Paso Robles Olive Festival, August 25

It’s about time you ventured north to explore the Paso Robles wine country, as it’s rapidly becoming a powerhouse viticultural region of California. And what goes better with an afternoon of wine tasting among the vineyards than a heaping dish of olives?

Deal: Admission to the Paso Robles Olive Festival, which brings together producers from all over California, is free. You’ll get free samples of olives, free tastings of olive oil, free samples of olive products, and even free olive oil ice cream. There’s a competitive cook-off, as well as beer and wine tastings and a “Culinary Row” of local food vendors to try.

When: The festival takes place on August 25, 2007, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. at the city park in downtown Paso Robles. There’s a social mixer (advance tickets $25) happening the night before on August 24 from 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. in the courtyard behind the downtown specialty store We Olive.

Which wineries would you highly recommend visiting in the Paso Robles region? Name a few by posting in the Comments section below. (And if you try that olive oil ice cream at the festival, tell us what it tasted like!)

Why Go: You can spend the morning wine tasting along Hwy. 46, nibble a little at the festival downtown for lunch, then get back out into the countryside to do some more wine tasting. What better way for oenophiles to spend the weekend? (Just remember to designate a sober driver.)

Why Not: The festival website offers free downloads of award-winning olive recipes from past years that you can try at home.

Contact: Paso Robles Olive Festival, (805) 238-4103

Related Los Angeles Times links:
Coastal wine country: Top tasting shops
Uncork California’s wine country with a tasty getaway
Santa Barbara & Central Coast: Summer tunes

– Sara Benson, L.A. Times Travel Deal Detective

[Photo credit: Courtesy of Paso Robles Olive Festival]

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 22, 2007 at 7:34 am by Sara Benson and is filed under California's Central Coast, Festival, Gourmet, Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Summer. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.