Weekend Away
Alex and I had a great weekend in the Paso Robles area, the Central Coastal area for wineries, last weekend. We left on Thursday morning and drove up to San Luis Obispo where we stayed at The Madonna Inn. We had dinner in the very pink dining room and slept in the Independence Room.
Before dinner we took a tour of Bubblegum Alley in San Luis Obispo
For more photos on The Madonna Inn and Bubblegum Alley go to http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=48480qjp.2tk0zxsh&x=0&y=-ixrl1j&localeid=en_US
The next day we were up bright and early to thunder and lightening and while eating breakfast the skies opened and it poured with rain. All the locals (and I was amazed at the number of locals eating breakfast - it was so expensive) kept saying they had never known it to rain in August.
After breakfast we drove to the coast and visited Morrow Bay to view the rock.
Continuing up the coast to Hearst Castle we almost missed our tour time but was able to take the number 1 tour - the general tour for those that hadn't visited the castle before.
The afternoon finished with a bit of wine tasting at the Adelaida Winery and then we headed to our hotel in Paso Robles for the night.
We stayed at the Best Western Black Oak Motor Lodge for the night. After meeting up with some friends in the jacuzzi Alex and I headed out to dinner.
For a complete photo review of the day go to http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=48480qjp.4padate9&x=0&y=3ynueu&localeid=en_US
After meeting Ann, Diana, Cindy, and Debbie in the diner for breakfast we took a slow drive out to the countryside for some more wine tasting. We had planned to wine taste at 5 or 6 wineries but that changed to just 4 tastings as the day progressed. We took the day really slow and easy, enjoying the scenery as we drove around. I was the driver so only had a full tasting at the first winery (less than one glass) and then just had a sip at the others. Our first stop was at J. Lohr Vineyards & Winery. Our pourer is getting her BS in Wine and Viticulture at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and we had a great conversation with her about growing grapes - I don't think we are motivated enough to try that ourselves but the interest is there. We eventually moved on to Graveyard Vineyards - the one vineyard that Alex really wanted to visit. The wine was quite good but what really impressed me was the location. The house/wine tasting area was on top of a hill with 360 degree views. It was quite spectacular.
We tried a couple of other vineyards including Cass Vinery where we didn't actually taste any wines but had a really nice lunch of antipasta salad and a bbq pork sandwich.
After lunch we went to Sculpterra Winery and Sculpture Garden. We loved this winery - the wine was good but the sculptures were really impressive.
The highlight of the day (weekend?) was the event at Tobin James Cellars. Our friend Diana's sister and brother-in-law, Susan and Steve, are members of the wine club and whenever there is a special event they can bring guests. This time they had arranged a party of 16 people and we were part of the guest list. We had a fabulous time at this all-you-can-eat/drink BBQ. There was a local band playing all sorts of music to fit everyones taste - jazz, reggae, motown, rock, alternative, etc. With everyone drinking what they wanted the dance floor was soon packed. And yes, we drank what we wanted. Some might say that this was not a pretty sight but I have to come back with 'we don't care'.
Does Alex look as if he cares?
For more on this fun-filled day go to http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=48480qjp.cjfng9jl&x=0&y=gmz8zd&localeid=en_US
After our night of eating, drinking and dancing we got off to a somewhat late start to come home. As we were traveling along highway 46 - east bound - we came across the James Dean Memorial or Roadside America - James Dean
It's an odd place to be. The memorial is wrapped around a tree, a store in the background, and signs telling you to watch out for rattle snakes. All the rocks around the tree are handwashed and polished from Japan. You are free to leave mementos if you want - we saw pieces of wrapped hard candy, a bouquet of dead flowers, and a bird carving.
Before dinner we took a tour of Bubblegum Alley in San Luis Obispo
For more photos on The Madonna Inn and Bubblegum Alley go to http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=48480qjp.2tk0zxsh&x=0&y=-ixrl1j&localeid=en_US
The next day we were up bright and early to thunder and lightening and while eating breakfast the skies opened and it poured with rain. All the locals (and I was amazed at the number of locals eating breakfast - it was so expensive) kept saying they had never known it to rain in August.
After breakfast we drove to the coast and visited Morrow Bay to view the rock.
Continuing up the coast to Hearst Castle we almost missed our tour time but was able to take the number 1 tour - the general tour for those that hadn't visited the castle before.
The afternoon finished with a bit of wine tasting at the Adelaida Winery and then we headed to our hotel in Paso Robles for the night.
We stayed at the Best Western Black Oak Motor Lodge for the night. After meeting up with some friends in the jacuzzi Alex and I headed out to dinner.
For a complete photo review of the day go to http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=48480qjp.4padate9&x=0&y=3ynueu&localeid=en_US
After meeting Ann, Diana, Cindy, and Debbie in the diner for breakfast we took a slow drive out to the countryside for some more wine tasting. We had planned to wine taste at 5 or 6 wineries but that changed to just 4 tastings as the day progressed. We took the day really slow and easy, enjoying the scenery as we drove around. I was the driver so only had a full tasting at the first winery (less than one glass) and then just had a sip at the others. Our first stop was at J. Lohr Vineyards & Winery. Our pourer is getting her BS in Wine and Viticulture at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and we had a great conversation with her about growing grapes - I don't think we are motivated enough to try that ourselves but the interest is there. We eventually moved on to Graveyard Vineyards - the one vineyard that Alex really wanted to visit. The wine was quite good but what really impressed me was the location. The house/wine tasting area was on top of a hill with 360 degree views. It was quite spectacular.
We tried a couple of other vineyards including Cass Vinery where we didn't actually taste any wines but had a really nice lunch of antipasta salad and a bbq pork sandwich.
After lunch we went to Sculpterra Winery and Sculpture Garden. We loved this winery - the wine was good but the sculptures were really impressive.
The highlight of the day (weekend?) was the event at Tobin James Cellars. Our friend Diana's sister and brother-in-law, Susan and Steve, are members of the wine club and whenever there is a special event they can bring guests. This time they had arranged a party of 16 people and we were part of the guest list. We had a fabulous time at this all-you-can-eat/drink BBQ. There was a local band playing all sorts of music to fit everyones taste - jazz, reggae, motown, rock, alternative, etc. With everyone drinking what they wanted the dance floor was soon packed. And yes, we drank what we wanted. Some might say that this was not a pretty sight but I have to come back with 'we don't care'.
Does Alex look as if he cares?
For more on this fun-filled day go to http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=48480qjp.cjfng9jl&x=0&y=gmz8zd&localeid=en_US
After our night of eating, drinking and dancing we got off to a somewhat late start to come home. As we were traveling along highway 46 - east bound - we came across the James Dean Memorial or Roadside America - James Dean
It's an odd place to be. The memorial is wrapped around a tree, a store in the background, and signs telling you to watch out for rattle snakes. All the rocks around the tree are handwashed and polished from Japan. You are free to leave mementos if you want - we saw pieces of wrapped hard candy, a bouquet of dead flowers, and a bird carving.