All About Santa Cruz Wineries

You don't have to go to Napa, burn gas, pay $300.00 a night for a room to go wine tasting and meet some nice folks. No, no, no my little oenophile!


You can pedal over to the Ingalls Street Courtyard and have a fantastic afternoon and never get in a car!

Located at the top of Santa Cruz just before you head out towards Davenport, turn left on Swift Street and a short distance to Ingalls St where you turn left again. Park the car. And forget about it.


Here you will find over 10 winery tasting rooms, 2 of which I'll talk about here.


Let's start with Silver Mountain Winery. Jerold O'Brien has been producing wine for over 30 years from his vines high atop the Santa Cruz Mountains. His Certified Organic vineyard sits at almost 2100' above the sea with commanding views over the mountains and looking down onto a distant Highway 17! Amongst the clouds, the occasional snow flurries, and the gorgeous sunlight, Jerold's grapes thrive.


Growing tender Pinot grapes is his passion and his wine reflects this commitment. Along side these luscious reds is his crisp Chardonnay. Not overly oaky or loaded with butter, Jerold's Chard is a favorite at the tasting room. The Chardonnay grapes are also grown at the vineyard and are organic.

Members of his very successful wine club stop at the winery to taste as a benefit of membership and enjoy 20% off on all the wine they buy during the year, except of course, Jerold's generously discounted collections, like his Economic Recovery Special, featuring Spencer's Choice Pinot . Spencer is the beautiful blue eyed winery dog who presides over the porch! This velvety elixir is sumptuous and opens in the glass beautifully.


The second Silver Mountain tasting room is located at 402 Ingalls St Suite 29, right next to the Santa Cruz Organic Brewery and is open Thursday through Sunday Noon to 5 ish! If the room is packed , they'll keep pouring! The winery itself is open only Saturday, Noon to 5:00PM and is located about 9 miles up Old San Jose Road, turn right at Miller Hill Cut off.


Next stop is across the courtyard to Sones Cellars. Michael and Lois Sones met at sea on a cruise ship, so the masthead on their label is a nod to that romance!


I love their Cancione Del Mar, or Song of the Sea, a crisp blend of great whites, using Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Torrontes and my beloved Viognier. This blend is redolent of pineapple and pear, soft and yet has a nice slice of mineral, like a ripe apple cut with a carbon knife!


Another fun offering at Sones Cellars is the The Hedgehog. You purchase a special bottle that you can bring in and refill with quality table wine, much as they did in the old days! This is a great red wine and perfect for Friday dinner.


If you haven't visited this chic and lively little corner of Santa Cruz, you need to stop missing the fun! I'll share more tidbits about the other wineries soon! And of course a story on Kelly's French Bakery who started the whole enterprise on Ingalls.



http://sonescellars.com/
http://silvermtn.com/