Become an ‘olive oil expert’ at Taste of the Santa Ynez Valley – NBC Los Angeles

DRIZZLE IT IN A WARM PAN, pour it in a bowl, ladle it generously atop pasta, mop it up with a dinner roll, add a little to a dessert that could definitely do with more moistness… and that’s just beginning. What can’t be done with a beautiful bottle of olive oil? It’s the cook’s friend, the afternoon snacker’s cracker-enhancing go-to, the dippable delight of anyone who has ever sat adjacent to a bread basket. There is a way to deepen your olive oil acumen all while enjoying some slow, pungent pulls of one of nature’s nicest, slipperiest, oh-so-eatable/drinkable elixirs. Attending a workshop devoted to the good stuff, led by Theo Stephan of Global Gardens, “one of only 300 Olive Oil Sommeliers in the world.” It’s all happening at Taste of the Santa Ynez Valley, a four-day foodie festival devoted to the pleasures of the plate, community, learning, and life.

SANTA YNEZ… is the spot for the Sept. 29 olive oil-themed session, which is priced at $30, and participants will sample a dozen fine organic oils grown around the region. Other tempting to-dos over the weekend include yoga at a Los Olivos vineyard, Vino Vaqueros Horseback Riding in Santa Ynez, and the Solvang Food & Wine Celebration on Oct. 1, when the whole sumptuous shebang wraps up. The appetizing events are priced in an a la carte fashion, giving gourmands the opportunity to pick the piquant pursuits they’d most like to try. Spots are filling up, though, for many of the Taste of the Santa Ynez Valley offerings, so book oil-y — er, early, rather — and enjoy olive oil, wine, and the deliciousness of this food-grape-olive paradise.