
A couple of the others tried to bring their prices down when I told them they had not been accepted, but only one was willing to bring their prices as low and A&J and that was as long as I could provide proof I was getting such a great price. No thank you. Some even gave me scary stories that I was probably not getting a reputable service and no one would show on our day.
Well A and J showed up on time and Jesus was professional and courteous the entire day. 13 girls can be a handful with wine in them and he never stopped being professional, patient and courteous.
We had the 14 passenger extended van that was in great condition and comfortable. All black with tinted windows.
At the end of the day there were no hidden fees and Jesus stuck to our schedule.
All in all we were all very pleased and would use them again and highly suggest them."
Natascha from Newport Beach, CA - Santa Barbara Wine Tours
- Everything you need to know about wine tours in the Santa Barbara wine country.
- Santa Barbara Wine Tasting
- Everything you need to know about wine tasting in the Santa Barbara.
Santa Barbara County Wine Tasting
Wine Tasting in Los Olivos
There are a total of twelve tasting rooms located within just two blocks in the center of Los Olivos. So book yourself a hotel room and enjoy strolling from tasting room to tasting room under the same California sunshine that ripens the grapes from which the wonderful wines of Santa Ynez are made. You can drink your fill, safe in the knowledge that at the end of the day, rather than risking climbing into your car, you can collapse onto a comfortable hotel bed.
Santa Barbara City Tasting Rooms
Wine Tasting in Santa Barbara City
The Top 5 Wine Tasting Rooms within the Santa Barbara City Limits
Like I said, that's a great thing to do, for a number of reasons: the scenery in the Santa Ynez Mountains, which is at once bucolic, rustic and beautiful; a large number of wineries in a relatively small area; a surprising variety of wines to sample; a variety of styles and atmospheres at the wineries themselves, varying from laid back to stately; the lovely city of Los Olivos with its many tasting rooms; plenty of good spots for a picnic lunch.
The only drawback to heading out on a wine tasting excursion in the Santa Ynez Mountains is that you must have some type of four-wheeled transportation to do so (cycling excursions are also an option, but maybe not for everybody), which means you either need to have a designated driver with you, rent a limo, or go on an organized tour. Fortunately though, there's an a simple alternative for the wine enthusiast who is either vehicleless or would rather do their wine tasting on the cheap, and that is to take advantage of the wine tasting rooms in the city of Santa Barbara itself--which are more or less within strolling distance of each another . I recommend the following five tasting rooms, listed in order of my personal preference:
- Carr Vineyards and Winery
- Jaffurs Wine Cellars
- Kalyra By The Sea
- Whitcraft Winery
- Santa Barbara Winery
Carr Vineyards and Winery: Of all the tasting rooms in the city of Santa Barbara, Carr Vineyards and Winery is my favorite because I enjoy the combination of its casual ambiance and great wines. The place itself is unprepossessing. It's located in an industrial section of downtown, and housed in a 1940s vintage quonset hut, which looks for all the world like an old airplane hangar. When you go inside, it still looks like an airplane hangar from an bygone era, except for the wine casks you can make out in the corners. The first thing you notice when you walk in is the cozy and inviting wine tasting counter. Carr's wines are great. They make an unusual assortment of varietals that includes Pinot Noir, Syrah, Grenache, Cabernet Franc and Pinot Gris. The owner, Ryan Carr, takes a hands on approach to his winemaking. He says that "I love the vineyards. 90% of wine making is done in the vineyards. Wine makers, people, will tell you differently, which way or another, but the fact of the matter is the grapes don't get any better than the day they are picked."
Wine tastings at Carr Vineyards and Winery, located at 414 N. Salsipuedes St., are $10.00 per person. They are open for tasting every day, from 11 am to 5 pm, and Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 11 am to 8 pm.
Jaffurs Wine Cellars: If you'd like to taste world-renowned wines produced in Santa Barbara City, get yourself over to Jaffurs' tasting room. They are famous for their Rhone varietals, especially their Syrahs, that receive consistently high marks from established wine critics. Robert Parker praised Jaffurs' owner back in 2008, saying that, "Over the last few vintages, Greg Jaffurs has emerged as one of Santa Barbara's finest, most consistent winemakers, and his wines continue to go from strength to strength." Naturally, when he uses the name "Santa Barbara" he is talking about the entire Santa Barbara County winemaking region, not just Santa Barbara City.
Jaffurs Wine Cellars, located at 819 E. Montecito Street, is open for tasting Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday from 11 am to 5 pm. Through the summer time, they are open every day from 11 am to 5 pm. They charge $10.00 per person.
Kalyra by the Sea: This lively and fun place is situated at 212 State St., which is Lower State, not too far from the beach. It's the city tasting room of Kalyra Winery, which is located in the Santa Ynez Valley. The founder, Mike Brown, is an Australian winemaker's son. He has years of experience as a winemaker in both Australia and Santa Barbara County, and is a typical Australian in his lack of pretentiousness and fun loving nature. Kalyra produces a broad array of wines using grapes from a variety of sources, including Australia. Their unusual sobriquet is an Aborigine term that means "a wild and pleasant place." Which is a great description of Kalyra by the Sea, with its youthful crowd and striking decor--an uncommon mix of Aborigine and surfer motifs.
Kalyra by the Sea is open for tasting Monday to Thursday, from 12 pm to 7 pm and on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, from 12 pm to 8 pm, at $10.00 a head .
Whitcraft Winery: Just like Carr Vineyards and Winery, Whitcraft is located in the industrial district (Actually, it's 5 1/2 blocks down from Carr, on the same street but, oddly, the road changes names two times inside of that brief space. Until the block that Carr is on, it's called N. Salsipuedes Street, after that it abruptly turns into N. Calle Cesar Chavez, and once you pass underneath the freeway, the name changes to S. Calle Cesar Chavez.) in downtown Santa Barbara. It's only two blocks up from the beach and situated quite near by Fess Parkers Double Tree Resort, but it's exceedingly inconspicuous. It occupies the sort of building usually found in an industrial park, and has no distinguishing marks to establish it as either a winery or a tasting room. It's really worth taking the trouble to find though. Whitcraft Winery is known for it's Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays produced in the classic Burgundian style. They produce, at most, 2000 cases of hand (and foot) made wine per year ; even the labels are pasted by hand and in the traditional Burgundian style. It is currently managed by the founder's son , Drake Whitcraft, who still follows his dad's philosophy that, "great wine is nothing more than Mother Nature at her best, with the grape shepherded by a vintner with no ego to impart upon its natural qualities."
Whitcraft Winery is located at 36 A S. Calle Cesar Chavez, and open for tasting Friday to Sunday, from 12 pm to 4 pm.
Santa Barbara Winery: Established in 1962, it's S.B.'s oldest winery, not counting a few early ones that were put out of business by Prohibition. When they first opened up for business, there were no vineyards in Santa Barbara County so they had grapes shipped down from Northern California. Their first wines did not really take the world by storm, but as Santa Barbara has become more and more of a big namd in the world of wine, so has Santa Barbara Winery grown up. They now have many high quality grapes available to them in Santa Barbara County (which includes those from their own vineyards, some of the oldest in the region), and make a wide range of wines, with an emphasis on food-friendly varietals. They also produce a special blend named ZCS for the 3 varietals used to make it: Zinfandel, Carignane and Sangiovese.
Santa Barbara Winery's spacious tasting room, located at 202 Anacapa Street (two blocks over from State Street, and two blocks up from the East Beach) is Open to the public daily from 10 am to 5 pm.
Wine Country Books and a DVD
Santa Barbara Wine Tours on the Web
- The Santa Barbara Downtown Organization Shines
- By Editor on May 25, 2012 in Food & Wine, News The 2012 Downtown Art & Wine Tour was a huge success Thursday night. A capacity and joyous crowd toured some of Santa Barbara's great art venues, sipping on local wines (Oreana, Kalyra, Bridlewood, ...
- Pinot Lovers Tour in Santa Barbara
- Meet the pioneers, taste their wine and go home in Pinot-Bliss. When John and Kim Kelliher, owners of The Grapeline Wine Country Shuttle, expanded their successful wine tour business to include the beautiful wineries in the Santa Barbara and Central ...
- Goleta Tour Uncovers Hidden Gems
- After a quick lunch at Rancho la Patera Stow House, my 40 or so fellow tour comrades and I boarded the Santa Barbara Airbus (the tour's sponsor) and headed over to San Marcos Growers to catch a glimpse of horticulturalist Randy Baldwin's private ...
- Business leaders say Santa Barbara tourism is on the rise
- ... elected officials, and other business leaders got a rundown of some of Santa Barbara's tourist attractions such as wine tours, the Zoo(complete with a giraffe costume), and Solstice(with appearances from the Mad Hatter and the Red Queen).
Today's Weather in Los Olivos
Current weather conditions in Los Olivos, CA (93441)
Local Pollen Reports
46°F (Feels like 46°F)
Last update: 5/27/12 10:55 PM PDT
Humidity: 87%Visibility: 10.0 mi
Dew Point: 43°F
UV Index: 0 (Lawn and Garden Weather)
Barometer: 30.02in steady
Moon: Rush Hour Traffic
Wind: calm From: Airport Conditions
Tonight
Low
Low: 45°F
Sunrise: 5:50 AM
Sunset: 8:05 PM
Monday
May 28
N/A
High: 79°F
Low: 46°F
Sunrise: 5:50 AM
Sunset: 8:06 PM
Tuesday
May 29
Sunny
High: 74°F
Low: 47°F
Sunrise: 5:50 AM
Sunset: 8:07 PM
Wednesday
May 30
Sunny
High: 83°F
Low: 49°F
Sunrise: 5:49 AM
Sunset: 8:07 PM
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Amazon Price: $69.99 (as of 05/27/2012)
Customer Review by Professor Donald Mitchell:
When many people visit California to tour wineries, they head for Napa Valley on the weekend and sit in traffic jams for hours on route 29. Realizing that everyone in the slowly moving train may not be totally sober, the visitors think about how much they would like to be someplace else. A little known fact is that there are back roads into virtually every wine region in California that offer stunning vistas, gorgeous greenery and constantly changing scenes around every curve.
Backroads of the California Wine Country is a great resource for those inexperienced visitors. Otherwise, these well-meaning travelers will miss the best of what the wine country has to offer: Scintillating scenery!
Santa Barbara Wine Tasting
