I just came from back from a fabulous girls trip to Solvang/Santa Ynez area. Now I have to admit when I first moved to So Cal and I heard about Solvang it sounded so friggin cheesy that I thought to myself....hmmm yeah no. It is described as a "Danish village" and when you hear that you think oh great blue and white pottery, cookies and clogs. Not my kind of scene, right? Boy was I wrong!!! I am now a true believer in "Dutch villages" if they are all like this one...amazing wine, great food and beautiful rolling green hills. I have been to this area several times since moving down here 7 years ago and actually my 2nd half marathon was here as well. However, this trip was a girls get-a-way and it was so fun!  We had no agenda and we truly just ate and drank our way through this "Dutch village." Here are a few of the highlights from our trip:




The first stop on our adventure was Buttonwood Farms. Our goal was to just drive until we found somewhere we wanted to stop and this was the first place we saw. It was the cutest farm complete with fruit trees, farm animals and wine tasting. We were told to come back in the summer because they are known for their peaches. They actually serve 3lb peach pies which would be absolutely amazing with their white wines. However, all of their wines were really good! I loved their sauvignon blanc and their merlot, but seriously there was nothing on their tasting list I wouldn't drink again. http://www.buttonwoodwinery.com/core.html




The first thing we saw when we pulled down the driveway was pomegranites. I had never really given it any thought but I hadn't realized that they grew on trees. Obviously we were all pretty excited by this fruit. However, oopsie we didn't realize they were for sale inside so we thought we had to pick our own. I guess the pick your own fruit was not part of the ambience of this farm...we just made it so.







The winery although it is on a farm does have beautiful gardens and a really cute tasting room. They poured the whites outside so you could  enjoy the beauty, soak in the sun and just take in the peace of the property.



Plus it is not every day that you get to wine taste and enjoy sheep and goats...and if you are willing even share.


The red wines are poured inside in a quaint tasting room that is warm and inviting. One of the highlights of this tasting room was the art work.



They also had local food products and it was just a really comfortable atmosphere.


 All of the reds would be excellent paired with food-syrah, merlot and cabernet sauvignon. All of the staff was extremely friendly and helpful and actually even gave us our restaurant recommendation for lunch. We went to Trattoria Grappolo http://www.trattoriagrappolo.com/

From the outside the restaurant was cute and kind of had a western feel to it, but inside you feel like you stepped into a little slice of Tuscany. It was super warm outside and we weren't looking for anything super filling, but we really wanted food that was light, fresh and inviting.



 We ended up ordering an antipasta plate with grilled vegetables and meats, brushchetta and a grilled eggplant and goat cheese salad. We split the 3 plates and the food was so enjoyable. The tomatoes on the bruschetta were truly some of the most fresh and flavorful tomatoes I have had all season. They were covered in garlic, basil and olive oil and served on a bread similar to a pizza crust...it was so too die for...except for this morning when our hotel room smelled like old garlic from the leftovers. So word to the wise if you don't eat all of the bruschetta do not take it with you.



The next stop was Sunstone Winery http://www.sunstonewinery.com/ I have had their wines before and I have heard amazing things about the winery, but I just hadn't had an opportunity to make it there myself. It was truly like stepping into another country. It had a very Italian feel and everything about the property was inviting and just made you want to sit in the patio with a glass of wine for the rest of your life.




 The wine was full of flavor, diverse and great quality. We learned a thing or two about wine at this stop.


We tried Grenache Blanc and we learned that it is it's own grape variety. I had only heard of Grenache being a red variety so when it was poured into our glass and it was a white I had to ask. Brian, who was behind the bar, was a wealth of information...he knew his wine stuff, he also tried desperately to explain the art work on the label to us and also gave us some tips on how to remove wine from clothing and couches.



Although all of their wines were fantastic their red varieties were definitely my favorite. I loved their merlot and also their soleil rouge...some of which came home with me and I can't wait to pair it with some amazing Italian food.


 This winery was truly the highlight of our trip and we just didn't want to leave. However, the sun was starting to wane and we knew we needed to find our hotel, find dessert and continue our food and wine exploration.




 So after checking into our hotel we decided to go back to one of our "old faithfuls." The Wandering Dog Wine Bar was a location we had discovered several years ago on another wine trip. http://wanderingdogwinebar.com/

This place is great as it is within walking distance from all of the Solvang hotels, it has wine/beer/champagne and snacks. They have cocktails from all over the globe, but they do specialize in local varietals. It does come complete with a dog...black lab to be exact and it makes an effort to greet every customer as they walk in.




 We were pretty excited when we read on the menu that they also have cupcake pairing so we quickly ordered cupcakes and truffles and 3 local flights of red wine so we could enjoy the heavenly experience of red wine and chocolate together...and we were not disappointed.


Earlier in the day we had been told that the town closes up early, however we just didn't realize how true those words were or how early they were talking about. As we left the Wandering Dog we decided we should probably eat something for dinner...because seriously god knows we hadn't eaten enough already. We headed to Cafe Angelica which was another "old faithful," however we were greeted by this sign.


We learned later in the evening that "our" restaurant closed down a year ago due to raised rent prices. This is definitely a loss for the small town of Solvang as this restaurant had great food and I still remember the risotto I had there a few years ago. Since as you all know I am very honest and more than willing to throw myself under the bus I do have to admit that this restaurant had especially fond memories for me as one night after a few cocktails I had to use the restroom which is outside this restaurant...so in the dark and the fog walking to the restaurant I saw what at the time I thought was a lake....um but it was a parking lot. Here is a picture of my lake:



We ended our evening at a restaurant called Root 246 http://www.root-246.com/
It was truly a dining adventure! The restaurant specializes in local ingredients that are farm fresh. They describe themselves as American cuisine, but that description truly does not do the restaurant justice. We decided to again try 3 random plates and share so we could try the flavors in different things. We decided to try one of their signature cocktails-Laughing Buddha, which was Sky passion fruit vodka, fresh ginger, serrano peppers, lime juice and ginger beer. You all know I am a wine girl, but this cocktail was amazing. It was refreshing, tangy and it had a kick from the peppers...truly perfect!

The dishes we tried included shishito peppers with pork belly, carmalized onion and cheese. We learned that shishito peppers are Japanese in origin and they are known to range from mild to hot...we definitely found a few hot ones, but we were able to cool our mouths with the laughing buddha.



We also tried the flatbread appetizer and I was so excited as it had fennel on top of it. I have kind of been afraid of fennel for fear of an overpowering licorice taste, but that was not the case at all. It was crunchy, refreshing and a little spicy, Loved it!!


Finally we tried the quinoa which was also a first for me. Quinoa is a grain and it has edible seeds that kind of look like poppy seeds...and yes they do totally get stuck in your teeth, but it has a nice earthy flavor. It had squash and eggplant in it and it was cooked in a coconut milk . This was a great dish as well.


I have to admit when we first saw this menu it was a little intimidating just because every dish we looked at had ingredients we had never heard of or were just not sure of, but seriously try anything and you will not be disappointed.

Since it was 8:30 we decided to walk back to our hotel room for wine and reality tv. This was a good choice as everything in the town was closed and we truly were the only 3 people walking on the street. And seriously how can it get better after 2 amazing wineries, a great wine tasting bar with cupcakes and 2 amazing restaurants. If you are ever in the Santa Barbara County area I definitely recommend these spots! Cheers!!