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WINE COUNTRY NEWSW I N E CO U N T RY T H I S W E E KSANTA MARIA WINE COUNTRY: A Winter WonderlandFine Wines, Open Roads and Blue Skies Offer Seasonal Touring MagicStash the snow shovel, toss the mittensand grab a wine glass, because it’s wintertimein the Santa Maria Valley.Indeed, here on the northern perimeter ofthe famed Santa Barbara County WineCountry, there is perhaps no better season topartake in the pastime of wine touring. Thesummer crowds have waned, the newvintages are released and the weather is typicallyfabulous.The Santa Maria Valley’s reputation forgrowing remarkable Chardonnay, Pinot Noirand other varietals continues to grow. In fact,the Wine Spectator recently named two localwines among its prestigious Top 100 list for2008.The Wine Spectator’s Top 100 list identifiedthe best wines from more than 19,500international wines tasted by the magazinethroughout the year. The 2005 Chardonnayfrom Byron Vineyard & Winery was ranked30th on the list, while the 2005 Pinot Noirfrom Dierberg Vineyard was ranked 49th.These were the only two wines on the listfrom the Central Coast, inclusive of MontereyCounty through Santa Barbara County.Other local wineries include AddamoWinery, Costa de Oro Winery, CambriaWinery & Vineyard, Cottonwood CanyonVineyard & Winery, Foxen Vineyard, RanchoSisquoc Winery, William James Cellars, RiverbenchWinery and Kenneth Volk Vineyards,among others. The Santa Maria Valley WineTrail merges with the Foxen Canyon WineTrail, which leads south to Fess Parker14SANTA MARIA HOLIDAY WINE EVENTSWINE CHRISTMAS PASSPORT WEEKEND – DECEMBER 20-21The Santa Maria Valley Wine Country Association presents this holidaypassport event from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Dec. 20-21. Come out andenjoy some Christmas cheer along with wine tasting at participatingSanta Maria Valley tasting rooms. Tickets will be available in advance.Info: (866) 480-5194. Website: www.santamariavalleywinecountry.comPAIRING WINE WITH CHRISTMAS COOKIES – DECEMBER 20-24Discover the joy of pairing Riverbench wines with holiday cookies –gingerbread, oatmeal raisin spice and peanut butter.Come explore the unconventional pairing of Christmas cookies with winefrom 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cost is $10 per person.The winery is located at 6020 Foxen Canyon Rd. in Santa Maria.Info: (805) 937-8340. Website: www.riverbench.comSAVE THE DATE – Coming in 2009!THE 18TH ANNUAL VINTNERS’ FESTIVAL – SATURDAY, APRIL 18At River Park in Lompoc, www.sbcountywines.comAUTUMN ARTS GRAPES & GRAINS FESTIVAL – SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3At the new Santa Maria Library at the corner of Cook and McClelland inSanta Maria. www.santamaria.comCELEBRATION OF HARVEST – SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10At Rancho Sisquoc Winery in Santa Maria, www.sbcountywines.comWinery and dozens of other wineries in theneighboring Santa Ynez Valley.The Santa Maria Valley boasts a rare “transverse”geography, an east-to-west orientationthat channels cool ocean air directly into thevalley. The result is one of California’s longestgrowing seasons, which in turn ensures thedevelopment of complex, flavorful andexquisitely balanced grapes. Pinot Noir, Syrahand Chardonnay are among the varietals thatexcel in the region.The Santa Maria Valley’s penchant forPinot Noir also played a starring role in thehit move Sideways, which featured severallocal wineries and attractions. Miles, themovie’s thoughtful and temperamentalprotagonist, comes to the area in search of hisfavorite wine, Pinot Noir. Along the way, hemakes the following observation about SantaBarbara County’s unique growing conditions:“Pinot Noir needs constant care and attention.It’s not a survivor like Cabernet, whichcan grow anywhere.”The Santa Maria Valley also boasts aregional cuisine to match its locally grownwines – Santa Maria Style Barbecue. Thisworld-renowned regional culinary traditionwww.winecountrythisweek.comdates back to the 1800s, and is today enjoyedacross the region at restaurants, events andcelebrations, providing a perfect complementto the wines of the Santa Maria Valley.Establishments specializing in Santa MariaStyle Barbecue include the Far WesternTavern, Hitching Post, Jocko’s and Shaw’sSteakhouse.Museums, theater performances andbeach walks along the Guadalupe-Nipomodunes are some of the other attractions thatawait visitors to the area. Also, several localgolf courses have been praised by Golf Digestand Golf Magazine for their quality andaffordability.The Santa Maria Valley Chamber ofCommerce and Visitor & ConventionBureau offers visitors a complimentarybooklet called Santa Maria Valley WineCountry: A Guide to Local Wineries andRestaurants, which includes profiles andcontact information for local wineries anddining establishments. An accompanyingmap reveals the layout of the Santa MariaValley wine country. The booklet is availablefor download at www.SantaMaria.com.A complimentary visitor’s informationpackage is also available. To obtain a package,call the Santa Maria Valley Chamber ofCommerce and Convention & Visitor Bureautoll-free at 1-800-331-3779.The Santa Maria Valley Wine CountryAssociation also offers visitors extensivetouring information and a downloadable mapat www.santamariavalleywines.com.