Anytime is a good time to visit Buellton, in the wine country around Santa Ynez, CA. But the 20th anniversary of SIDEWAYS, a classic comedy of male misadventures on a pre-wedding trip to the bucolic California wine country, is as a good reason to go this fall as any.
The movie follows emotionally unstable wine snob and unsuccessful writer Miles (Paul Giamatti )as he accompanies his extrovert/derelict actor friend Jack (Haden Church) on a last bachelor jaunt. They drink a lot of wine and talk about it, as their journey to the vineyards and the tasting rooms grows increasingly unhinged.
The film has an accomplished cast of Giamatti, Sandra Oh, Haden Church and Virginia Madsen. Based on the novel by Rex Pickett and directed by Alexander Payne, SIDEWAYS was a surprise hit, making $110 million on a budget of $16 million. At the 77th Academy Awards, the R-rated comedy (currently streaming on Hulu) was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Haden Church), Best Supporting Actress (Madsen), and won for Best Adapted Screenplay, (Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, from the novel by Pickett.)
And thanks to Miles’ deep fondness for Pinot Noir and his profane rejection of Merlot, sales of Pinot Noir on the West Coast reportedly increased by 16%, while Merlot dropped 2%. Even Wine Spectator celebrated the little “wine movie” that could.
California has many wine regions, from the vineyards of Temecula not far from San Diego to the high-end wineries north of San Francisco in Napa Valley. But Buellton and the Santa Ynez Valley are only a three-hour drive from Los Angeles County and its 10 million residents. Buellton is located just north of Santa Barbara, about 10 miles from the Pacific Ocean on Hwy 101.
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Exiting the 101 at Route 246 brings you to what is now known as the Sideways Inn, a classic two-story motel-style structure distinguished by its windmill and wall murals. There’s plenty of free parking, and operator Highway West Vacations brings a bit of the spirit of the Wild West to life in every guestroom. Each room is equipped with king beds, a mini fridge, and a microwave with a complimentary continental breakfast for all guests. There’s a swimming pool and spa, a fitness center, and outdoor conversation pits with fire pits.
The bar, Sideways Lounge, features vintage motorcycles, antler chandeliers and tufted leather sofas. It offers innovative cocktails, craft beers, and, of course, Central Californian wines.
The Buellton area is a relaxing respite from the city, framed by the rolling Santa Rita Hills. The area, including greater Santa Ynez, boasts bucolic vineyards, farms, restaurants, olive trees, riding stables, a zipline, and even an ostrich farm to visit. While the area wineries are renown for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Buellton also boasts a couple of award-winning breweries, Firestone/Walker, and Figueroa Mountain Brew Co.
The quaint Danish village of Solvang is next door, and the local night sky is occasionally lit up with brilliant rocket launches. Lompoc and Vandenberg Space Force Base are a few miles to the west.
The area has many wineries and tasting rooms from Brick Barn Wine Estate, which sometimes has live music as well as tastings, to Hitching Post Wines, where friends Frank Ostini and Gray Hartley have been making wines together since 1979. And if you love the film, but can’t get to Buellton this fall, Hitching Post has released a limited-edition 2021 Highliner Pinot Noir with a SIDEWAYS label, commemorating the wine that became so central to the story.
Orsini says he has two full-time jobs, as he also owns and operates the Hitching Post 2 Restaurant, a destination for locals and tourists alike, especially since SIDEWAYS. The Hitching Post, the setting of several critical scenes in the film, makes excellent drinks and fantastic steak and other meats, cooked over a red oak fire.
In September, actress Virginia Madsen made a special appearance at a SIDEWAYS anniversary festival and screening of the film. Madsen spent time in the kitchen and bar of Hitching Post 2 to get the feel of what waitressing there would be like. She and actress Sandra Oh also went to the Hitching Post winery to see the winemaking process first-hand.
Then there’s Vega Vineyards and Farm, originally established in 1853. Vega Vineyards offers a variety of Italian varietals, some originally from “briefcase clippings. Wines are curated by winemaker Steve Clifford, and the restaurant also serves locally grown ‘farm-to-table’ food from 11am to 5PM in a beautiful outdoor setting. Mediterranean salads and shawarma were served to us by owner Demetrios (“Jimmy”) Loizides, who joked, “All we do around here is eat and drink.”
Vega Vineyards is a working farm, a tasting and dining spot, and an event venue, hosting weddings and other celebrations. The property also has a number of guest rooms in the Historic Old Adobe, built in 1856 or their new vineyard house. Guests can shop at the store, play lawn games and even feed the farm animals at the petting zoo.
There’s much more to see and do in Buellton and Santa Ynez, a slice of Americana that is also wine country.
One example is the privately owned Mendenhall Museum. The Museum is a display case for roadside America, composed of hundreds of street signs, racing collectibles and vehicles. The museum, which is open for tours and events, specializes in “petroliana” or service station memorabilia, from pumps to signs to a giant rotating 76 ball.
No visit to Buellton could be complete without a visit to Ostrich Land USA. Although Jack in SIDEWAYS relays an unnerving story of running through the ostrich pens naked, today the setting seems pastoral, with giant ostriches and emus accepting bowls of treats. It was a little unnerving how “Buellton’s favorite pets” stared down at us with their beady blue eyes. One young man was the recipient of an ostrich mating dance as it flashed his or her wings, although fortunately on the other side of the fence.
I had been dreading going on a horseback ride as I am something of a hefty horseman. But I was pleasantly surprised on our trail ride by “Justin,” the 1400-pound mount they gave me at Santa Ynez Valley Horseback Rides. He was either amazingly well trained or I have developed a previously unknown ability as a horse whisperer.
The company boasts a collection of exceptional horses, including former champions in various equestrian disciplines such as dressage, roping, racing, sport horse, and reining. Justin and our human guides took our small group for a trail ride through the local hills and brush. I even managed to ford a couple of streams without falling headfirst into the drink.
As for re-fueling, the ultra-thin Danish pancakes are a specialty of the area, as served at Ellen’s. Another place popular among both locals and tourists is Industrial Eats, on the 246. Industrial Eats bills itself as a restaurant and butcher shop. Its menu, handwritten daily on a big piece of butcher paper, includes artisan charcuterie, smoked pheasant, duck fat fries, meaty sandwiches and excellent pizza, making it a lunch favorite for tourists and locals.
At the screening of SIDEWAYS held at the Solvang Festival Theater, actress Virginia Madsen described the film as “A fine complicated blend—which has aged well.” Of the Santa Ynez Valley, she said, “This place in the world means so much to me.”