Date ideas- Wine tasting

**Demetria pictured above.

Every now and then I’ll be writing an article on date ideas because as a single man I have an abundance of date ideas but never go on them. These articles will predominantly pertain to men, but hey, if you’re a woman planning the dates.. more power to you! I can actually appreciate women planning their dates as it’s not of the norm and most women are passive when it comes to doing so. Yes, this is a hint.

I’ve been fortunate enough to go wine tasting in the Santa Ynez valley the past 2 years and I cannot get enough of the wineries out there. I stumbled across this wine tour after numerous searches on Google along with the help of Yelp (that rhymes!). Santa Barbara Wine Tours & Wine Tasting is hosted by an amazing tour guide, Bryan, who is extremely passionate about his craft and has an endless amount of knowledge. He’s able to educate his audience about sustainable farming and the positive influence it has on the environment. Driving from Los Angeles, I met him at the Santa Barbara train station and he picked us up in a Mercedes Benz Sprinter Van which uses biodiesel fuel. The hospitality was exquisite and professional from the time we arrived until the time we left.

My suggestion is to make a weekend out of it or at least spend the night there after the wine tasting because it’s definitely much more vino than anticipated. Within the 5-7 wine tasting tour (seems like a long time but well worth it), you’re able to go to 3 different wineries where you’re able to test around 6 glasses of wine. By glasses, I mean “sample glasses” but it will hit you quicker than you think. This tour also includes an organic picnic lunch which is delicious! At several wineries, you’re even able to taste the grapes right off of the vine which happen to be the most succulent fruits I’ve ever tasted. It’s that good. I participated in this tour in October both years and I cannot begin to express how beautiful the weather was. It was probably around 70-75 degrees with a nice ocean breeze which made you want to nap right then and there. It is quite pricey at $125 per/person but you get more than what you’re paying for (the vino, the experience, the knowledge, and you’ll earn serious brownie points with that special person).

It’s always nice to get out of Los Angeles to an area where you’re able to sit back and enjoy a glass of wine- literally. I’d highly suggest going in the Spring or Fall time when the grapes are ripening although I forgot which time of year they ripen (clearly I wasn’t paying attention). The pictures don’t do any justice of what the experience is like so I’d suggest that you try it yourself- along with a friend or a significant other. I promise you won’t regret it!!