Santa Barbara Wine Festival: Summertime+Bougainvillea+Wine+Food

Santa Barbara Wine FestivalGet ready to plan a trip to Santa Barbara at the end of the month because it’s time for the Santa Barbara Wine Festival.  If you haven’t been before, this is a fun outdoor event (with plenty of shade) and the weather will probably be in the low to mid 70s.  So buy your tickets and get ready for an afternoon of delicious wine, outstanding food, and hopefully a dinosaur or two (yes, you read that right).  

On Saturday, June 28, the 2014 Festival takes place between 2:00 and 5:00 pm at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. You will find wine from over 50 premier Central Coast wineries complimented with sweet and savory delights provided by over two dozen food purveyors including restaurants, caterers, and food trucks.

Santa Barbara Wine Festival

Enforcing Good Behavior at the 2013 Santa Barbara Wine Festival

There was an impressive wine for everybody at last year’s Festival: white wines included Albariño, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Grenache Blanc and Malvasia Bianca; red wines included Grenache, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Touriga Nacional, Lagrein, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. There were also plenty of Rosés to compare and contrast. We can’t wait to see which imposing animal will be standing guard at the entrance, next to the bougainvillea, enforcing mature and considerate behavior this year.

Admission to the event is $95 per person or $70 each for Museum Members if you purchase your tickets in advance which you can do here. If tickets are still available, they will be sold starting at 10 am on the day of the event for $105 per person so it is probably safer (and smarter) to just order them now.

Brewer-Clifton

Brewer-Clifton

At the 2014 Santa Barbara Wine Festival™ you can enjoy pours from excellent wineries such as Alma Rosa Winery and Vineyards, Au Bon Climat, Brander Vineyard, Brewer-Clifton, Dierberg Vineyard, Fiddlehead Cellars, Flying Goat Cellars, Kenneth Volk Vineyards, Koehler Winery, Kunin Wines, Margerum Wine Company, Palmina, Tablas Creek Vineyard and Vogelzang Vineyard.

Ravioli from Ca' Dario

Ravioli with Butter and Sage from Ca’ Dario

When you get hungry, choose between tastes from local purveyors including Ca’ Dario, C’est Cheese, Freezer Monkey, Georgia’s Smokehouse, La Mousse, Paloma Restaurant and Tequila Bar, Renaud’s Patisserie & Bistro, State & Fig, The Stonehouse, and Via Maestra 42.

To alleviate transportation issues, the Santa Barbara Wine Festival™ is providing free parking with a free shuttle at three parking lots near the museum [Roosevelt Elementary School at 1990 Laguna Street, the San Roque School at 2300 Garden Street, and the First Presbyterian Church at 21 East Constance Avenue]. Shuttle service starts at noon, and runs until 6:00 pm. If you really want to park in the museum lot, a limited number of parking passes are available at $20 per standard-sized vehicle and must be ordered online at the same time you purchase your event tickets. For more details on parking, go here.

Designated DriverTo ensure a fun and safe time for everyone, the Festivalwill also offer a Designated Driver Program. Designated Drivers (who must be at least 21) receive complimentary admission to the Festival, a tasting plate, and can enjoy all of the non-alcoholic aspects of the afternoon including great food and demonstrations. Order numbers for Designated Drivers are issued only with a confirmed purchase of tickets and to learn more about the program please go here.

The Santa Barbara Wine Festival is also bringing back their “Every Cork Wins” raffle where you are guaranteed to win a prize. Just donate $30 for a chance to pull a cork and you will win a prize from one of the wineries or vendors, a Museum Membership, or possibly even a pair of tickets to next year’s Festival.

Watching the Crowd at the Santa Barbara Wine Festival

Watching the Crowd at the Santa Barbara Wine Festival in 2012

Proceeds from the Santa Barbara Wine Festival™ support the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History’s educational programs and exhibits. The Museum collection contains more than three million artifacts and specimens in the fields of anthropology, archaeology, vertebrate and invertebrate biology, geology, paleontology, and art. The Museum also maintains a diverse set of educational programs for all ages ranging from pre-school children to senior citizens.

Members of the Museum receive extensive benefits including:

  • Free admission to the Museum for 2 people at a time
  • Free tickets to Gladwin Planetarium daytime shows
  • Free admission to Star Parties (at the Palmer Observatory)
  • Invitations to Members-Only events
  • FREE admission to more than 330 museums and science centers worldwide
  • Discount admission to events such as the Santa Barbara Wine Festival™(please note the $25 discount described above), and Sensational Seafood (a wine and seafood pairing event in October at the Ty Warner Sea Center)

Membership starts at just $60 per year, is tax deductible, and the price is discounted if you sign up for a two-year membership. To learn more about the different membership levels and their associated benefits, please go here.

Lemon Cake from La Mousse

Lemon Cake from La Mousse

For more information about the Santa Barbara Wine Festival™, see complete listings of the wineries and food purveyors participating in the Festival, or to order your tickets, please go here. If you want to see how much we enjoyed last year’s festival, please go here. If you want to see our recommendations for the Santa Barbara area, please go here to read about our favorite wineries and food destinations there.

 

 


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