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Paso Robles Area Trip - Page 4

post #46 of 54
2/23/10 at 10:29pm
Agreed, definite no to Downtown Brew.
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post #47 of 54
2/23/10 at 10:48pm
i've stayed at sycamore springs and it's unusual but i'd do it again. also, if you are interested in heading down santa maria way for winery visits (there are some nice ones), check out the hitching post in casmalia and jockos in nipomo. great places for a steak. i like the casmalia hp much more than the "sideways" one in buellton, though the wine list isn't as good.
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post #48 of 54
2/24/10 at 2:47pm
Late to the party, and not much to add: I'm pretty sure an old character actor form the 60's (Fess Parker - I think he played Daniel Boone) has a winery near Santa Barbara that's decent (the wine)
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post #49 of 54
2/24/10 at 2:54pm
it's decent but not much more than. if you want to visit the Santa Ynez area, be sure to check out Babcock. they make really good wine and they know the area really well. i also like the wines from Melville and they have a nice tasting set-up. The problem with so much of that area (Sta. Rita Hills in particular) is that the wineries are not much more than garagistes and so the tasting facilities are pretty much absent. it's always seemed like a natural place to put in an enoteca, but i'm not aware that anyone has done that yet. There is a good wine store in Los Olivos that often has interesting things to pour.
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post #50 of 54
2/24/10 at 2:56pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for all the feeback guys. I have made note of it all. We've decided to pass on this trip. For some reason, it still didn't seem to come together like the Healdsburg trip, and since we'll just be getting back from over two weeks in flyover country, are going to chill at home. If we don't do Hawaii in the fall, might pick back up on this.
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post #51 of 54
2/24/10 at 11:19pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by foodguy View Post
The problem with so much of that area (Sta. Rita Hills in particular) is that the wineries are not much more than garagistes and so the tasting facilities are pretty much absent.

For me, the charm of the two-guys-in-a-garage setup is being able to talk to the winemakers themselves. Some of the bigger operations can seem pretty slick, and that works well for lots of people. Other big places not to miss are Sunstone, Firestone, Qupe, Au Bon Climat (next door to Qupe), and Cambria, which is a bit further north nearer Santa Maria. There are lots of smaller places, and it's fun to kind of just wander into some place.

--Andre
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post #52 of 54
2/25/10 at 12:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Piobaire View Post
Thanks for all the feeback guys. I have made note of it all. We've decided to pass on this trip. For some reason, it still didn't seem to come together like the Healdsburg trip, and since we'll just be getting back from over two weeks in flyover country, are going to chill at home. If we don't do Hawaii in the fall, might pick back up on this.

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post #53 of 54
2/25/10 at 1:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by A Y View Post
For me, the charm of the two-guys-in-a-garage setup is being able to talk to the winemakers themselves. Some of the bigger operations can seem pretty slick, and that works well for lots of people. Other big places not to miss are Sunstone, Firestone, Qupe, Au Bon Climat (next door to Qupe), and Cambria, which is a bit further north nearer Santa Maria. There are lots of smaller places, and it's fun to kind of just wander into some place.

--Andre

i certainly agree about the charm, but as i noted in my original reply, many of them don't have tasting rooms ... if you want to drive by an industrial park and hope to catch somebody in, you may get lucky, but most probably not. and there is no way i'd consider firestone, qupe, abc et all small wineries. i'm thinking about places like brewer clifton, longoria, palmina, etc.
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post #54 of 54
2/25/10 at 3:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by foodguy View Post
i certainly agree about the charm, but as i noted in my original reply, many of them don't have tasting rooms ... if you want to drive by an industrial park and hope to catch somebody in, you may get lucky, but most probably not. and there is no way i'd consider firestone, qupe, abc et all small wineries. i'm thinking about places like brewer clifton, longoria, palmina, etc.

Yup, understood. I was thinking of the time a bunch of us wandered into Zaca Mesa, and it was quite literally two guys in a garage before they did their big renovation. I don't think I've visited the industrial park people, though.

Also, I should say (and thereby contradict myself) that meeting the winemaker can sometimes be a bit overrated, as many places use travelling or consultant winemakers to make their wine. They're almost like vanity wineries for investors who have too much money.

--Andre
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