It’s no exaggeration to say that the Santa Barbara wine country is a paradise for wine tourists, and the perfect place to go on a wine tasting tour. It has over 100 wineries, vineyards and tasting rooms nestled in the Santa Maria and Santa Ynez Valleys of the Santa Ynez Mountains.   Not only are [...]

Los Olivos Winery: California’s Central Coast is known for its great Rhone-style wines, and Curtis Winery was one of the first wineries in the region dedicated exclusively to Rhone-style wines. Nothing has changed on that front at this Los Olivos winery. Curtis winery maintains to this day its original mantra: “We Live for Rhones.” Under the direction [...]

Residents of the Santa Barbara wine country and our visitors know that there is more to this area that is intoxicating than our wines; our environment itself is just as exhilarating and just as delicious. Artist Nancy R. Wise and her husband, Randy, have a real appreciation, not only for the wines of California and [...]

Solvang Tasting Rooms: If you’re looking for Solvang tasting rooms, two good bets are the Lucas & Lewellen Tasting Room and its sister tasting room, Toccata. Both Solvang tasting rooms are operated by Lucas & Lewellen Vineyards, a small premium estate winery in Santa Barbara County named for its two owners, Louis Lucas and Royce [...]

So, what are the advantages of renting a Santa Barbara wine tours limo when going on a wine tasting tour in SB’s beautiful Wine Country? Well, please allow me to start off my answer with an anecdote. A couple of years ago, three generations of Hilton men: my father, son and I (no relation to [...]

Oz and James in the California Wine Country This video series, where two Brits tour the California Wine Country, is both amusing and instructive because, while Oz Clarke is a famous wine expert, his sidekick, James May, is not. He’s worn many hats (he’s best known for being co-presenter of a British motoring show), but [...]

Oz and James Meet Jim Clendenen This is the second installment of Oz Clarke and James May’s Santa Barbara wine tours. In part two, Oz explains to James the importance of the Pacific Ocean’s cooling influence on the Santa Barbara wine country, and the two of them give surfing a go, with predictable results. Then [...]

Oz and James Santa Barbara Wine Tasting Tour Famous wine writer Oz Clarke and his pal James May continue on their Santa Barbara wine tasting tour. In this episode, they explore the Santa Ynez Valley, a very popular area for a Santa Barbara wine tasting tour, and visit two Sideways hot spots: Fess Parker Winery [...]

May is the best month for a Santa Barbara wine tour. The Santa Ynez Mountains are still a verdant green, the weather is nice and there are lots of special events happening. There is an interesting event happening in town on Thursday May 26: the annual Downtown Art & Wine Tour, hosted by Santa Barbara [...]

Santa Ynez is a Great Place to Take a Break Santa Ynez is a sleepy little town of four and half thousand souls in the eponymous Santa Ynez Valley, the heart of the Santa Barbara Wine Country. You can of course taste some great wines at the many nice restaurants in Santa Ynez, but there [...]

  Here’s a new twist on Santa Barbara County Wine Tours: The “Wine Line” is a new shuttle service that will run from Los Olivos and travel along Foxen Canyon Road, along which many great wineries are located. Wine tourists can get off at any of over thirty top-notch wineries along the way, and when [...]

Solvang Wine Tasting The following press release describes a Solvang wine tasting tour package that provides the opportunity for going on Santa Barbara wine tours while spending two nights at a boutique hotel in the center of picturesque Danish village, located in the Santa Ynez Valley, the heart of the Santa Barbara wine country:   [...]

A three-day wine tasting tour in the Santa Barbara Wine Country (from Friday, June 3 to Sunday, June 5, 2011) is being organized by the nonprofit organization CureSearch for Children’s Cancer. 25 Santa Barbara wineries are taking part in the event. There is a limit of 5 wine tastings per day, but you can choose [...]

Wine is one of the most popular, and most enjoyably consumed, drinks in the world. It has stayed with us through the years as a symbolic element of religious and social activities. This is why so many people choose to use wine as their wedding theme to add a touch of elegance and sophistication to [...]

If like me you really enjoy a glass of wine, or if your looking for an enjoyable hobby, the next step in the appreciation of fine wine might be to produce your own wine at home. While you might imagine the process to be a complicated one, wine can in fact be made rather easily [...]

Wine and Food Pairing Tips Wine and food pairing is rarely a simple task, particularly with the varied diets that most folks partake of today, both in terms of ingredients and cooking styles. What kind of wine, for instance, is best to pour with tom yam kung or a spicy curry ? Following, are some [...]