The historic town of Los Alamos is nestled in the heart of Santa Ynez Valley’s idyllic wine country, north of Santa Barbara. In this appellation, cool ocean breezes from the Pacific flow up through the vineyards into the Santa Rita Hills. This optimal climate for growing grapes helps local winemakers craft some of the most award wining wines in the state. Driving the winding, gentle …
Not many individuals consider or work with one sole material, but this is precisely what high-end fabricator Alex Rasmussen—of Neal Feay Studio—does with anodized aluminum. Growing up in his grandfather’s aluminum factory (located in a coastline alcove near the Santa Barbara airport) Rasmussen is a lifelong acolyte. He has dedicated himself to exploring the potential in the finer side of aluminum as a design medium, …
At Les Marchands Wine Bar & Merchant in Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone, local winemakers regularly interact with sommeliers and enthusiasts. The locale’s friendly atmosphere is the upshot of the owners’ considerable knowledge—Brian McClintic tackled the Master Sommelier exam while being filmed for the documentary SOMM and Eric Railsback is the former wine director at LA’s Osteria Mozza. Together they created the wine bar of their …
