Photo by Joshua Curry. I’ve had a love affair with gazpacho ever since I went to Spain a few decades ago. It was the first meal that I had in Barcelona that started off with gazpacho that got me started. It was a classic red gazpacho (I would later learn that white gazpacho is equally traditional and predates the tomato variety). It was flavorful and cool, the presentation of the garnishes made me laugh. The soup was served with several small, shallow terracotta bowls filled with chopped cucumber, diced peppers and finely chopped onion—and the bowls were identical to the ones I used at home fo ..read more

Photography by Summer Staeb and Max Threlfall. Alice Anderson uses regenerative farming to produce consciously made wines. Most people would argue that quality farming is an essential part of producing good wine. As the saying goes, “You can make bad wine from good grapes, but you can’t make good wine from bad grapes.”  The seamless connection between farming and winemaking is a substantial reason why many winemakers take special care to source fruit from vineyards that are farmed in a way they respect and agree with. To further strengthen that connection, some producers choose to farm th ..read more

[Photography by Fran Collin] Growing up near the beach in Southern California, I’ve swallowed my share of ocean water while playing in the waves and know first-hand that it’s pretty salty. But I’d never considered looking beyond the grocery or specialty market shelves for salt until a discussion during our Eat Local Challenge made me wonder if local sea water might yield edible salt. Steve Escobar, a local crab, lobster and spot prawn fisherman, is always on the lookout for new culinary treasures hidden beneath the surface of the ocean. “I own a live fish market in Newport Beach called the Dor ..read more

Standing above the harbor one recent chilly morning, watching the sunrise painting the local mountains in pastel hues, I spied two fishing boats heading out to sea. I could hear the throb of their engines reverberating across the tranquil water, their silhouettes crisply outlined against the rising sun.  Santa Barbara has had a long history as a fishing port, located in the middle of some of the richest fishing grounds in California due, in part, to the meeting of the warmer southern water and cooler northern water in the Southern California Bight. Some 550 species of fish inhabit or migr ..read more

[Photography by Fran Collin] Just off our coast, 20 to 100 feet below the surface, Santa Barbara divers harvest some of the world’s best sea urchins. I watch as urchin diver Stephanie Mutz rolls backwards off the side of her small boat into the deeper water near Leadbetter Beach to examine a reef she knows well. She is looking for premium sea urchins that contain “California Gold,” the highest-grade uni (bright golden urchin meat). On this unseasonably warm day in early January, I’m helping onboard while she dives. My reward? The promise of the freshest uni I’ll ever taste. My early experience ..read more

Edible Santa Barbara Wine Label Artwork Contest Can you judge a wine by its label? Perhaps not, but it is certainly part of the whole package when it comes to selecting and enjoying wine. So we asked three design professionals to judge wine labels based on artistic quality and graphic design for our second annual Wine Label Artwork Contest. In order to showcase local artistic design, the contest was open only to wineries located Santa Barbara County. There were so many excellent submissions and so much variety that we had to break them down by category. Kudos to these winning labels and many t ..read more

Edible Santa Barbara Wine Label Artwork Contest —A Clean Look— What the Judges Said: Clean, solid design. Easily recognizable logo. The bold, straightforward typography conveys a wine that we can count on. About Lucky’s: The Wine Cellar at Lucky’s, an annual recipient of the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence, offers a broad and deep selection of some of the world’s most highly regarded wines, including their own Lucky’s private label wine by Margerum. www.luckys-steakhouse.com Many thanks to our judges: Harriet Eckstein, Jennifer LeMay and Michael Nicola. The post Lucky’s 2021 Rosé first appe ..read more

Edible Santa Barbara Wine Label Artwork Contest —Subtly Elegant— What the Judges Said: A classic, memorable design with solid typography. Restrained and elegant, mysterious in a way. From the winemaker: “Sourced from the unique sub-AVAs of California’s Central Coast, J. Wilkes offers an extraordinary range of meticulously-crafted wines defined by ocean influence and worthy of exploration.” www.jwilkes.com Many thanks to our judges: Harriet Eckstein, Jennifer LeMay and Michael Nicola. The post J. Wilkes Platinum Tier 2020 Cabernet Franc first appeared on Edible Santa Barbara and Wine Country. T ..read more

Edible Santa Barbara Wine Label Artwork Contest —A Strong Impression— What the Judges Said: The label’s stark, black-and-white design makes an impression. I appreciate the honor given to those who work in the vineyard. Love it. It is very iconic. Great imagery, even without saying a single word. It commands attention and is therefore successful. From the winemaker: “Vigneron Maria Solorzano, Ruben’s wife, and the Patrona of the vineyard, trusts the women of the crew with the most meticulous, detailed tasks in the vineyard.  The women reinvigorate old vines by training wild shoots into new ..read more