Beer, Wine & Spirits in Morro Bay

Sort This Out Cellars combines the wine selection of a boutique specialty store with the aesthetic of a Vegas diner in the 1950s. Chrome and red stools line up at the bar, and sleek vinyl loveseats are juxtaposed against wine barrels in the lounge. The winery’s aesthetic was inspired by a 1961 Rat Pack photo that recalled times of unapologetic fast living, glamour, and gambling. Because the founders wanted to avoid the sleepy, pastoral vibe of most wineries and all roadside hay-petting zoos, they embraced the rockabilly aesthetic to ensure that their digs were as exciting as their customers and wines.

Those small-batch wines are created from grapes purchased from Californian vineyards and crushed by Sort This Out’s proprietor. “This means,” a writer for Wine Country This Week noted, “he can search the state for the best grapes to crush, or in some cases the best juice from another winery to purchase, and then finish it into his own wine.” The aesthetics surrounding the wine are also important. Mid-century gentlemen’s playing cards inspired a line of bottles with pin-ups on the label matched to flavors within. Other elixirs borrow their names from poker and Vegas table games, hinting at inventive combinations of pinot grigio, viognier, and sauvignon blanc grapes. Some evenings, toasting glasses punctuate the sounds of live music. True to form, the guest bands play oldies and rockabilly tunes.

The first chapter of Brett Escalera’s and Tom Daughters’ foray into the wine industry begin in 1999 when they released their first varietal under the Consilience label—a 1997 Santa Barbara County Syrah. Eight years later, they partnered with Tom's brother Ken to found the sister label, Tre Anelli. Comparatively speaking, the two labels are very different, with Consilience drawing upon the intensity and depth of Rhone varietals and Tre Anelli emulating flavors from Italy and Spain. Both, however, are produced with grapes sourced from Santa Barbara County's top vineyards. At their shop, Brett, Tom, and Ken host daily tastings and dramatic recreations of famous spit-takes within their spacious, dog-friendly tasting room.

Founded in 2010 by father-and-son team Jim and Jaime Dietenhofer and brewer A.J. Stoll, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. has quickly proved its mettle by winning a series of medals, including five golds, from prestigious contests such as the Denver International Beer Competition. Visitors can peek at the brewery’s inner workings on tours, learning about the origins of such beers as Paradise Road Pilsner, Davy Brown Ale, and Hurricane Deck Double IPA. They can also view the towering stainless-steel tanks in which beer is born as a mash and undergoes an awkward adolescence as a root beer. Back in the tasting room, guests sit beneath a wood and sheet-metal awning as they sip samples of the alcohol alchemists' nine beers. The tasting room is often host to events, with live music on the weekends and quiz and darts nights on alternating Wednesdays.

A wine-savvy staff pours samples of locally crafted vintages along the stainless steel bar inside tercero wines' intimate tasting room. Focused on trying to "humanize the wine industry as much as possible,", founder Larry Schaffer uses his master's degrees in viticulture and enology to craft an evolving selection of wines that is both complex and highly approachable. He doesn't even provide tasting notes for his wines, instead encouraging tasters to develop their own impression based on how it tastes and how firm of a handshake it has.