Summer rolls around and that means a few certainties for me. First, I will be following and cheering for my daughter’s fast pitch softball team as they make their annual push to qualify for the Western Regionals. Second, I will be down at the Santa Cruz Beach & Boardwalk at least twice (my kids love theme parks) and third, I will get to visit a few Santa Cruz wineries on the way to or from the land of deep fried Snickers bars, over priced popcorn and over-the-hill musicians trying to stay relevant (Can anyone say Eddie Money!?)

All kidding aside, Santa Cruz is indeed home to a great beach community with its fair share of hippy-like ‘beach bums’, a terrific college (The University of California, Santa Cruz) and many a surrounding winery. Though wineries like Ridge and Mount Eden Vineyards are amongst the most venerable and established names in California wine, Santa Cruz is only recently on the global radar screen- and it’s long overdue. Continue reading »