Santa Barbara Wine Tours

Was planning to buy a Groupon for a 14 person party bus that included champagne on the bus. Having never been tasting in the SB area (done several tours in Temecula), I didn’t have too high of expectations, which was not a bad thing.
I called to see availability before purchasing the Groupon and used two different numbers to hear two different answers about availability for a certain date. (The second time I asked about availability I withheld that I was going to purchase a Groupon: I was told the date was available… Interesting) The guy ended up verbally agreeing to charge us the Groupon price so we just went through him.
Everything else was ok. Don’t get me wrong my group and I had tons of fun, but the driver did not contribute to it. Our driver, Dan, was ten minutes late. He was not charismatic, and didn’t give us an overview of the itinerary. When we got to the wineries, he just dropped us off, and didn’t really interact with us or the wineries. He had an attitude of a reluctant DD. Oh yeah and we never got champagne.

Jerry runs the show at Santa Barbara Wine Tours. Jerry may be a little older, but he’s fun, youthful, and enjoys his job. I think he is on the expensive side, but all in all, it is not too bad.

This guy, Jerry, is a lunatic. DO NOT EVER BOOK THIS TOUR! Jerry harassed our group for over a year on a discrepancy in the billing. Mind you it was HIS mistake on the billing!
Jerry then backed out of a verbal agreement he gave us on the phone and went ballistic and continued to harass us all over a $ 10 discrepancy… mind you it was 10 bucks people AND he had already agreed to the price we paid him!
Horrible service, liar and flat out creep. I know you’re going to read this Jerry and come up with some lame response… good luck saving your pathetic business. I hope it was worth the 10 bucks dude.

Worst service and experience I have ever had in my life. The guy showed up late and didn’t call to let me know (he only called me back after I called him to see where he was). He was disheveled in apperance with dandruff and sores on his face, and had no knowledge about wine whatsoever. The limo was filthy and when we asked why it hadnt been cleaned before he picked us up, he started screaming at us, and tried to not let us get out of the limo. We took videos and pictures to document it, but I am not going to waste my time any further with trying to dig them up and post them.
Run, don’t walk, away from this guy!!!

I found SBWineTours on a google search of limo tours of Santa Barbara (and surrounding county) wineries and vineyards. A few points on the website piqued my interest:
— one rate, no add-on’s for fuel, etc. It was one hourly price, plus tip.
— customized tours. they would take you to any winery you wanted to go to. The rates are quoted hourly on the website, but you are actually charged on the quarter of an hour. You are encouraged to pay by cash or check, to keep their operating costs down for credit card charges.
— in-​limo karaōke machine, by reservation. I ended up reserving it, but we never saw it or used it.
I sent an email to inquire availability on a particular date. There was an auto-​responder that replied, explaining they were out of the office, and would reply within 24 hours. If it was urgent, a phone number was provided.
About 14 hours later, around noon the next day, I received a template email explaining the amenities and prices. It explained the «Sideways Tour» was most popular, visiting the wineries featured in the movie «Sideways». The email offered to recommend other wineries based on my wine tastes, so I asked for suggestions for a wine drinker who enjoys Syrahs, Pinot Noirs, and Merlots. I was simply given a link to Santa Barbara County winery lists. 3 lists, each with at least 60 wineries on it. I had no clue how to narrow my search. I tried to find some wineries and create some sort of ranking system, and ended up combining most of SB Wine Tour’s Sideways Tour with a few that seemed popular on wine forums, and crossed my fingers. Jerry at Santa Barbara Wine Tours reassured me that I didn’t have to get back to him immediately with the list, but nevertheless, I sent him some list the night before we arrived.
We met Jerry from SB Wine Tours at the Amtrak station, since we were visiting without a car. He was on time, and easy to find in the parking lot. Jerry looked sharp, wearing a suit, and welcomed us to Santa Barbara. We hopped in the limo, which had two wine glasses sitting on the seats, waiting for us. They were etched with «Santa Barbara Wine Tours» and the website, and they were ours to keep. I was excited about coming home with many glasses, as I had read most wineries let you keep the glass as part of the tasting fee. Jerry pointed out bottled water, and a bottle of champagne.
We sped off to Solvang, to the first winery. After we parked, we were instructed to take our glasses with us to each winery. We were a bit confused, but figured since he was going to comp us for wine tastings, it was OK. He introduced us to the host at the wine tasting bar, and left to go sit in the car. We enjoyed our wine tasting, and hopped back in the limo with our dirty glasses, trying to hold them upright in the car so we wouldn’t drip red stains all over the limo or ourselves.
We got to the next winery, and he parked out front. He let us out of the car, and shooed us to the front door, but waited in the car. We were pretty embarrassed carrying in our own wine glasses, stained with the leftovers of the last tasting. We saddled up to the bar, and apologized for our dirty glassware. The host offered their own glassware, and we gladly accepted. The wine was great, they even cleaned out our dirty SB Wine Tour glasses before we left!
Finally, we headed to the last spot, to have lunch. Jerry brought us up to the VIP tasting room, which was empty, and we enjoyed more tasting and a delicious lunch. We both decided we were too sauced to continue wine tasting for the day, so we decided we would ask Jerry to take us back to the hotel. I was a little nervous, and started doing calculations in my buzzed head as to how much I would pay for 8 hours of service (my reservation), how much I would pay for the hours I spent, (closer to 5), and how much to settle if he started to complain.
We got to the limo, I put my fiancée in the car, and I asked Jerry to take us to the hotel. He asked if everything was OK with the winery, and I said we over-​did it, if he would please take us to the hotel. He kind of cocked his head, and said «you’re the boss» and got in the car. I really couldn’t tell if he was upset.
When we got to the hotel, 45 minutes later, he gave me the paperwork, with 4.75 hours of service. That was a nice outcome.
Overall, he performed as advertised: drove us to wineries, and hooked us up with some comp’ed tastings. I wasn’t particularly connected to him, he didn’t make detailed suggestions and didn’t seem passionate, but he did know all the roads and wineries and got us safely around Santa Barbara. Good for the price, and good if you already know where you want to go, and aren’t looking for conversation or a guide to the area.

it’s a one-​man show at the
company. Jerry is an old and polite yet creepy guy. you’re pretty much paying for a designated driver and a limo.
I thought it was really tacky that we had to bring his logo wine glasses from winery to winery. We either had to ask the winery to wash our glasses before leaving or we would have to ask the next place to wash. The upside is that we didn’t have to settle the bill from place to place.
i guess the fees are pretty standard for driver/​limo. but, half a day of touring can get expensive especially if you realize that most of the time he’s just sitting idle — probably taking a nap.

Outstanding wine tours with a focus on earth-​friendly agriculture and exceptional wine. It’s no wonder the Santa Barbara Independent calls us, «…a perfect balance between luxury and sustainability.»