We planned a weekend getaway to the Santa Ynez Valley Wine Country which is nestled in the heart of Santa Barbara County's legendary vineyards. Only a 45 minute flight from Long Beach to the quiet Santa Ynez airport in Joe's trusty Bonanza. We visited several wineries in the area including Roblar, Buttonwood, Blackjack, Gainy and Qupe. We explored the charming town of Los Olivos and the quaint Danish Village of Solvang where we had an outstanding dinner at Root 246 and stayed the night at the Hadsten House.
It's breathtaking places like this that remind me of why I live in California despite the high taxes, smog and congestion. Can't wait to go back again.
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| Joe enjoying one of the MANY tastings |
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| Me doing the same as Joe |
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| We were surrounded by gorgeous vineyards |
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| Enjoyed the outdoor setting at Buttonwood and want to come back this summer for homemade peach pie and peach ice cream. |
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| The ever popular Blackjack Winery put itself on the map after Sideways was filmed there. We bought a case of a delicious 2006 Syrah called Double Down. |
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| Wine, wine, wine and more wine. |
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| Lunch at the Los Olivos Cafe of a delicious thin crust pizza and caesar salad and of course more wine. |
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| Small world...got to talking to this guy (Mark Huggs and son Finn) next to me and found out that he lives in Santa Barbara but is the owner of 24th St. Cafe in Bakersfield which Joe frequents. No wonder they thought each other looked familiar. |
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| Mother's Day at Roblar Winery. Not crowded yet since it just opened. |
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| Back in Long Beach and unloading the wine. |
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| Wine to car and then home. What's better than a weekend of wine tasting!!? |
This looked like a wonderful experience. The food looks delicious. And touring in Spain just sounds heavenly. We love wine tastings and one of our favorite tours are always with the smaller wineries. Like Santa barbara Wine Tours.
ReplyDeleteHi Sheibe, I love going wine tasting; it's one of my favorite things to do. Thanks for your comments.
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