Different people attend wine festivals for different reasons.
Certainly, “wine” is the main reason, whether it’s to taste as many as possible within a restricted time frame (you’ll see a few of those folks at every festival), to savor some sumptuous wine-and-food pairings, or perhaps to encounter a new variety or discover a new favorite.
Good, valid reasons all.
But when picking and choosing among the myriad of wine festivals that are out there, I add another element to the mix: music.
For me, the “ultimate goal” at a wine festival these days is to find a wine that I really, really like…ask (beg, if necessary) the winery rep for a glass (as opposed to a splash)…gather a few “bites” from the food purveyors…and then grab a seat and listen to some good music.
The genre of music is pretty much irrelevant. At Winesong, which we visited in yesterday’s posting, classical music is the order of the day. And that music is absolutely perfect in that setting.
But at an event like the Santa Barbara County Celebration of Harvest, I’m looking for music that’s a little more…how can I put it?… kick-ass. Hey, it says “Celebration” right in the title of the event, so let’s celebrate!
The 2012 edition will be held on the afternoon of Saturday, October 13, at Rancho Sisquoc Winery in Santa Barbara County’s Santa Maria Valley. More than 100 wineries will send reps to pour their current releases (and perhaps a few cellar favorites). A number of local restaurants and catering companies also will be on hand, preparing a feast of wine-friendly food.
And two, ahem, kick-ass music groups will provide some great sounds: Donna Greene and the Roadhouse Daddies, and Sean Wiggins and lOne gOat.
Both Greene and Wiggins have been compared to Bonnie Raitt, so that’s about all I really need to know. Other sirens to whom Greene has been compared include Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, Peggy Lee, Etta James and Eva Cassidy. Another name that comes up when discussing the singing style of Wiggins is Melissa Etheridge.
All in all, the Celebration of Harvest sounds like a great way to make the transition from summer to autumn—something that takes place, officially, on Saturday.
So long, summer!
