Santa Ynez offers different ways to experience wine and culture: a tasting room is located in the center of Old Town, while an annual powwow held in October adds a seasonal highlight. When planning, it is worth considering the format and date. Some wine tastings take place on outdoor terraces when the weather is suitable; for the powwow, the specific event dates are important. This lets you organize your days around your interests and travel dates.
Wine Tastings and Their Different Formats
In the center of Old Town Santa Ynez, Carr Winery operates a tasting room in a climate-controlled, 3,800-square-foot wine warehouse. CrossHatch Wines has a tasting room in the Bohlinger Building in Santa Ynez. There, you can choose wine by the glass or full tasting flights. If you want to compare individual glasses with a more comprehensive tasting, you will find two explicitly listed formats here.
At Gainey Vineyard, the offering includes a curated flight of Estate wines from the Limited Selection. When the weather is suitable, tastings take place on outdoor terraces surrounded by gently rolling vineyards. At the Vineyard View Lawn, visitors can enjoy wine by the glass or by the bottle. This makes it possible to choose between the curated flight and enjoying wine on the lawn, according to your preferred format.
Sunstone Winery is located above the Santa Ynez River. The tasting room is surrounded by courtyards scented with lavender and picnic areas. Sunstone Villa is a Provence-inspired estate with views of the gently rolling Santa Ynez Mountain Range and its own vineyards.
Roblar Winery & Vineyards offers a private tour of its winery and vineyards. Its curated food pairings are designed by the executive chef and prepared with ingredients harvested daily on the property. Brunch tastings are also offered on Sundays.
History, Community and Culture
The Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum presents exhibits and hosts public programs that interpret past events and the diverse communities of California’s Central Coast. Lectures, garden and home tours, and events highlighting the valley’s agricultural strengths round out the program. The Parks-Janeway Carriage House displays the largest collection of horse-drawn vehicles west of the Mississippi.
The Santa Ynez Chumash Museum and Cultural Center includes a 3.5-acre cultural park with outdoor exhibits and more than 11,000 California native plants used by the Chumash. The introductory program for the free “Second Thursday at the Museum” series included events outside regular hours, from 5 to 8 p.m., such as artist talks and evening access to the galleries and museum shop.
The Chumash Intertribal Powwow takes place annually in October over two days in Santa Ynez. More than 300 Indigenous dancers and singers take part.
Wine Country and Cycling in the Greater Santa Ynez Valley
As regional context, the Santa Ynez Valley is one of the most diverse wine-growing regions in Santa Barbara County. The valley’s rural roads connect wineries and communities and are suitable for bike rides ranging from short family rides to 50-mile routes and multi-day tours through wine country. Depending on how much time you have, you can choose between a short ride and a multi-day cycling tour.
Discover more destinations: Goleta, Los Olivos, Buellton, Santa Barbara, Lompoc, Montecito, Toro Canyon, Santa Maria.
Back to the main travel overview: Santa Barbara.
