Often, navigating a new wine region can be daunting--one hopes to find not only great wines, but friendly people and beautiful scenery along the way as well.  Even for repeat visitors, having a guide in wine country can help one explore new places and meet new people.  Gee Gee Mainini started Paso Robles Wine Glass Tours as a way to help visitors and locals alike explore and enjoy all that Paso Robles has to offer.

We are excited about this opportunity to write about J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines as we have our own history with them.  We started frequenting the Paso Robles tasting room when we began dating about 4 years ago.  We’ve since become good friends with many of the people that work there, and have often joked that it was our neighborhood hangout since we once lived right down the road.  Walking into the tasting room and feeling like part of the family is a great feeling.  We have many awesome memories over the years, from tasting the great wines, to having fun with the wonderful employees, to attending the many club events.

Although Jake and Josh Beckett come from  a well-established wine family in Paso, they do not rely on tradition to shape them.  Instead, they draw their influences from the world around them--surfing, motocross, family, art--and make wine that fits their world.  They want the approachable feeling of their tasting room to translate to the wine them make.  They strive to make wine which can be easily approached by connoisseur and new wine-drinker alike.

As experienced winemakers they are confident enough to let the wine speak for itself, and have fun with the outside of the bottle.  This has  allowed the image of the winery to take shape naturally.

Jake and Josh Beckett grew up in the Paso Robles wine industry, learning winemaking through watching their parents run Peachy Canyon Winery.  After finishing college, they each returned home to Paso Robles to make wine at their parents’ winery.

Paso Robles’ hot summer days, paired with cool nights, have proven to be the perfect climate for growing Petite Sirah grapes.  The heavy and dense grapes are anything but petite and have a deep, rich color that matches its heavy taste.

Robert Hall's Don Brady is one of many winemakers who say Petite Sirah is surging in popularity in the region.  “It’s a great varietal,” Brady said. “It does very well in Paso Robles. It’s a great fit for the region.”

On the northern end of Paso Robles, the sun bears down a little hotter, and less rain saturates the soil. That may sound unpleasant for some, but at San Marcos Creek Vineyard, when life gives them heat, they make award winning Zinfandels.

"Zin grapes really thrive in the warmer climate," said Cathy Winter, who manages the tasting room and sales with her husband Brady Winter. "They get a big, jammy flavor that's really intense."

Three ventures, one location equals a unique stop on your westside wine tour

The day the barn at Sycamore Herb Farms burned down was a dark day indeed, but a new light is shining on the property now thanks to Lone Madrone Winery and the Fat Cat Farm. It may seem like an unlikely pairing, but the winery and the new herb farm fit together nicely.

Lone Madrone began when Neil Collins, already the winemaker at Tablas Creek, discovered a vineyard in a setting on York Mountain that had grapes he couldn't resist. His label shows the one Madrone tree that still sits atop the hill in that vineyard. So in 1996 Neil began making wine from those grapes and distributing them from his sister'sout of a garage in Los Osos.

Father and son John and Dustin Somogyi make wine at their winery with dedication to each part of the process.  From building their own hillside tasting room—including pouring the foundation, milling the wood and building the counters—to farming their estate vineyards and making their wine, this two-man team has literally built Rocky Creek Cellars from the ground up.  And, it seems that this approach is paying off: John points out that their 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon was awarded a gold medal in a blind tasting at the Central Coast Wine Competition.

Husband-and-wife team run Changala Winery

Changala Winery, owned and run by husband-and-wife team Jean and Heidi Changala, is the product of the Changalas’ love for their adopted hometown of Paso Robles.

In 1987 Jean and Heidi moved to Paso Robles from the Bay Area.  Both engineers by trade, they were excited to stretch their wings in the open space that the Central Coast had to offer, and to get back to Jean’s farming roots.

Jean grew up in a farming family and then went to school at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.  And so it was natural that they would move to the Central Coast and try their hand at one of its main crops: grapes.

Looking for a fine cheese to pair with your favorite Central Coast wine or just something delicious to snack on? Check out two gourmet cheese shops open in downtown Paso Robles near the City Park.

Vivant Fine Cheese, located on Pine Street across from the theater, is not to be missed. Owners Danika and Fred Reed are filling a niche with their tasting room, restaurant, and mobile cheese truck.

Danika, a graduate of Cal-Poly's Dairy Science Program, started the business with Robert and Sherry Gilson, who own the Hotel Cheval next door to the cheese shop.

It’s an easy way to spend the day. Cruising down water slides, hanging out in a giant wave pool and relaxing in a lazy river.

The Ravine Water Park, on Highway 46 East in Paso Robles, has rides for all ages, starting with the 5,000-square-foot, 16-inch deep kiddie pool and play area that includes numerous slides, sprinklers and an interactive play structure.

Two rides, the Lazy River and Wave Pool, are geared for all ages and also the most popular. There are two Twister Slides, one a little more intense than the other, the Kamikaze Slide and the Toilet Bowl.

Usually when a horse walks into a bar, it's a setup for an old joke, but at the Pine Street Saloon in downtown Paso Robles, it's a yearly tradition. This tavern is housed in one of the town’s oldest buildings and honors its wild western roots during the annual Pioneer Day Parade by throwing the door wide open and letting cowboys lead their horses in for a drink. This year, the event takes place on Saturday, Oct. 8.

In the Spring of 2007 artist Anne Laddon decided to address what she saw as an urgent need in her city: Paso Robles was missing a center for its growing art community. Now, her vision for an active, involved space for artists and art lovers alike is complete. Studios on the Park opened its doors in May of 2009 and has already begun to serve as a major hub of Paso Robles' thriving art community. Anne is pleased to say that Studios on the Park has opened to "tremendous public support."

The Paso Robles Pioneer Museum, located at 2010 Riverside Avenue, next to the Mid- State Fairgrounds, is a great place for an afternoon excursion to learn the history of the Paso Robles area. The 20,000 square feet of building space shows Paso Robles through the years, even before it was Paso Robles, and gives visitors a glimpse of what life was like in the good ol' days.

Located on the southern end of the Paso Robles airport property, the museum is one of few "fly-in" or "drive-in" facilities in the country. The museum's primary goal is to "preserve, perpetuate and display American aviation history, especially that of our nation's military services." While the museum does not own flyable aircraft, many of the museum members own flyable WWII aircraft that are on display.

The Terrace Hill Olive Company began in 2000, when Uwe and Martina Henze purchased their beautiful property on the Pleasant Valley Trail just outside of Paso Robles.

Unlike many local farmers, they purchased the land to plant olive trees with wine grapes as an after thought. Today the five Tuscan varietals of olives are used to make oils that consistently win gold medals – four have been won already this year.

Olive oil tasting involves smelling the aroma of an oil, and then sipping it to taste its positive attributes. Official tasters drink the oil from dark blue glasses, to ensure they can’t see the color of the olive oil (and be influenced by an oil’s green or gold color).

The beach at the Oceano Dunes is the only beach in California where vehicles are still allowed to drive on the sand. And the dunes were features in "Pirates of the Caribbean: At the World's End." Visitors are able to camp and ride all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) on the beach all year round.

Before you head out to the dunes, the Friends of the Oceano Dunes offers tips on what to bring and what to do and not to do:

• Arrive at the beach at low tide – a tide schedule can also be found on the Web site www.oceanodunes.org

This is a great place to start an exploration of tidepools. From Piedras Blancas to Montana de Oro the rocky outcroppings of the coast offer us a glimpse into the marvelous wilderness of the underwater world.

It starts with the rise and fall of the tides. Twice a day, pounding surf surges in and beats against the rocky shoreline, whipping up an agitated froth. Six hours later the waters retreat leaving the area exposed and life within it on hold until the sea returns.

Discover their sleepy hideaway just off Highway 1 at Piedras Blancas

They lie like slugs on the beach, continuously flipping sand over their backs and now and then two or more rear up challenging each other with mock battle roars. This is how it is in elephant seal breeding season at Piedras Blancas Lighthouse on the Central Coast of California.

Elephant seals began hauling out on a secluded beach just south of the lighthouse in 1990. It was an extraordinary occurrence that delighted the public traveling Highway 1 north of San Simeon.