Santa Barbara for Harvest!

In Fall we'll head to one of the most scenic places to drink the best Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Chardonnays being produced in the USA and some would say the world! Not only will the weather be perfect, but we will arrive just near the end of harvest. Meaning the option to be involved with picking grapes, working in the cellar or foot stomping grapes has never been more real. We'll have personalized service with the region’s best winemakers, owners and chefs. The real story will be the intimate group in a laid back, high end travel experience like no other.

The agenda includes.......

Cheese and wine tasting with Dick and Jenny Dore, owners of Foxen Winery.

Tastings from barrels and current vintages with Brian Talley, owner of Talley Vineyards.

Tasting and vineyard visit with Matt McKinney one of the top new kids making stellar wines in the area.

Grape picking and grape stomping with Chad Melville of Melville Winery followed by lunch on the crushpad.

Picking and crushing grapes for Heathen Wine, "Cuvee Cremisi" blend 2022. (Free Labor)

A hands on wine blending session with Andrew Murray of Andrew Murray Vineyards.

Tasting and homemade pizza at the home of Jeff Nelson, owner of Liquid Farms.

And a Grande Finale "La Paulee" dinner and cooking class with our very own Chef Shalisa!!!!!

Many other surprises, wines and experiences to come.....

Each morning you'll have the option of wandering the quaint village of Solvang for your morning coffee, Danish pastries, traditional breakfast or perhaps a walk or jog around town. There's also a pool for those who want to take a dip and plenty of local history and architecture to explore. We'll load our private bus and driver around 10am to head for our first experience of the day. Most days we'll start with a visit to a local winery where we'll be received by the winemaker/owners and staff. These private "behind the scenes" tours, tastings, vineyard and cellar visits will be for our group only, and we'll have access to all the information and fun you've ever wanted to experience in life. After our tours, we'll have extensive tastings of private and released wines with the winemaker and many times taste the new vintages from barrels.

With a belly of wine of course, we'll want to try the local cuisine since this is the "garden or salad bowl of the USA". Local chefs and our very own Chef Shalisa will prepare fresh local ingredients from nearby farms for our meals in the vineyards and wineries. After our lunch most days we'll head for a little coffee and free time followed by an afternoon visit to a second winery for more adventures with the best winemakers in California. Since we'll be there in time for harvest don't be surprised if the winemakers ask your assistance with picking, stomping or tasting the fresh juice since it is "go time". I mean after all, we do need to earn our keep!

Evenings will be a mix of free time or planned wine dinners in both local restaurants and on your own. On our final evening we'll even be lucky enough to learn from Chef Shalisa with a private hands on cooking school where we'll pair our favorite wines from the week with the food we create.

To top this off our accommodation's will be the award winning Hotel Corque in Solvang. Solvang is a historic Dutch village nestled into the central coast wine countryside, full of shopping, wine bars, restaurants and great sightseeing. The hotel is within walking distance to all of these spots, and also shares accessibility with the Chumash casino should you care to visit. Our group will have premium rooms with balconies, Solvang or mountain views. All in all at least 8 wineries and winemakers, surrounded with vines, wineries and private meals all in the midst of harvest.

We will have our own private driver and bus for the week. All of our endeavors will be private and curated for our group. There will be options to dine in restaurants, but most meals will be at wineries or in private settings. This group will be limited to a size of 14 people. We will start and end the trip at the Santa Barbara Airport.