Every time I visit Wine Country Orcutt with my husband, Mike, he comments, “This is the best deal in town!”
He might be right. From a $9 dollar flight of bubbly to a 10-buck trio of Ports, I can’t believe there isn’t a slew of eager customers lining up outside the door wanting to “take flight” too!
Wine Country Orcutt, located in Old Orcutt on North Broadway, is an adorable wine shop and bar carrying excellent Central Coast wines and boutique wines, Port, sparkling wine, and craft beer from around the world.
Respected wine producers such as Presqu’ile, Qupé, Foxen, Au Bon Climat, Flying Goat, Margerum, Alta Maria, Beckmen, La Fenêtre, Carlson, Hitching Post, Luminesce, Rangeland, Sierra Madre, and Silver can be found here.
Wine Country offers more than 60 wines and beers by the glass every day.
There are a comfortable bar and tables and chairs to sit back and stay awhile; some people play Bunko, some bring in dinner, and some chat the night away with personable owners Don and Sherrill O’Neill, who are always behind the bar.
They bought the business in 2005 with Sherrill’s sons Tim and Matt Duggan.
At the time, Wine Country was located in Los Olivos. The movie Sideways, touting Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir, came out and Los Olivos became a wine boomtown!
Then in 2008, business dramatically declined with the economic collapse.
“Don and I were having lunch at [Trattoria] Uliveto one day and driving around Old Orcutt,” Sherrill recalled. “As opposed to other communities in the area, there was a lot of new building going on here. There just seemed to be an energy that we didn’t see anywhere else.”
The O’Neills have lived in Santa Maria for decades, so it made sense to relocate their business to Orcutt.
They found a new building on North Broadway and opened Wine Country Orcutt in 2011.
“The local community was very supportive and enthusiastic, so that was nice,” Sherrill said. “It’s exciting being a part of everything that’s going on here in Old Orcutt. There’s really a great revitalization effort. … It’s really exciting seeing all the new restaurants coming in.”
When Mike and I have dinner in Old Orcutt at Pasión, the Far Western, Rooney’s, or Trattoria Uliveto, we walk over to Wine Country Orcutt afterward for drinks.
It’s quiet enough to carry on a conversation and the flights can’t be beat. A flight is a smaller pour of three or more wines.
Wine Country’s Pinot Noir Flight is popular. The wines change often, but during my last visit the three Pinot Noirs in the $9 flight were: La Fenêtre À Côté, Luminesce, and Tolosa.
My husband’s favorite is the Port flight, which recently consisted of these three Ports, all from Portugal, of course, for just $10: Smith Woodhouse Lodge Reserve, Dow’s 1997 Colheita, and Cossart Gordan five-year Bual.
Wine Country also offered a $9 bubbly flight consisting of Col Vetoraz Prosecco from Italy, Kila Cava from Spain, and Domaine Vigneau-Chevreau Vouvray, a sparking wine from France’s Loire Valley.
I usually order the White Flight, which during my last visit included pours of Margerum Chenin Blanc, Beckmen Sauvignon Blanc, and Haka Chardonnay for $7.
I also like the Qupé Flight—Chardonnay Y Block, Los Olivos Cuvee, and Syrah—a nice mix of white and red for $10.
“We try to be seasonal about our offerings. We like to feature different wineries from time to time,” Sherrill told me. “A lot of people come in just to find out what’s new.”
The O’Neills have a long history of working in the local wine industry at wineries such as Zaca Mesa—where Don and Sherrill met—so they have knowledge to share when they pour you a glass. They also have friends in the wine industry who sometimes come to visit with customers.
“People who like wine have a certain joie de vivre that maybe the general population doesn’t have—a different attitude about life,” Sherrill said.
Beer lovers can find something here, too. Wine Country has 25 beers by the glass such as: La Fin Du Monde, Dogfish Head 90-Minute IPA, Lagunitas IPA, Figueroa Mountain Danish Red, Steelhead Stout, Yanjing Lager, and Hop Rod Rye. Beer prices range from $3 to $8.50.
Wine Country Orcutt is open Wednesday through Saturday. They will open their doors other days for groups, by reservation.
Wine Country provides an intimate, relaxed place to gather with friends, especially fellow book lovers.
The third Wednesday of every month at 7 p.m., the Wine Country Bibulous Book Club meets there. Twelve dedicated readers, mostly women, sit and sip while discussing their literary selection, always with an alcohol theme.
They’ve read murder mysteries set in vineyards, as well as biographies about a Champagne empire and the Gallo wine dynasty, among other books during the last year.
“It’s been interesting and gratifying because people ask me about the book club all the time!” Sherrill said.
New members are welcome.
Sign up for the Wine Country Orcutt newsletter at winecountryorcutt.com to learn about upcoming special events, ladies’ nights, Friday night grilled cheese, winemaker and brewer visits, and more.
Sun wine and food columnist Wendy Thies Sell enjoys sharing hidden treasures. Contact her at wthies@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jun 27 – Jul 4, 2013.