DRIVE INTO OJAI, or hike along a valley trail, or even look at a photo of the hills or vineyards or Pink Moment on a calendar, and you know one thing for sure: You're gazing upon quite the verdant, earth-abundant, grow-tastic place. It's a place that is rightly famous for its Pixies, those super-succulent tangerines, and also for a host of stone fruits, Valencia oranges, figs, glorious flowers, hearty shrubs, lavender, and those picturesque coast live oaks. And, of course, there are the grapes, and wines, of Ojai, and the wider region, and sipping your way around town is a time-honored tradition if you're an oenophile with a deep adoration for all things Ojai. Those two things come together in a robust, late-spring way at the annual Ojai Wine Festival, which is uncorking its 32nd annual event in 2018. The upcoming date is...
SUNDAY, JUNE 10, and the place is the lovely Lake Casitas Recreation Area. And while the wines will be plentiful and quality-cool, and the winemakers will be out chatting with visitors, know that the 2018 fest, at its heart, is very much about helping the community continue to heal following the Thomas Fire. The Rotary Club of Ojai-West, the organization behind the venerable vino party, will donate a portion of the festival's proceeds to fire relief efforts. Have you held the area in your heart in the last few months, or, rather especially so? This is a nice way to stop by, say hi, reconnect, and help out. But wines aren't the only star of the day. Look also for local artisans to be out, selling jewelry, art, and more, while area eateries will be on the grounds, too, with yummy eats.
FOR TICKET INFO, the times, ways to donate, and what wineries'll be setting up the bottles, start here, Ojai devotees, all while dreaming of that Pink-Moment-y place of perfection, a spot where so many tasty things, including grapes, just seem to grow well.
