The Garagiste Festival is one of those great wine events where visitors can discover numerous super small brands. In some cases these winemakers only produce a few barrels of wine. It is also worth mentioning that many of these wines are not found in a tasting room, or store shelves due to such low production.

The Saturday seminar in Solvang (Santa Ynez Valley) kicked off with a much lessor known varietal, Mourvedre. The panelist included (left) Bob Tillman from Alta Colina in Paso Robles, Eric Mohseni (middle) from the long time famed Zaca Mesa of Santa Barbara County, and Mr ...

It is often said, "Wine is made in the vineyard." If this statement is true, then it might be a foregone conclusion that winemakers select their vineyards very carefully. Most industry professionals would likely agree that the fruit source is key, and is the reason so many consumers buy wines from specific regions and designated vineyards.

I had the honor being included in a rare viewing/tasting of the Larner Vineyard located in a newly (Oct 2013) designated AVA, Ballard Canyon, in Santa Barbara County. The tasting was a focused tasting of seven different winemakers' wines, all sourcing from the ...

The Garagiste Festival (Santa Ynez Southern Exposure)continues to shed light on smaller production winemakers. Many of these wine producers cannot be found on a wine map. In some cases, the wines poured cannot even be found in any bar, restaurant, or wine shop. The discoveries can be fun, interesting, and even stellar.

Preceeding the grand tasting in Solvang (Santa Barbara County), a panel of winemakers met to discuss the Great Alcohol Debate, The Elephant In The Bottle. This just might be a more inside or industry debate, but it can be a very hot topic in some circles.

Neither ...

Recently I had the opportunity to attend one of the greatest wine events on California's Central Coast, World of Pinot Noir. Attendees had the opportunity to taste stellar discoveries like Storm from South Africa, Leelanau Vintners Association of Michigan, and Austrialian Pinot Noirs.

I also had a chance to visit with some fantastic (personally) known producers including: Navarro (Anderson Valley), Talley (Arroyo Grande), Ryan Cochran (Santa Maria Valley), Gypsy Canyon (Sta Rita Hills),Verdad (Edna Valley), Hillard Bruce (Sta Rita Hills), Siduri (Northern CA) and many others.

Along the way I discussed Pinot Noir with some winemakers whose wine ...

There are always a lot of wines to choose from, and it can be difficult to know what are suggested purchases without having tasted a wine. Few are willing to spend $30, $50, or more on a wine, hoping it will be money well spent.

Vintages change, picking decisions change, blendings can change, and sometimes even winemakers change. I am fortunate enough to taste many wines each year. Some wines I taste at various events and dinners, some are samples sent to me, while others may be tasted in the tasting room. When I see a wine scores a 95 ...

The Sideways novel and film are arguably the most impactful wine entertainment in today's pop culture, and certainly for Santa Barbara County. Talking with Rex Pickett the author of the book, "Sideways" on his view of the impact of the film. 

Q - Could you share a bit about the varietals Pinot Noir and Merlot in relation to the characters in your novel Sideways?

"At the time that I wrote Sideways Pinot Noir was a semi-obscure grape variety coveted by wine geeks who spoke of Burgundy and Sonoma’s Russian River in rhapsodic terms.  I, who knew little about wine ...

(All photos copyright protected and taken by Shawn Burgert) 

Despite my physique, I am feeling a bit Slim Shady meets Ricardo Montalban (from Fantasy Island) in this moment. "Hello my name is…." My name is....Shawn Burgert; some call me the Wandering Wino. I have been given the honor to be your social media, blogging Mr. Roarke for the Wine Bloggers' Conference AKA #wbc14, to be held in Santa Barbara County this July. 

While I do not rap, or own a white suit, my purpose the next several months will be to help, via social media, wine bloggers for general questions about visiting Santa Barbara County. There is no ...