IF YOU GO
Getting there: Solvang is roughly 130 miles north of Los Angeles and about 35 miles north of Santa Barbara.
Staying there: From Labor Day to Memorial Day, Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort in Solvang offers special packages that include typically extra-cost activities, such as green fees, tennis fees and horseback riding. Rates start at $525 per night for double occupancy and include breakfast and dinner daily. 800-425-4725; www.alisal.com
Golf: The Ranch Course green fee is $135, including cart, on weekdays; River Course is $76.
Wine: More than 100 wineries can be found in the Santa Ynez-Santa Barbara region, and 15 are within easy driving distance of Solvang; www.sbcountywines.com, www.santaynezwinecountry.com.
Vacation destinations often are chosen based on which passion the traveler wants to satisfy. A destination that feeds two or more of those passions is a true find.
The Santa Ynez Valley in California proved to be a perfect area to combine my love of food and wine with a growing infatuation with golf.
Less well known than Napa or Sonoma, the area around Solvang and Los Olivos is bubbling with top-notch wineries, and several golf courses are nestled in the valley. Two of the courses are affiliated with Alisal Guest Ranch and Resort, so I stayed there. It turned out to be an ideal base for my itinerary, thanks to its proximity to the grapes and the greens. Bonus point: I got to play the Alisal Ranch Course, open only to resort guests and club members.
Designed 60 years ago, the Ranch Course is immaculately maintained, and the scenery is spectacular. It’s relatively short at just a bit under 6,600 yards, but its narrow fairways make it as challenging as it is beautiful. The somewhat limited access virtually guarantees fast play (read: more time to hit the surrounding tasting rooms).
I especially enjoyed the ninth and 14th holes. Both offer superb views and careful shot-making. The ninth is a short par-3 from the white tee that requires accurate aim between trees on each side; the blue tee calls for a longer shot through a tighter opening in the trees. The 14th is another par-3 and necessitates a shot between trees and over a creek.
Alisal’s public course, the River Course, puts a premium on accuracy because of an abundance of water hazards. Its 6,800-yard layout winds among the Santa Ynez River and four lakes, and water comes into play on about two-thirds of the holes.
The course looks much more wide open than it plays; many of the broad fairways actually are sloped along the sides. Shots that land along the edges of the fairway often leave the golfer with a difficult side-hill lie.
The course’s signature hole is the 17th, a short par-3 that demands a very accurate shot to the green surrounded by sand and water hazards. My favorite hole is the first. It’s a long par-5 from an elevated tee that boasts gorgeous views of the valley.
The pace of play at both courses is quick, so an early tee time leaves plenty of room to explore the area’s vineyards. A rental car is a must. And since this is wine country, so is a designated driver.
North of Solvang are two of my top picks: Bridlewood Estate Winery and The Brander Vineyard.
Bridlewood (www.bridlewoodestatewinery.com) sports the lush landscape of the former horse farm it once was. Visitors can sit on the patio sipping wine and drinking in the view of the vineyards climbing the hills on the other side of the valley. The tasting room offers several flights, but don't skip the chardonnay and pinot noir reserve bottlings from the Santa Lucia Highlands. Both are round and full with a well-controlled use of oak.
Brander (www.brander.com) is one of California's true legends in the production of sauvignon blanc. The "au Naturel" is a superb example of what a fine sauvignon blanc can be: rich, but with a firm mineral backbone. Brander's Cuvee Nicolas is a lovely blend of sauvignon blanc and semillon that will be competitive with any white Bordeaux.
The winery also houses an excellent collection of Latin American art, especially ceramics.
South of Solvang is Sunstone Vineyards and Winery (www.sunstonewinery.com), one of the prettiest vineyard settings I have seen, and home to an eye-catching villa that overlooks the estate's vines. Completed 12 years ago, the villa is built from imported limestone from a small village in France and reclaimed materials that founders Fred and Linda Rice discovered in Europe and brought back to the estate.
The 8,500-square-foot villa is available for larger parties, and its five bedrooms are certainly among the most unusual and romantic in the valley.
The Rices’ winemaking son, Bion, oversees the Sunstone operation, carrying on his parents’ quest to produce high quality, sustainable wines from the 28 acres of grapes that surround the villa.
Viognier lovers shouldn’t miss the special Linda’s bottling, named for Rice’s late mother. On the red side, the Bordeaux-style blend Eros is outstanding.
After a day at the tees and the tasting tables, the warmth of the Alisal is welcome. The ranch is something of a luxurious throwback. The rooms have neither televisions nor telephones. Although free Wi-Fi is available, it wasn’t the most stable when I visited, and cell phone reception was very spotty. (Management has since told me the resort has a new cell phone tower on the property that has boosted the Wi-Fi strength significantly.)
Food at the resort’s dining room is excellent — a good thing since it’s included in the hefty price of the room — and the wine selection, as you might expect, is outstanding.
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(Randall Weissman is a freelance writer.)
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