The temperature is starting to rise, beautiful garden gatherings are ramping up, and humming bees collecting pollen can be heard any time you step outside. It is music to my ears for so many reasons, and it instantly brings to mind one of my favorite spring cocktails: The Bee’s Knees. Let’s take a look at […]

“People do tell me – ‘Wait, I thought you said you’d never do pinot!’” jokes winemaker Larry Schaffer. We’re chatting inside his sleek Tercero tasting room in downtown Los Olivos. And he’s pouring me his latest release: pinot noir. Schaffer’s Tercero label has always been a bastion for imaginative, thoughtful Rhône wines. And his approach […]

This month marks a major milestone for travel to Ireland: one of the most popular European destinations for American travelers dropped all entry restrictions on March 7th and, last week, celebrated St. Patrick’s Day publicly for the first time since 2019. For a famously gregarious people, a momentous occasion indeed. I was there to cover […]

Two of our favorite pastimes have plenty to offer on their own. Drinking great wine enhances everything from consumption to conversation. Listening to music we love can lift our spirits and set the mood. Both also make us feel good. But what about putting these two actions together? And I’m talking about beyond just turning […]

Coupe, Collins, Nick and Nora, highball, rocks, double old fashioned, julep, and the list goes on. Have you ever wondered why there are so many glasses for cocktails? What is each style used for? What’s the difference between an old fashioned, rocks, and lowball? Sometimes glasses are generic and used for many different drinks (e.g. […]

Wine Pioneer Jim Clendenen Passes Santa Barbara County lost one of its most prominent champions in 2021. Jim Clendenen passed away May 15 at age 68. His ebullient, electric personality was certainly a Clendenen calling card, much like his undulating blond hair and steady parade of loud shirts. “It’s funny, I always think that winemakers […]

As we wind down 2021 and ring in the new year, it is time to discuss the single most important concept in crafting a cocktail and that is balance. Balance is that elusive point where all the ingredients harmonize, and the result is so much more than the mere sum of its parts. Have you […]

“We are a community of dreamers,” Anthony Yount tells me as we sip al fresco on the Denner Vineyards patio, overlooking a landscape of green, undulating hills and dozens of acres of proprietary vines. I’d asked the winemaker what he feels makes the Paso Robles wine world unique. He went on to find a silver […]

Some of the best Napa Valley cabernet I’ve had in a long time comes from right here in Santa Barbara. The merits of Addendum, a high-end boutique label launched by the Fess Parker Winery team in 2014, hinge on its fruit sources. Fact is that the Los Olivos-based winery has forged relationships with some of […]

Hello and welcome to Mixing It Up! My name is Ian Wickman. I will be your host in this column about all things cocktail. I am lucky to be a fellow Montecito resident and have lived here with my wife and two daughters for the last eight years. I am a cocktail creator and cook, […]