Want to avoid the retail rush of Black Friday and still scoop up some early gifts? If you’re looking for edibles, imbibables, or just the right gadget for the wine-loving foodies on your list, plan to snap up some deals during Wine Christmas Passport Weekend, hosted by Santa Maria Valley Wine Country.
Slated for Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 5 and 6, Wine Christmas Passport Weekend showcases 11 area wineries. In each tasting room, passport holders will find glittering Christmas decorations and seasonal tunes guaranteed to put even reluctant revelers into a happy mood.
From 11 a.m. until closing time, participating wineries will help launch holiday celebrations with food pairings and special tastings. To sweeten the deal, they’ll also offer discounts on wines and gift items.
Among the participants waiving their fees for Wine Christmas Weekend passport holders are Addamo Winery, CORE Wine Company, Costa de Oro Winery, Cottonwood Canyon Vineyard, Cambria Winery, and Kenneth Volk Vineyards. Along Foxen Canyon Road, Rancho Sisquoc Winery, Riverbench Vineyard, Tres Hermanas Vineyard, and Foxen Vineyard will honor passports, as will the Bench in Los Olivos.
Dave and Becky Corey, of CORE Wine Company, plan to set a happy holiday tone with guitar music and edible treats to match their wares.
“We have a late-harvest Grenache,” Becky Corey said, “and I may do lavender shortbread to go with that. Dave’s aunt grows culinary lavender, and I cook with it quite a bit. A lot of our wines pick up that lavender note.”
Passport holders heading to Costa de Oro Winery can sample gourmet cheeses and crackers, along with five complimentary wine samples. Winemaker Gary Burk will unveil his Syrah Port, a first for the tasting room, and offer 15 percent off all wine purchases, as well as gift cards to make it easy to shop for friends and family.
At Rancho Sisquoc Winery, passport holders will find the cozy tasting room filled with good cheer and Christmas finery, as well as an assortment of light appetizers, such as cheeses, crackers, and dip.
Rhonda Rantz, tasting room manager at Cottonwood Canyon Vineyard, promises to uncork some festive wines perfect for holiday dining and toasting. Among them are the 2000 Blanc de Blanc, a sparkling wine she recommends serving with water crackers and luscious pâté.
“Our 2000 Synergy [a Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend],” she wrote in an e-mail, “goes great with rich, dark chocolate or prime rib, and our [port-style] 2005 Dessert Syrah is great with dark chocolate and fresh raspberries.”
On Saturday at the Bench, an “artisan estate winery collection,” staffers will pour their line-up of wines from Byron Vineyard, Io, Cambria, and Kinton Winery, all made from fruit grown on the Santa Maria Bench. The next day, enjoy a gala holiday open house, complete with live music and generous samplings of spiced cheese.
”In addition,” said Katy Westgaard, tasting room lead, “we will be revealing Byron’s inaugural 2008 White Cuvee, with magnums available for purchase at a special holiday price.”
Riverbench Vineyard weighs in with a daring pairing of cookies and wine designed to tickle the taste buds and spark the imagination.
“Some examples,” explained Laura Mohseni, general manager of Riverbench’s winery division, “include cinnamon biscotti with our 2006 Reserve Chardonnay and chocolate espresso cookies with our 2007 Reserve Pinot.
“We’ll have holiday music and lots of specials going on,” she continued, “and this year, we’re featuring 3-liter and 5-liter bottles at awesome prices!”
Tickets for the Wine Christmas Passport Weekend include a Riedel glass, passport program, and wine tasting at all participating wineries. They may be purchased online (smvwines.com/WineChristmas) or at two pick-up locations: Costa de Oro in Santa Maria, and the Bench in Los Olivos.
A money-saving bargain, the Wine Christmas Passport
offers an inexpensive way to sample the wares at nearly a dozen wineries. And tasters can take heart in knowing that a portion of ticket sales goes directly to help support the Marian Foundation and Blochman Union School District.
As an incentive to take home some wine, passport holders will receive a raffle ticket for every two bottles they buy. Prizes include Sunday brunch for two at the Radisson Hotel’s Vintner’s Grill and lunch for four at the Garey Store and Deli.
Other prizes range from complimentary wine tastings and select bottles of wine, to one month of temperature-controlled storage at Roemer Way Self-Storage. And one lucky winner will receive a 30 percent discount on a rental order from Classic Party Rentals.
Savor the holiday season in wine country by grabbing a ticket now for Christmas Wine Weekend. Not only will you sample delicious food and sip fine libations, you just may get a head start on all that pesky shopping.
K. Reka Badger gets her shopping done early. E-mail last-minute gift ideas to rekabadger@hotmail.com.
This article appears in Nov 26 – Dec 3, 2009.