Does anybody have any good suggestions? I want to take my husband, mother and stepfather to a nice winery in Santa Barbara sometime over the next two weeks.

Ideally somewhere that has v.pretty scenery, v. pretty actual winery (so not on the main street, or behind a shop somewhere) and is not too snooty (not really a wine buff and have never been too a winery) but not one that is too casual- a nice inbetween would be perfect!

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

Never been down there, but Qupe and Au Bon Climat are both in SB and make quite nice wines, if that's a factor.

I wouldn't worry about the snootiness factor, the only places you're likely to find that (in California) are wineries that won't have tasting rooms anyway, and even the by appt places are usually pretty friendly. The only way I've seen someone irritate a winery person is by pretending to know a lot more than they do, or just being plain obnoxious.

Bob

I would recommend driving north on the 101 to the Buellton area. The Santa Rosa Road is a wonderful place to start...and you can go to the Sanford winery (where Sideways was filmed).

A complete list of wineries that you could visit in a single day are listed here.

Stop by the Wine Cask in downtown SB. http://www.winecask.com/ The very informed staff will probably give you some good advice and a nice map of the wine country. Or, hit the attached wine bar for happy hour (3-5pm) and chat up the customers for inside info.

Wine Cask is not a discount store, but prices are fair. The fancy associated restaurant is pretty good too. And right next door.

I second this recommendation. There are a whole bunch in the Santa Ynez/Los Olivos area that is really beautiful, especially this time of year. Just drive along the road between Solvang and Los Olivos - there is one after another, including Blackjack that was featured in Sideways.

Santa Barbara is a big county; most of the wineries aren't a 5-minute drive from the beach but more like an hour away. If you have the time I recommend taking the back route up 154 for gorgeous mountain vistas to Santa Ynez and Los Olivos and then drive back to SB via coastal 101. This area is more rustic than Napa/Sonoma, with few chateau-like settings, though as of two years ago that appeared to be changing since Sideways put the area on the map. Sanford was my favorite; I enjoyed driving around the small roads among the vineyards afterwards (yes, I did spit!). If I were to choose a single winery right in Santa Barbara itself I'd check out Jaffurs because I like their wines, but they own no vineyards so it's really just a food processing plant with tasting room. But it's right in town.

Here are a couple of links to wine country:

http://www.santabarbara.com/winecoun...ls/default.asp

gives maps for three self-guided area tours of vineyards

http://www.sbcountywines.com/wine.html

this has listings of vineyards and wineries, and an interactive online map

I agree about the drive on 154 over San Marcos Pass. If you do go that way, be sure to stop at Cold Spring Tavern on Stagecoach Road just north of the summit.

www.coldspringtavern.com

As Fornebufox indicates, the wineries are located in the Santa Ynez Valley and surroundings, a very pretty 45 minute drive (either via 154 or 101) from Santa Barbara. I grew up in SB, and my family lives in the Santa Ynez Valley, so I'm familiar with the wineries as I visit every other month. The area is like Napa was 30 years ago (before the tour buses arrived there). Most of the dozens of wineries make good wines, and driving along the two lane back roads is part of the enjoyment of this area (it's also signficant horse country). That said, I would not head up to the SYV just to go to one winery, unless you want to make a nice road trip over the 154 and back down the coast on the 101.

There are many wineries that will give you a combination of good wines and a pretty setting, some better than others in each category. I'd have to respectfully disagree with the Sanford recommendation. While it's is a pretty setting (though a bit out of the way from other wineries), the Sanford family and winemakers are no longer there as a result of an unpleasant dispute, and how good the wines will be under a new winemaker is yet to be determined (was not that impressed with a recent tasting), and if you're only going to one winery, you want to make sure you're going to get good wines.

And if you are looking for a good restaurant in the area, we have had numerous excellent meals at The Brothers at Matthei Tavern in Los Olivos.

and no, I don't work for the Firestone clan .........

I always stop by the Firestone winery and take the tour, it's still interesting and informative and free. Unlike the tasting room, which like almost everyone else is now charging. I've been going up there for long enough to remember when all the tastings were free (and Prosperity Red was Chilean). It's also a great building in a nice vineyard setting. Zaca Mesa is an old favorite, there's that little trail you can take to an overlook where, if you like, you can eat some lunch. RAncho Sisquoc another scenic drive.

And for dinner during my visits, I always stop at least once at the Firestone Walker Brewery (which isn't really a brewery, but has a very busy bar scene). The food is really good, prices reasonable, pleasant ambience. Here's the easiest way to find it: find the Mickey D's in Buellton and keep on driving straight. If you need the Hitching Post experience, beware that the movie made it VERY popular, and you should try to eat as early or late as possible.

Some of my favorites include Melville, Sanford, Rideau and Blackjack. There's good info at http://wikitravel.org/en/Santa_Barbara_County

A friend and I went to several wineries in the Santa Ynez valley last weekend. I quite enjoyed Bridlewood for its beautiful setting and rather interesting wine descriptions and Artiste, which is a pleasant combination of a tasting room, art gallery, and, well, a space for you to make your own drawings or paintings.

On the way back, we took 154 back all the way to Santa Barbara, which was a nice change from the 101.

This was my first trip to the wineries in Santa Barbara county; next time, I'd like to visit the wineries in Santa Rita hills.

TroganTraveler is 100% correct - I had heard about the hostile takeover by the Chicago based folks and it slipped my mind. I haven't had any of their wines in a while, so I am not sure what the result has been.

I am very close to a family that lives next to the Sanford Winery and they've completely stopped drinking Sanford (which knowing them means A LOT) - so I apologize for that complete oversight on my behalf...

Instead of hitting up Sanford, the recommendation of heading to Los Olivos is dead on. Not only are the wineries in the area great, but there are some great little shops and restaurants in Los Olivos that are fantastic!

Thanks for all the suggestions, but i think that Ynez, Buellton and Los Olivos are a bit too far (will take us 1.5 hrs to get there). Does anybody know any a little closer to Santa Barbara? Or is it def. worth the extra drive?
Appreciate the help though.

I'm not sure how you calculate the drive time, but we were there two weeks ago and it took us 35-40 minutes to get to Santa Ynez from the Santa Barbara Doubletree using 154.