Food
Santa Ynez Valley: The Perfect Vine-To-Glass Getaway
Distinctive yet versatile, rugged yet refined: this laid-back wine valley may be California’s best-kept culinary secret
Just two hours north of Los Angeles, the Santa Ynez Valley is a bucolic mosaic of rolling vineyards, charming villages and sun-kissed ranchlands. Less commercial than Napa and more intimate than Sonoma, this region matches heritage winemaking with freewheeling Californian lifestyle and foodbowl abundance. Santa Ynez Valley doesn’t shout. It doesn’t need to. The wine speaks for itself, and the region’s ranches, bakeries, roadside grills and upmarket kitchens showcase its culinary ethos: grow thoughtfully.
[Photo © Visit the Santa Ynez Valley]
The valley’s six distinct AVAs (American Viticultural Areas) are shaped by unique geography and climate. Pacific breezes blow cool marine fog inland to the Santa Rita Hills, while further east in Ballard Canyon and Happy Canyon, temperatures climb. The valley’s microclimates mean travellers can enjoy the diversity of crisp, mineral-driven Rieslings, plush Syrahs and aromatic Grenache Blancs all on a single weekend.
“The secret to enjoying good wine is in the sugar-acid balance”, enthuses local chef and winemaker Frank Ostini. “Grapes cascade in flavour, rising from the low sugars of bell pepper, herbaceous green grass and dry grass to a hay character. Then they ripen, turning the corner to a cherry flavour, then strawberry, raspberry, blueberry and, finally, blackberry and raisins.” Optimising the complexities and nuances of this great ripening, the winemaker dances between art and science.
[Solvang © Visit the Santa Ynez Valley]
Ostini helms the iconic steakhouse and winery Hitching Post II in Buellton; he crafts their smoky Santa Rita Hills Pinot Noir himself. Its rich berry expression pairs beautifully with food forged in fire: filet mignon and ribs rubbed with garlic and salt, grilled over native red oak; mushrooms dripping umami into Pinot-spiked flames.
In terms of towns, the best-known valley destination is Solvang, a spectacularly picturesque spot founded by Danish settlers and featuring windmills, Old Country timbered architecture, and handcrafted baked goods. On Danish Day each September and at Julefest around Christmastime, the streets come alive with dancing, torchlight parades and food stalls. Throughout the year, bakeries such as Olsen’s serve Danish kringles, spicy limpa bread and tartlets bursting with jam and nostalgia.
[Left: Hitching Post, Right: Coast Range. Photos © Jeremy Ball]
A gourmet scene coexists alongside Solvang’s twee traditions. On chef Budi Kazali’s French-influenced Japanese menu at The Gathering Table, for instance, quality produce blends with showstopping technique. Think: a painterly tuna tartare with black tobiko and citrus, or a delicate sea urchin shell cradling sushi rice and ikura. Steps away is Coast Range, where chef Steven Fretz has built a steakhouse-meets-seafood bistro. It’s farm-to-fire with a touch of swagger, offering a French onion soup that’s actually exciting, plus artichokes in butter and pecorino grown nearby, as well as crispy chicken sandwiches so good they will never leave the menu.
SoCal produce can also be enjoyed simply, en plein air. Wednesdays bring the Solvang Farmers Market, where travellers can stock up on delicious Santa Maria stone fruits, artisanal breads, olive oils, honey, farm-fresh dairy and prepared food for a picnic at Hans Christian Anderson Park.
[The Wine Merchant Café. Photo at left © lowinecafe]
A 10-minute drive will bring you to rustic wine village Los Olivos, with its atmospheric streetscape of pioneer-era storefronts and more than 30 wine tasting rooms within walking distance; rooms such as Taste of Santa Rita Hills make this historic gem a haven for sampling the region’s boutique labels. For ultra-local drinks and dining, The Wine Merchant Café offers a must-try seasonal menu built around ingredients grown on their own 1.6ha organic plot. The brie, baked in cinnamon puff pastry with hazelnuts and fig reduction, is as swoonworthy as a dessert, and an earthy squash blossom pizza pairs nicely with a fruity local red. The village is also home to Brick Barn Wine Estate and Evans Ranch, uncorking everything from restrained Pinot to bold Rhône reds.
Nearby, Coquelicot Estate’s organic vineyard is right in the Los Olivos village, perfect for a walk-only tasting weekend. If you visit its cellar door, try small-batch, natural Cabernet Franc, Estate Syrah and their particularly zesty, citrusy Grüner Veltliner, the famously crisp Austrian grape.
[Fess Parker Winery. Photo © Craft & Cluster courtesy Visit the Santa Ynez Valley]
A short drive away, Fess Parker Winery is set on a sprawling, verdant estate – polished yet approachable. The balanced tasting flights range from estate-grown Syrah to lively white blends like Marcella’s, named for the founder Fess’s wife and showcasing Grenache Blanc, Vermentino and Viognier. Within a cavernous, modern interior, the tasting room walls are lined with vintage black-labelled Syrahs aged in French oak – bottles that can be cellared for a decade.
Visitors can also experience the magic of the vines in picturesque, wedding-worthy estates such as Vega Vineyard, Sunstone Winery and Roblar Winery in Santa Ynez, which – known for its citrusy New Zealand-style whites and classic Rhône varietals – is ideal for a languorous vineyard lunch with food-and-wine pairing. Their bone-dry, barely pink rosé and silky Pinot Noir taste even better with fresh dishes such as Cobb salad drizzled with creamy cider dressing, and moreish pepperoni pizza with spicy honey, served on raw timber tables. Slide into a languorous afternoon over a 2021 Cabernet Franc, lush with chocolate and blackberry jam ripeness.
[Left: Coquelicot Estate © Craft & Cluster courtesy Visit the Santa Ynez Valley. Right: Roblar Winery © chuckplace]
Once a stagecoach stop, sleepy hamlet Los Alamos – about a 15-minute drive further along Highway 154 – now punches above its weight as a dining destination. Nibble on caviar and uni canapés at Michelin-starred Bell’s, or stop in at Pico Los Alamos, whose menu ebbs and flows according to the fishermen and family farmers of the valley. Feast on local rabbit, line-caught fish from the Channel Islands, and iron-grilled prime rib-eye, humanely raised.
Carnivores seeking to capture the spirit of the Old West can go for gourmet BBQ at the 4,200ha Alisal Ranch. The working cattle ranch is a pastoral retreat and slice of equine paradise, with horseback riding for all abilities on trails that sharpen your appetite. Standouts like braised beef short rib are cooked to fall-off-the-bone perfection and served in wood-and-stone dining rooms beneath horn chandeliers. Whether you’re sipping Syrah beneath fairy-lit oaks on their scenic terrace or biting into fire-blistered mushrooms seasoned only with smoke, the valley invites you to slow down and sip your way to Sunday.
[Alisal Ranch. Photo at left © Visit the Santa Ynez Valley]
[Photo at top: Vega Vineyard and Farm © Craft & Cluster courtesy Visit the Santa Ynez Valley]
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