Blackjack Ranch

Blackjack is a must stop for well aged full body wine drinkers ;-) Located on Alamo Pintado between Solvang and Los Olivos, Blackjack offers some of the most unique Merlots, Cabs, Syrah and blends in the whole Santa Barbara County. The staff is super friendly and sometimes you can even see the owner and wine maker working around. It's also a perfect place for picnics as they have many tables outside.

I have visited this winery a few times whenever we went to Solvang in the past and enjoyed their wines. I have since ordered online a few times with no problems. I recently ordered two bottles online and paid $30 to ship to me in New York. Unfortunatetly both wines were not drinkable, they were brown in color and had chunks of sediments in them. When I contacted the company and explained the issues and even sent pictures and asked for a refund they blew me off. They know very well it is not legal to mail open bottles of alcohol so of course they could not be returned. Beware of ordering and having wines shipped as you have no recourse if they are bad and will be out your purchase. Not good customer service at all!!!

A beautiful setting with great wine and knowledgeable staff. We happened upon this vineyard a few years back and now we make sure we stop every time we're back in the central coast wine area. Maximus!!!!

Great wine and even better customer service. The gal that has been there for 22 years knows her stuff and she really made our experience great. Thank you Roger for the great wine!

Had a great Sunday afternoon tasting with Allison! Was a slow afternoon and she was very welcoming and educated about the wine maker and the wine styles. Enjoyed the Harmonie 2003, took a bottle home for future celebrations.

Arrived early and a gentleman asked us to make our selves at home. Later found it he was the owner. The Allison was sweet, friendly and very informative . The wines were delicious. It was just my wife and in there. It was great. Would love to visit again.

This winery is awesome. Grounds are beautiful for a tasting or bring your own appetizers! Face masks are required when getting your tasting and then you take your glass and enjoy in the grounds. They do have sanitizer at the door if you need it. The flights are great and their wines are greatly priced and dance in your mouth! Highly recommend this beautiful place.

Very disappointed with our latest purchase. Visited the winery at the end of July and absolutely loved the 2005 Harmonie. We purchased a case and upon opening we found an inordinate amount of sediment in the bottle. We have opened 5 bottles so far and found the same issue. For the price point this was a real disappointment.

Blackjack ranch is amazing. Their wines are exceptional. We absolutely love Alison and Asta they are both so knowledgeable and sweet. They always make us feel like family when we arrive. The wines are so reasonable and delicious. The tasting room is beautiful and they have great pictures from the movie sideways as well as the history of the winery. Don't miss this place to visit ... it is a great winery !!

For being our very first wine tasting experience this was a winner! We loved this hidden jewel. Syrah's are their specialty and we bought some so that tells you it was great! Crazy coincidence this place was part of the movie "Sideways" that was what lead me to check out these vineyard areas. I just love seeing the grapes on the vines. So beautiful and perfect season is September 2nd. Kind welcoming and rustic building are the added bonus touches!

Went back to Blackjack Winery after a couple years away. The sommelier was friendly, she poured some reds and white wines on the wine tasting menu. The wines were good but it's not for someone new to wine. I liked the 70's rock playing throughout the winery. I would recommend this winery for someone who likes big Syrah wines.

I have tasted at most of the wineries in the Santa Ynez valley. News flash, this is the worst. The wine's acid is so out of balance you might as well be drinking water out of a car battery. They are serving 2003 to 2017 vintages in the tasting room in 2024. This means the wine is so bad they either can't sell it or the wine was so screwed up they needed to lay it down for a decade to make it drinkable. One of my favorites are the 2 oz sherry glasses they use for tastings, presumably to cut down on glass washing expenses. So lame but at least you don't have to smell the wine before drinking. No industry discounts but most people in the wine industry probably know better than tasting here. Our server was pleasant. If you decide to go here and like well aged mouth wash you will love the wines

The Syrah is amazing! This is our favorite place to come and sit outside and have wine and a picnic lunch

Fabulous wines, fabulous experience, Asta was terrific and funny and has a great sense of humor, we sat outside with friends 7 of us and we all bought several bottles of older vintages which are hard to find nowadays in most wineries. A lot of their red are about 10 years old which is just perfect, they are ready to drink now! A must winery to visit!!!

Stopped at this place randomly and it was very cute. Loved the scenery and the beautiful atmosphere that was offered. However, we didn't really enjoy the wines that they had for tasting. But everyone's palette is different. The staff was very polite and the place was very clean.

This place gets 3 stars for our wonderful server Alison. Very friendly and accommodating. Wine was ok. But unfortunately for us, we are travelers with our dog and most places are super dog friendly up here. This place is not. So if traveling with a dog, skip this place.

Asta was great. Loved the wines. Beautiful vineyards. Would come back. Great service.

This place has always been consistently great. Allison is so knowledgeable and awesome. Quality wines for great prices.

We stopped on a wine tour. The most pours for the price, the charming Blackjack (from Sideways) is perfect for average people trying to have a good time and a bang for their buck. It's not perfect if, like the other reviewers here, you are a little too particular with your wine choices, you're expect your ass to get kissed by 5 star waiters, or you're trying to take your 18 yr old wine tasting (let's wine, not whine). Anyway, the wines aren't great by any means- but the quantity over quality thing and the Sideways novelty makes it's perfect for beginner wine taster or wine tours.

I have never really had someone talk me out of buying wine.... I have now had someone talk me out of buying wine. Thought I was going to get kicked out when I asked if they had a "reds only flight". I did try the flight, had to dump most of it, just being honest... When I tried the Chardonnay, it just wasn't for me. I had no dump bucket (when I tried the Chardonnay because it was first on the list) so when I brought the glass back, I was looked at like I barbecued a kitten. I received a lecture about "Who doesn't have a cooler???" Meet me. PASS

This is a great place to taste wine, with several wonderful outdoor tasting areas. But the wines are the real attraction. The best in my opinion this week was the 2010 Maximus Hillside Reserve Syrah, a near perfect wine that on a 2-week wine tasting adventure from Los Olivos, to Napa to Ribbon Ridge in the Willamette Valley, Oregon, was simply the best wine i tasted. Blackjack wines are home runs, one after another. Cheers Alison, thanks for a great day.

My boyfriend and I picked Blackjack at random as we were on a bike ride around Solvang, and we picked right!! 10 tastings for $14 is the best deal around town. We had a great time tasting and chatting with the bartenders and fellow customers. The next day we came back to purchase some bottles, and they were kind enough to offer us tastings of some new varieties before we purchased. Great customer service all around Standing room only and no food offered - but down the road is the town of Los Olivos, where you have food options galore. Stop by for an amazing tasting experience!

This place is awesome! Not only do they have a massive tasting, twelve tastings for fifteen dollars, they have great wines! Allison helped us with our tasting and was such a delight. She even handled us as we got progressively more drunk. Hah! We had a great time, let's just say that. I loved sitting under the gazebo and drinking a bottle or two of wine, enjoying some fruit and taking in the views. I look forward to returning.

they didn't give us logo glasses that were supposed to be part of the $12 tasting but they gave us an off-flight pour of 2007 Rubies. it's a rosé. it's aiiight. i was kinda sauced, as J puts it, so by the time we arrived in our limo to this place owned by an ex-casino owner (so we're told), i can't really remember much about the wine except this - the tasting room lady was nice. i cracked a few jokes, we all laughed, and had a good time. i have a few pictures, including the wines in the flight. check them out!

***My winery/tasting room reviews are rated based upon many factors. First is QPR or quality to price ratio of the wine. In other words, is the wine priced according to how good it is. The second factor is the tasting room experience. This involves the staff, grounds and anything unique about the winery.*** Date Visited: Late 2008 Tasting room fee: $12 (logo glass included), waived with 1 case purchase Wine price range: $16-$100 I have tasted here for years. This is a nice winery just outside of Los Olivos. The place is nothing fancy, and I like that. We get to taste about 8 different wines in their abnormally small tasting room glasses. They make some great Syrahs and a very good cab blend which is their flagship wine. Several of their wines have received high ratings from the famous Robert Parker. Their wines seem fairly priced, with the exception of the Parker rated wines which are overpriced (IMHO). Their tie to Sideways is minimal. Really, they were featured in a 5 second split screen part of the movie. You would not even know it was the winery if Blackjack was not telling you so. Of course, they make the most of this association, there is a Sideways sign out front, stills and what not on the walls inside. New since I last visited is the "as seen on Fox News and CNN" on their main sign out front. Of course, there is matching paraphernalia inside on this as well. Apparently the fact that CNN and Fox were there had nothing to do with their wine, they just needed a backdrop to film a spot on global warming and the wine business. The self promotion is a bit much and kind of cheapens the product. Perhaps they should widen their driveway to accommodate tour buses now. Big 75 person buses can drop of throngs of tourists, just like at the fictional Crass Canyon in the movie. But I digress. I would still recommend you stop, if anything to try their wines.

First off, this is one of the wineries featured in the movie sideways, so that alone is pretty cool. They've got plenty of stories and photos all about that, don't worry! We had really friendly service here (ie, they put up with 6 giggling girls and my earnest questions about wine for my wino boyfriend). For a small fee (i believe $12 or so) you got to sample a TON of wines and keep the glass. They are known for their reds here, my favs were the Double Down Syrah and their Maximus Syrah which was featured in the movie. Most of the girls liked the Maximus but their second choices varied, they've got some good blends too. Definitely would recommend if you're wine tasting in the Santa Barbara area!

A couple delicious wines. the reserve stuff is really really good. $10 to taste 12 wines (1 oz each) on the weekend (megatasting) Service was great, the two ladies were knowledgeable and forthcoming. Got a bottle of the rose not because it was particularly good, but because it was a bottle of wine you could chill and drink on a hot summer day, on the porch, or something. It is where they filmed sideways.

we got here before it closed at 5pm. Because of that, we had a reduced tasting - $8 for 2 whites and 4 reds. They make good stuff for this region. We left with 3 bottles and 2 of their glasses on the house. The young ladies pouring for us were so nice and helpful with tips on where to go for dinner and more wine!! Awesome experience - also, Sideways was filmed here, for anyone who cares. For int'l ppl, bring passports. They are rigorous in ID checks, as we witnessed.

Here's the deal folks if you are on this side of the valley this is the place to stop. Don't be fooled by other wineries on this road leading the Los Olivos. This is always our first stop on a tasting weekend. Some of the better tasting wines in the region plus let's get serious here 10 wines for 14.00 bucks you'd better know this is the best deal around this area. I've been coming to this tasting room since 2004 Allison is by far one of the best tasting room hosts we've ever come across. Proud to say this weekend after so many years of coming here we are now officially wine club members. Thanks Blackjack Ranch for amazing wines, amazing tastings, and fun chats with Allison. Anyone else who's posting these one star reviews talking about how wine here is not good perhaps you be better suited down the way at Buttonwood where they serve adult flavored water :)

Tried this place on my 2nd trip to Solvang and really enjoyed it, did not encounter any problems as other yelpers have, pourer was very kind and explained to us the various wines we were tasting. I notice they are riding the Sideways Movie, but come on, what do you expect? What other movie can they ride on ? Give them some credit, they are doing what other places in america have done for years. Bought a few wine bottles and was on my way to another wine tasting room. If you come across this place check them out, they are small compaired to many along this area, but worth the try. Enjoy your taste and just be happy. If you want to buy or not want to buy no problem, you just waisted $12 or $10 bucks, you get less entertainment in a 2 hour movie for the same price. Drink!

Simple tasting room, full of great wines. For the best experience try and avoid the afternoons and weekends. I love their Chardonnay, and the Harmonie, (although a little pricey). They often have fantastic deals on cases, we brought a case of Chardonnay for 99 bucks..... If you have a chance swing by for the tasting.

My favorite winery in this region. The Pinot is consistently one of the best- every year they make it. Do yourself a favor and snag a tasting there. The help is highly appreciated and have great senses of humor. I'll always go back there when I'm nearby!

On our recent visit to Solvang my wife and I happen to pass by this 'Sideways' Vineyard and even though it was pretty late on Sunday evening we were greeted very warmly by the 2 wine experts Allison and Robin who provided great advise on their 'Reds' and helped us select their best collection. Will visit again surely and this time will pick up the 'Maximus' :)

Excellent tasting that was thrown in free when we bought a mixed case. Folks pouring knew wine inside and out. Generous pours and good wine. The Harmonies are excellent for the area. We also really liked the Allusion 09. Lots of French-inspired choices. Great place to taste tho beware they don't have seating inside, so if you have a back problem (like I do), the ten pour tasting can take a while on your feet. Still worth it!

Their corks crumbled to pieces as I opened the bottles we purchased from them. Look at the other reviews, a lot of people say the same thing. Emailed them several times and they didn't even bother to respond. Poor business practices. Stand by your brand. If you had a bad run of corks, take responsibility and make it right by your customers. Just plain wrong! Stay far away from this winery.

Love the Maximus! We had our kids and they were comfortable hanging in the very comfortable grass area. Such a wonderful end to our Central Coast vacation.

Intimate atmosphere that loves to remind its customers that a scene from the movie "Sideways" was shot there. We get it. Let's talk about the wine. Most wines grown on site. Knowledgeable servers. Probably the best deal in the area. We tried 12-15 bottles for $12.

Okay, I admit. I went because to Blackjack because it was in 'Sideways'. Price is average. $10 for a tasting (no glass) for about 10 wines. Overall, it was a little underwhelming. I was shocked at the size of the tasting glasses -- very small, like a slightly larger port glass that would hold 4-5oz tops. Not very conducent to swirling and volatilizing the esters. The sole tasting room employee was really nice and helpful... until more people came in. Four parties totalling 12+ people in all didn't fare as well and she seemed to be stretched out a little too much. Also, her working on stickers and menus made us feel like we came at an inconvenient time. [side note: leave your kids in the car - they can't go in the tasting room here... but I mean, come on man. what's your kid doing with you wine tasting anyways?! that is, unless they're old enough to be your DD... then it's just brilliant.]

As most other reviewers have noted, Blackjack is the winery featured in the film, Sideways, and the wine noted in the film is the Maximus Syrah (which was quite good, actually). The winery is not settled near much else, and because of their location they have a very strict ID policy. Don't leave your ID in the car if you're in your 20s or a young looking 30-something. The inside of the tasting room is pretty spacious, and there is plenty of room to cozy up to the bar. As others have mentioned, the service is a bit odd. We stood around with no one waiting on us because we were standing on the un-populated side. Once we moved over to where more people were, however, we finally received service. When the pourer checked my ID, she said I looked "soooo Huntington Beach," which I felt was a strange comment, considering that Santa Barbara is hardly different at all from HB. In fact, most people living there are OC transplants. Weird comment!! Aside from our strange pourer, the wines were very good. Blackjack even managed to get me to like a chardonnay...this is no easy feat! I also enjoyed a cheaper syrah called "double down" - bold and juicy red. Unfortunately, the wines were some of the most expensive that we tasted on our trip. The overly high prices are a major drawback. This is a nice winery to taste at, but not a great one to buy from. The tasting glasses are a bit on the small side, but you do get to sample quite a few wines.

We stopped here on a wine tour. It was alright- probably my least favorite experience but not my least favorite wine. The lady doing our pours had a sour puss expression on her face the entire time. She didn't offer any tasting notes and didn't bother explaining anything to me or my friends. The Maximus was our favorite wine though.

Okay, you were in Sideways...we get it...maybe get off that train now? I was not impressed by this place, our friends are members and they said that before the movie it was a really cool winery with a laid back vibe. Not anymore... Didn't really like their wines and didn't appreciate being treated like a teenager trying to get drunk (which is how I think they treat everyone). PASS

My concern and gripe is the customer service. I am disappointed with how they handled my concern. I have only been a member for a short while, each shipment I had 1-2 bottles that the cork was broken or partially disintegrated, most of the time the bottles were fine, but there were a few I had to dump. I sent an email including pics, requesting information and wanted to cancel my membership. The website does not take emails as cancellations only snail mail? So 20 days later I am instructed to look for a letter or email to let me know that the cancellation has been approved...I thought membership was elective? Lastly, when I called the tasting room for help because no one has responded to my week old email, I wasn't asked why I was leaving or for what reason, nor was I offered any compensation for the wine I purchased and had to dump. Well, I have since sent the snail mail, along with the cork as proof...In my opinion, I would find a more friendly wine club.

We have a winner!! After a long and exhausting day of wine tasting in Solvang we finally found a gem after visited a number of wineries. We must have driven pass Blackjack a half dozen times and just simply ignored the only winery with signs which read "featured on CNN, Good Day LA, Fox,Sideways, etc" assuming that with all the publicity the service and taste would have been compromised. Well, to our surprise, nothing was compromised. We walked up and into a ranch style decor and were greeted by Asta. With warm eyes and a welcoming smile she recited the price and flight list of twelve different varieties of wines, yes....12, CHA CHING!! Through conditioning, we immediately laid down our $12 on the counter (please see my review for Rideau Vineyard). With a chuckle, Asta stated that there is no rush and payment would be rendered after the tasting. Long story short, the conversation was intimate, the pours were generous, the information was intelligent, and the taste was award winning (literally). We walked away from Blackjack Ranch purchasing thirteen bottles of wine. Asta validates the saying, "catch more bees with honey than with vinegar". Visiting or just passing through Solvang, Blackjack Ranch is worth the stop.

$12 for a tasting? We thought that was on the pricey side, but you do get to sample 11 wines and keep the glass. However since they're providing 11 samples, perhaps they should also provide crackers? Because by the 8th wine we just couldn't taste the difference anymore and left without purchasing even 1 bottle.

This was our LEAST favorite winery in the area. They're definitely riding off the Sideways movie and not off the quality of their wines. There wasn't one wine that we enjoyed and the price points are absolutely ridiculous. The owner of the place rates his own wines in the 90s, really?!?!? Unless you're a fan of super oaky chardonnay or boozy fruit bomb, you'll want to pass on this one.

You can really feel the owner's personality in Blackjack Ranch. While you're driving down Alamo Pintado, a beautiful little rural road, you encounter a huge sign that says "SIDEWAYS!" at the entrance. This whole theme continues inside the tasting room, with movie stills, various video captures of the owner talking wine on TV, etc. I mean, okay...we all understand that Sideways really promoted Central Coast wineries, but I don't need to be reminded of that. Another annoyance - the tasting glasses are too small. They're like port glasses, not properly sized to highlight the nose of these wines. What a shame, because the wines are solid, high quality stuff. Great Syrahs in various price ranges - I couldn't pass up a case of Double-Down Syrah for $199 ($16 a bottle). A few meritages of excellent quality with price tags to match. Strangely enough, they didn't pour the Maximus which was somewhat dissapointing. I simply don't understand how a tasting room will not open a bottle for tasting, yet still try and sell it. Hell, even Opus One, Rubicon, and other hot shots let you taste their $175/bottle stuff. Anyways... I'm inclined to give this place four stars for the juice, which is legitimate high quality stuff, but the tasting glasses and marketing/decorations don't work for me. One star off for that. I'll come back and give it another shot though - because it is all about the juice, right?

When I went here, I didn't know this was one of the locations of Sideways. You can walk about the vineyard by yourself. They had a lot of wines you could taste for $10-12. There were 11 tried, but these are what I remember: Harmonie (2 years tried) Double Down Syrah 2005 Maximus Syrah "Killer Juice" 2005 Merlot Billy Goat Hill Pinot Noir

Decided to try after hearing mixed things. Totally overrated! Their Cabs and Blends can't hold a candle to most Napa or Sonoma fruit. Tasting room employees couldn't be ruder. Caveat. For those that don't know the wine industry take wine ratings with a grain of salt and how you interpret them i.e. Parker In this industry personal relationships influence ratings. If you want Cab or red blend from this appellation try Starlane Dierberg astral cab! would NOT recommend this producer/vineyard! skip it!

Don't go here unless you're white. We walked in and waited for service but were completely ignored while others (guess what color their skin was) were served. I could say more but you get the point.

Not a fan of their whites... bottom line, they're just not good. Blackjack's reds however are a different story. Unfortunately some of them are very, very pricey (the $60 - $100 a bottle range) so this isn't a place where I'm going to be buying a lot of product. The tasting itself features a lot of wines. On this occasion we shared the 10 for $10 tastings. I have to agree with other reviewers here - the glass you taste with is kind of pathetic. On the plus side, they have a nice picnic area and the employees were very helpful.

Came here with a large group for a friend's birthday. There were 25 of us and this winery did an awesome job at keeping track of all of us and making sure everyone got all their tastings. We went to 2 other wineries as well, but this one was definitely the most organized. The lady that helped us was great at explaining each wine and the story behind it and was very knowledgeable when we asked questions. None of the wines really stuck out to me but it was definitely worth it to come for the experience. We were also on a tight schedule and she did a really good job keeping track of time for us. This is definitely a great stop if you have never been wine tasting before

Delicious wine and amazing service. There wine is very different from other places I have visited. I ended up buying 6 bottles- 2 Chardonnay black cap , 2 Pinot noir and 2 sauv blanc ! Will definitely visit again to get more.

Stopped here during a recent Santa Barbara wine trip. Very generous pours during the wine tasting with some hilarious women working behind the counter - very laid back environment. Really preferred their reds to their whites.

10 tastings and delicious wines. Brandon poured and served us. He is extremely knowledgeable. Bottles were purchased. We bought the chardonnay 21 yummy. We'll visit again. Thank you!

We have visited blackjack on several occasions over the years and recently was the end of August of this year. We purchased a case of 2006 allusion wine for $199,,after opening 4 bottles the corks were split and the residue and taste was rancid. I called and texted the vineyard and tasting room with not one response. Don't go here, don't buy their wine it's old nasty and rancid.

I have mixed feelings about this winery. Their wines are insanely over-priced for the quality... however their Double-down Syrah is very good and only about $16 a bottle if you buy a case. That's the only good deal to be had here. And one of the best deals in the area. Mixed feelings about the pour staff too. Tall red head is very nice and a lot of fun. Blonde can be less than welcoming. They have capitalized on their 20 seconds in "Sideways" more than any other winery. Signs and pictures everywhere, which I find kind of lame. One more note: Their taste pouring is huge. You get like 12 tastings. If you are serious about tasting this is the place that will blow out your palate for the rest of the day... Beware. If, however, you are up here to get s--t faced... I guess it's a good place to start.

This place was just fun. Tasting room in what feels like an old barn, cheezy Sideways stills and a server with a NY accent that made me feel at home. We wandered in right before closing time, but were not rushed and enjoyed the tasting immensely. The Maximus is their baby and I can taste why. Check it out if you're around the area. It's not as pretentious as you'd think and actually quite endearing.