We recently spent a couple days in the Santa Barbara Wine Country, more specifically, Santa Ynez Valley. This valley is approximately 30 minutes outside of Santa Barbara, so it is super convenient to visit if you are in Santa Barbara proper. We didn’t really know what to expect since this was our first trip to Santa Ynez, but we fell in love with the wines! We got to try a little bit of everything including Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and even some bigger red blends. The landscape was beautiful and the weather was perfect when we visited. If you want to learn more about visiting Santa Ynez, take a look through the information below! This should give you a good starting point when mapping out your own visit to wine country.
Table of Contents
Day 1 Itinerary
- 10:30 AM – Gainey Vineyard
- 11:30 AM – Bridlewood Winery
- 1:30 PM – Brander Vineyard
- 2:30 PM – Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company
- 4:00 PM – Walk around downtown Los Olivos
- 5:00 PM – Dinner @ S.Y. Kitchen
- 7:00 PM – Check in at Mirabelle Inn
Day 1 Recap
We actually started off Day 1 in Santa Monica, so we had a little bit of a drive ahead of us. We got up early and hit the road by 8 AM so that we could get to Santa Ynez by 10:30 AM. Most of the wineries don’t open until 11 AM, but we wanted to leave plenty of time just in case traffic was bad! We intentionally planned on our first stop of the day atGainey Vineyard because they were one of the few wineries that opened at 10 AM.
We walked into Gainey around 10:30 AM and luckily, it wasn’t too crowded. They had two different tastings to choose from, so we did one of each. The first tasting included both whites and reds while the other tasting was red wines only. The tasting itself was in more of a cellar/cave area, and there was plenty of room for us to spread out. We enjoyed the wines, but there wasn’t anything too memorable for us.
During our tasting, we took a stroll outside to enjoy the view. There are a few areas to taste outside, but I think you have to be a club member or book in advance. They did say that we could sit outside if we bought a glass or bottle. Overall, it was a cute winery and a great place to stop in for a quick and casual tasting experience.
For our next stop, we decided to check out Bridlewood Winery. You technically need a reservation to get in, but we thought we would ask to see if anything was available. Luckily, they had room for 2 guests, so we got in without a problem!
The property itself is gorgeous, so you’ll definitely want to take a few photos outside while visiting this winery. Our tastings took place at a counter inside, but we were able to stroll around the property between pours. One of my favorite wines from the tasting was their rosé. I loved how dry and refreshing it was. We enjoyed almost all of their wines, but the rosé was the most memorable for us.
We ended up buying a bottle of rosé to enjoy outside because it was such a nice day. Their grounds were absolutely stunning, so it was nice to soak in the scenery. My only regret is that we didn’t bring a picnic lunch along with us!
We ended up wandering around more of the property and taking a few more photos before leaving. I loved the architecture, and it felt like we were in an old California mission. I was also surprised at how big their property was! I don’t think we saw everything because the buildings were so big. Bridlewood was definitely worth a stop, and I would highly recommend visiting when in Santa Ynez Valley.
Our next stop of the day was Brander Winery and Vineyard. This winery was also gorgeous, and it felt like we were in Europe! When we pulled up, there were several people drinking bottles of wine outside with a picnic lunch. Again, my only regret is that we didn’t think of doing this at one of the wineries!
We went inside for a tasting, and we quickly learned that they made several Sauvignon Blancs. They actually offer a tasting of just Sauvignon Blanc, but we thought it would be good to try a little bit of everything. I will say, all of the Sauvignon Blanc we tried was delicious! It is the perfect wine to sip on during the summertime, especially when sitting by the pool.
We really enjoyed all of the wines we tried at Brander, but I do think their Sauvignon Blanc stood out the most. Overall, I think this place is definitely worth a stop, even if it’s just for a few photos. Also, the reason they have the Sweden and Argentina flags out front is because the family was originally from Sweden but emigrated to Argentina. They didn’t make there way to America until 1962, and they started planting vines in 1975.
At this point in the day, we were a little burnt out on wine. Our palettes needed a break and our stomachs needed food. We decided to make our way into downtown Los Olivos so we could find some lunch. We ended up stumbling across a food truck outside of Figueroa Mountain Brewing and thought that would be a good option.
We had a really nice time sitting outside at the brewery and we even met a few locals. It seemed like a popular place to hang out, regardless if you were a tourist or a local. All of the beer we tried was delicious and they had a wide variety of options to choose from. It was the perfect way to break up all of the wine tastings from earlier in the day.
We made our way over to downtown Santa Ynez since we had an early dinner reservation at S.Y. Kitchen. We had heard good things about this restaurant, and it was really cute. I would highly recommend making reservations, as it is a very small restaurant. They have a small outdoor patio in addition to the inside dining room. They also have a small bar you can sit at inside.
We really enjoyed our dinner here, and they had fabulous cocktails as well. They also had an amazing wine list, so we decided to order a bottle of red wine with dinner. One of my favorite dishes we ordered was the grilled artichokes. They were very tasty!
After dinner, we made our way back to Solvang where our Bed and Breakfast was located. We stayed at the Mirabelle Inn, and it is conveniently located within walking distance to everything in downtown Solvang. We loved our stay here and would definitely make reservations here again. The room was very nice, and they even gave us a complimentary bottle of wine! They also serve a full breakfast each morning.
Since it was still pretty early in the evening, we decided to grab a drink at a local wine bar in Solvang. It was the perfect way to end the evening and unwind from the day. We ended up meeting another couple from Paso Robles, and we had a really nice time chatting about things to do in the surrounding area.
Day 2 Itinerary
- 11:30 AM – Brave & Maiden Wine Tour w/ Picnic Lunch
- 2:00 PM – Sunstone Winery
- 4:00 PM – The Hitching Post II
- 5:30 PM – Walk around downtown Santa Barbara
- 6:30 PM – Dinner @ Arigato Sushi
Day 2 Recap
We had a little bit of a later start on Sunday, so we decided to stroll around the town of Solvang all morning. It was nice to get some fresh air and walk around. The entire town has Danish-style architecture and it honestly feels like you are walking around a small town in Europe. It’s the perfect place to visit regardless of whether or not you plan to visit wineries.
When we first arrived, we were given a tour of the vineyards and the property itself. Their tasting room is gorgeous and they have a beautiful outdoor area where you can sit an enjoy a picnic lunch. It’s the perfect setting and has an amazing overlook of all of the land and vineyards.
The tour at Brave & Maiden was fantastic, and it was a really great in-depth view into the winery overall. They did a really great job constructing the property for winemaking and entertaining. Once we finished up with the tour, we moved back inside to do our wine tasting.
The tasting menu included four different wines, but we were able to taste even more since they had other bottles open. The set tasting included four different red wines, all of which were amazing. I loved their Cabernet Franc and their Cabernet Sauvignon. For some of our bonus pours, we were able to try a GSM blend and their limited release rosé. I was completely obsessed with the rosé, and I thought it may have been the best rosé I’ve ever had.
Once we finished up the tasting, we moved outside for our picnic lunch. It was the perfect day, so I am glad we were able to have our lunch outside! For lunch, they catered in sandwiches from S.Y. Kitchen and everything was delicious. It was a lot of food, so make sure to plan accordingly if you book this experience!
We had a little bit of wine left to finish with our lunch, but since it was such a sunny day, we decided it would be good to order a bottle of the rosé to have outside. It was so nice to just relax and enjoy the time outside with an amazing bottle of wine. Overall, our visit to Brave & Maiden was the perfect experience, and I would love to go back and do this same tasting again.
We still had some time to visit another winery, so we drove over to Sunstone, which is only a mile down the road from Brave & Maiden. This winery came up in several searches during my research, so I figured it would be a good one to check out.
After purchasing our bottle of wine, we snagged a table outside and enjoyed the beautiful afternoon. Most people visiting had a little picnic lunch with them, so I would suggest bringing some snacks if you don’t have other plans for lunch. They also have plenty of lawn games and room to run around, so it is definitely a family friendly winery.
Overall, Sunstone was worth a visit and it was the perfect place to relax with a bottle of wine on a warm spring day. If you are looking for a more casual option for wine tasting, this is the place for you!
We didn’t feel like visiting another winery, so decided to head back towards Santa Barbara. On the way, we made a little pitstop at The Hitching Post. This restaurant was made famous by the movie, Sideways, so we figured it could be an interesting stop. The inside is very old school and the interiors are dated, but it is charming. It kind of feels like a dive bar with a restaurant.
We sat at the bar and ordered some cocktails and french fries. The fries were delicious and definitely hit the spot after all the wine we had that afternoon. The cocktails we ordered were also quite delicious! It was worth the stop, and it ended up being a better experience than we originally thought. I would love to go back and try a full dinner there.
After our brief stop at The Hitching Post, we drove back into downtown Santa Barbara. After strolling around for a bit, we finally decided to find some dinner. We both thought that sushi sounded good, so we made our way into Arigato Sushi. We ordered a wide variety of sashimi and sushi and we loved everything we tried. We later learned that this was “the” place to go for sushi, so I guess we chose correctly!
Overall, it was an amazing weekend exploring a new wine region and we would love to return someday soon. The wines were delicious and the scenery was beautiful. Be sure to add Santa Ynez Valley to your list of places to visit! There is so much to do and see in this part of the country, and it’s a great place to visit with friends and family.
Have y’all ever been wine tasting in Santa Ynez? If so, what are some of your favorite wineries and restaurants? I am sure we will be back for a visit later this year, so I would love more recommendations!
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