North of Santa Barbara is the Santa Ynez Valley. This is a popular and well-established region with excellent wines and many, varied tasting options. The Santa Rita Hills, west of Buellton, is a premiere Pino Noir region with several excellent wineries. Solvang, well known for its Danish shops, bakeries, and restaurants, is home to many tasting rooms for local wineries. Los Olivos, a small town to the north, seems to have a tasting room every few feet in a few block area. Park once, taste many. The rest of the valley contains many tasting rooms tucked in among hills and vines. With rolling hills, cattle, horses, and vines, this is a nice place to spend a day.
All winery descriptions are from our post pandemic explorations.
The tiniest tasting room in Los Olivos opens onto a pleasant outdoor area next to a good sandwich shop. Geology themed labels and decor. Reds and whites.
Nice tasting room with deck outside. Good range of wines.
Large western themed tasting room and a large outdoor area. Reds and whites.
Small tasting room with a very nice large garden patio. Reds and whites
Beautiful grounds next to an orchard with widely separated seating areas. Peaceful
Pleasant tasting room wiht a large outside deck overlooking vines and the valley. Good range of whites and reds.
Pleasant tasting room with shopping. Large outdoor area with tables, and a large grass field. Surrounded by vines. Has cats. Good selection of whites and reds. Several Pinot Noir options. Peaceful, wide open.
Tucked back in the hills, it has a very nice tasting room and a great patio. Peaceful with comfortable outdoor shaded seating. Whites and reds.
An eclectic tasting room with lots of shopping and interesting decor. Some may get distracted by the shopping and forget the wine. Large outdoor courtyard with tables and a pool table. Interesting variety of whites and reds.