Do you remember the movie Sideways? The 2004 Oscar winning movie featured two middle-aged men living LA and traveling to the Santa Barbara wine country for a weekend of fun which turned into discovery and adventure.
Our experiences in the Santa Ynez Valley were far less dramatic to be sure - there were no car crashes, affairs, fights, no drinking of buckets of spat out wine from tasting rooms. Instead we had gorgeous weather, great food, wonderful wine, and lots of laughter.
Yesterday started cool but ended up just over 70 degrees - a perfect day for winery visits.
We went to a local favourite restaurant for breakfast - Ellen's Danish Pancake house. What a difference from breakfast on Friday where we were surrounded by socialites who clearly had been nip and tucked. The crowd at Ellen's was decidedly more real and rustic.
I think this describes the entire valley - particularly when one compares it to other wine regions.
The first winery was at 11AM so we had some time to explore Buellton. We managed to find Ostrich Land where the Sideways characters came face-to-face with an angry bird in a hilarious scene.
Our encounter didn't involve angry ostriches. :-)
Foxen was the first winery - a smaller group met up here for a tasting of 3 whites and two reds. There are two tasting rooms here - the famous 'shack' that appeared in the movie and a more recent addition that was recently opened to accommodate the increased crowds coming to the area. Apparently a number of local wineries are in the process of opening 'showcase' tasting rooms a sign the the wine tourists have found the area. I guess this was what Napa and Sonoma were like in the 60s and 70s respectively.
I really liked the rustic countryside that we drove through - stopping as often as safety would allow to take pictures on the narrow and winding road through Foxen Canyon.
The entire group showed up at the next winery - Zaca Mesa. We tasted eight wines in their large outdoor garden and courtyard. We also enjoyed a wonderful alfresco lunch supplied by Sharon and June. It was a perfect spot to hang out in the sun . . .nibbling on delicious food . . . tasting interesting wines . . . and chatting with great people!
I climbed a huge hill that overlooked the winery to take a group shot. Sadly my telephoto lens was sitting in the car - had it not been for the fact that I almost had a heart attack getting up in the first place I would have gone back down and gotten it!
The last winery of the day was located close to Santa Maria. Cambria is a huge producer 0 famous for their Chardonay and Pinot Noir. There we sat on the patio and enjoyed the wine, the company, and the warm 'Californian' sun.
Leaving Cambria, we reversed our route, heading back to the hotel in Buellton for a rest before the pizza party.
When we arrived at the Skyview the guys from Full of Life Flatbread had their oven set up and were getting it up to 650 degrees so they could make dinner.
This being California, the portable oven was decorated with beautiful ceramic tiles designed by the local school children . . .
and a fascinating collection of bumper stickers!
Everything was fresh, local, and amazingly delicious! The guys served up salad, cauliflower gratin, and three types of flatbread pizzas.
Of course, a visit to wine country wouldn't be complete without WINE!
. . . or delicious dessert. Shannon had arranged for a company from Santa Barbara to travel north with some of their gelato. Bob and Ellie from 'Here's the Scoop' like to give back to their community, and besides the various events put on for the youngsters of Santa Barbara in their store, they also buy much of the produce for their gelato and sorbet from local farmers. Everything is fresh, local, and, you guessed it, delicious!
I had a scoop of pina colada and a scoop of lemon lavendar.
For a brief moment it was like being transported back to Italy. Sigh
I think I want to have a traveling pizza oven when I grow up!
Or better yet... maybe I should talk the Chef into that traveling pizza oven. I'll be incharge of the wine.
Posted by: sandi @the whistlestop cafe | February 05, 2012 at 09:35 PM
Very cool! And lemon lavender gelato sounds so delicious....
Posted by: sandrac | February 12, 2012 at 09:07 AM
I'd be happy with just a pizza oven Sandi! LOL
It was great Sandra - not typical in flavour but amazing nonetheless. Are you still enjoying a gelato a day? :-)
Posted by: JDeQ | February 20, 2012 at 08:32 AM