marchy007

We'll be touring between Monterey and Santa Barbara in two weeks and visit wineries. My wife prefers white wines. Any particular wineries standing out?

Also, which area is better for wine-tasting tours, around Monterey or Santa Barbara?

moneygirl

I haven't been through the Monterey area in a while but the Santa Barbara area has a lot to offer! Try googling Foxen Wine Trail and Santa Maria Valley Wine Trail and see what you get! Too many favorites to list but a few would be Au Bon Climat, Rancho Sisquoc, Gainey, Sanford, Zaca Mesa and Arthur Earl... to get you started! Hopefully others will see your post!

kimamom

Go to Ventana in Monterey, they have a tasting room adjacent to Tarpey's Roadhouse, they do some really nice whites, especially Sauv Blancs in this area. Right across from the Monterey Plaza Hotel is a Taste of Monterey wine tasting room, Silver Mountain makes a really nice, buttery Chardonnay here that I love.

I like the Syrahs in the Santa Barbara area, Arthur Earl does some wines, Gainey as previously mentioned is also very good, they do some nice whites here, also.

You may want to go to Carmel Valley, stop at Chateau Julien and Bernardus in this area. There is a nice place to lunch at the Bernardus Lodge called Wickets, it's wonderful! ***kim***

jamesr3939

Probably one of the best wines I have had is from the Bargetto Winery. They have a tasting room on Cannery Row in Monterey. You have to look for it but it is right near the Bubba Gumps.

The area near Paso Robles is well known for many wineries too many to even name.

TTess

The BEST whites in our area can be found at Talbott Winery. They have a tasting room in Carmel Valley Village. Suggest the Diamond T and Sleepy Hollow. Your wife will adore and admire you.

JamesR - the Bargettos are old, old friends of mine - but the best wines ever? You need to get out more, darling.

SAB

I will add a second on Talbott since it is my favorite chard. Hey Tess, how's life in Carmel?

Chrissee

We just returned from a week on the cental coast - stayed in Avila Beach (just outside of San Luis Obispo). Great area! We did a couple of days of wine tasting and we went into the Paso Robles area. There were some beautiful wineries within close proximity to each other. We are no expers, but we found the wines quite enjoyable and the views were beautiful! Tolosa, Robert Hall, and Eberle were a few that we visited. I think it was Robert Hall that has a little outdoor concert venue. There was a gourmet burger/jazz evening planned while we were there and we had planned to go. How dissapointed we were when they cancelled it due to threat of rain. Maybe next trip!

Gemstone

Gotta love that Talbott Sleepy Hollow from the Santa Lucia Highlands.

Morgan wines are also the creme de la creme from Monterey county's famed Santa Lucia Highlands.Their 'Rosella's Vineyard' Chardonnay is a personal favorite and is exceptional in a full-bodied style. If your wife prefers un-oaked chardonnay, she'll like Morgan's Metallico. There's also a highly-rated Hat Trick Chardonnay, a crisp Pinot Gris and a Sauvignon Blanc, all very-well made wines.

The new Morgan tasting room in Carmel is just south of the village at the Crossroads Center, Highway 1 and Rio Road. Don't miss it!
www.morganwinery.com

In Santa Ynez valley stop by the Brander winery for top-notch Sauvignon Blancs. Melville winery makes very nice chardonnay from Santa Rita Hills grapes and is a beautiful place to visit.

TTess

Hi Sab!

Wonderful days, here, thanks. The fog has been rolling in late afternoons and rolling out early in the morning. Yesterday, we had a light drizzle but it was just enough to keep things lush and green. I drove around Scenic twice, just to take it all in. Plus, being the doting mom that I am, I had to take some photographs of certain sites for one of my kids' school projects.

Another wonderful chardonnay from our area is Samantha Starr. If you ever see it in a store, make sure you buy a bottle or twelve.
Cheers! 8-)

SAB

Hi Tess: I love Samatha Starr--the lovely Frenchman in Ranch Cellars recommended it to us a couple of years ago. All I needed to hear was that it was made by Sam Balderas!!!

SAB

Oops Rancho Cellers--I also love River Ranch, but that is very hard to find out side of Carmel.