The 2024 California Wine Festival has returned to its scenic home in Santa Barbara. This two-day event, to be held on July 18 and 19, promises exquisite coastal tasting. Ticketed guests at this iconic event will sample an extensive range of wines from 200 of California’s premier winemakers. Gourmet food from some of Santa Barbara’s famous restaurants will complement the wine tasting.
The event will begin on the evening of July 18 with the Sunset Rare & Reserve Tasting. Hosted at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort, it will offer a VIP experience with breathtaking sunset views, beginning with a “first sip” welcome reception featuring Californian sparkling wine. Guests will access exclusive tastings from Brick Barn Wine Estates, known for rare and vintage reserve wines, tasting room exclusives, and limited-production wines from California’s esteemed wine regions.
On July 19 afternoon, Chase Palm Park will offer the ideal California wine-tasting experience, blending sun, sea, food, wine, and music. Guests can sample hundreds of wines from various California regions, along with local craft brews and delectable foods like artisanal cheeses, breads, olive oils, and desserts.
The California Wine Festival will feature rare and well-known bottles from California’s top vineyards, such as Napa Valley, Sonoma County, Paso Robles, Santa Barbara, and Temecula. Reputed wineries such as Adobe Road Winery, Bernardus Winery, Dana V. Wines, Darcie Kent Estate Winery, Garre Vineyard & Winery, Goldschmidt Vineyards, Kessler-Haak Vineyard & Wines, Miner Family Wines, Mizel Estate Wines, Navarro Vineyards, Rombauer Vineyards, Scheid Family Wines, Wente Vineyards, and Zialena Winery are participating at the event.
Besides these rare and popular wines, guests can also indulge in gourmet bites from the 20 best restaurants in Santa Barbara, including Aficio22, Aquamar California Rolls, Arteseans Scallops & Four Star Seafood, Barbareño, Divine Bake House, Finch & Fork, Goufrais Southern California, McConnell’s Fine Ice Cream, and Santa Barbara Woodfire Catering. The “Best Tri-Tip in the 805” BBQ competition, sponsored by Traeger, will be a significant highlight, allowing guests to sample and vote for their favorite tri-tip steak from local chefs.
The VIP Pavilion on July 19, presented by HexClad cookware, will feature cooking demonstrations and serving stations with food from celebrated local chefs such as David Schoen of Rice Browns, Zoya from Fysh Foods, and Miles Robbins, who will reveal his new burger concept that is set to debut in Montecito. This VIP Pavilion will also offer reserve-level wines, craft brews, and seating with picturesque ocean views.
Guests will also witness a silent auction on July 19, where they can bid on exotic wines, tasting tours, and dining certificates. The proceeds will benefit The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, an organization working to end hunger, increase food security, and promote good nutrition among the county’s residents.
Emily Kaufmann, Executive Director of the California Wine Festival, expressed her excitement about the event, saying, “We are elated to host this year’s Sunset Rare & Reserve Tasting at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort.” She added, “This new venue will provide guests with stunning views of the ocean at sundown while they discover rare and vintage wines that they’ve never been exposed to.”
Icelandic Glacial will keep attendees hydrated, while the Tate Group will provide keepsake bottle stoppers. Each guest will take home a California Wine Festival wine glass. In addition to wine tasting, guests can enjoy soulful acoustic melodies by former American Idol finalist Adam Lasher on July 19 and live reggae, calypso, soca, and steel drum music by SoCal’s premier band Upstream on July 19.
The 2024 California Wine Festival in Santa Barbara is a 21+ event that promises an unforgettable experience with fine wines, gourmet food, and spectacular ocean views. For more information about the event, visit CaliforniaWineFestival.com.
