Is Santa Barbara in January Still Good for Wine Tasting, or Too Cold?
Short answer: Yes. Santa Barbara in January is not only good for wine tasting, it might actually be better than peak season. Average daytime highs still hit around 65°F. Rain only shows up about 5 to 7 days out of the month. And the tasting rooms that are packed shoulder-to-shoulder in July? Nearly empty. That…
Why Do Sta. Rita Hills Winemakers Actually Make Their Wine at the Lompoc Wine Ghetto?
Most Sta. Rita Hills winemakers don’t produce wine at a vineyard. They make it inside gray warehouses in an industrial park called the Lompoc Wine Ghetto. The grapes grow in one of the best cool-climate AVAs in the state. But the wine gets made a short drive away, in Lompoc, tucked behind a Home Depot…