Chamisal Vineyards is a must-visit in San Luis Obispo’s Edna Valley.
Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle
I published an article today about the opening of Edna, a new wine and food emporium in San Luis Obispo’s Edna Valley. Now, I’m eager to plan a visit, and not just because it was created in partnership with Los Angeles’s Jeremy Fox, one of California’s most influential chefs. (You may recognize his name from Santa Monica’s Rustic Canyon and Birdie G’s, and the defunct, Michelin-starred Ubuntu in Napa).
Surrounded by vines and set in the former Edna Valley Vineyard tasting room — which Gallo shuttered in 2024 before selling the property to a group of locals — Edna is a restaurant, wine tasting collective, casual market and a distillery in one. It’s a notable development for the rustic Edna Valley, arguably the most overlooked wine region on California’s Central Coast.
Edna Valley — which is part of the SLO Coast AVA, established in 2022 — should be on the radar of more people. The landscape is beautiful. The wineries are unpretentious, more affordable than most other regions, and produce elegant Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. It’s close to the ocean and a bustling college town, and it even has a tiny airport. But other nearby wine towns, like Paso Robles and Santa Barbara, have more amenities: resorts, Michelin-starred restaurants, and multi-million-dollar wine estates that offer elaborate food pairings, hikes and other trendy experiences.
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Edna Valley was the first wine region I ever visited south of San Francisco, back in 2014 when I was just starting to write about wine. In more recent years, however, I’ve instead found myself tasting my way through Paso, Los Alamos and Santa Barbara’s Santa Rita Hills, even skipping Edna Valley entirely on visits to Pismo Beach. Edna, however, makes me want to return, and if you’ve never visited, it could be a reason to plan your first trip. The drive from San Francisco typically takes between three and four hours.
Here’s how I would schedule a fall weekend on the Central Coast centered around a visit to Edna. The wine tasting collective and market are currently open, but you may want to save this itinerary for October when the restaurant and distillery open as well.
Friday
If you hit the road early enough, stop for dinner either in Paso Robles at Les Petites Canailles, a French restaurant beloved by the local wine community, or in Ember, a buzzy woodfire spot from a Chez Panisse alum that’s tucked away in an Arroyo Grande strip mall. Book a room at Hotel SLO, a modern, playful hotel with a rooftop bar and a plunge pool in downtown San Luis Obispo.
Saturday
Drive 15 minutes to Pismo Beach and start your day with a hike at the Pismo Preserve ($5 parking fee). This is one of my favorite hikes in California; it’s not too strenuous and offers stunning views of the coast and Pismo’s pier.
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Refuel afterwards with an early lunch in Pismo at a Central Coast institution: Splash Cafe, home of some of the best clam chowder I’ve ever had, which is a big statement coming from a New Englander. (I get my chowder in the bread bowl with cheese. While the other toppings are tempting, the soup is plenty rich without them.) Expect a line outside the door, but it moves quickly. If you’re not feeling chowder, head back to San Luis Obispo and order the equally hyped tri-tip sandwich from Firestone Grill.
Freshen up at your hotel before an afternoon tasting ($45) at Edna Valley legend Chamisal Vineyards. Founded in 1973 and located just five miles from the Pacific Ocean, Chamisal was influential in California’s cool-climate winegrowing movement, producing complex, elegant and mineral Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays. The Syrah, however, is a sleeper and one of my favorites. The patio here, which looks out at Chamisal’s sloping vineyards, is a little paradise where you’ll want to sit for hours. For that, you can order bottle service.
Make a dinner reservation at Edna, timing it around sunset to optimize the view. The lettuce salad, tossed in a French dressing made with pickled beets, is slated to be the restaurant’s one permanent dish. I’m also intrigued by the petrale sole stuffed with Dungeness crab and topped with a yuzu hollandaise, and the Paris-Brest pastry filled with almond, lavender and German buttercream.
If you’re feeling a nightcap, Highbar, the rooftop at Hotel SLO, is convenient, but closes at 9 p.m. Breweries and bars — including a moody cocktail bar named Nightcap — are aplenty in downtown San Luis Obispo, where you can relive your college days among Cal Poly students blowing off steam ahead of midterms. Swing by the gum alley; it’s disgusting, but a San Luis Obispo rite of passage.
Sunday
After breakfast, trek back to Edna for a tasting at the wine collective. Choose a flight ($35) from one of the four producers. My pick would be Dunites, which makes a fun array of cool-climate wines — not only SLO Coast’s signature Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, but also Syrah, Albariño, a couple of sparklings and an esoteric white blend of three grapes, including Pinot Noir blanc.
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After the tasting, swing by Edna’s market to shop for lunch provisions. I’ll probably opt for the chicken salad sandwich and a few packaged local snacks. Take these to the beach, since you really can’t visit San Luis Obispo without spending at least a few hours on the sand. Pismo is the obvious choice, but I prefer Avila Beach, which is smaller and typically less crowded.
When you’re ready, hit the road and head back home. If you have time, swing through Paso Robles for one last wine tasting. I love Monochrome and Benom in Tin City; you can usually walk into both. (Grab some fresh pasta from Etto to take home while you’re there.) For an estate experience that doesn’t necessarily require a reservation, I recommend Paix Sur Terre, Tablas Creek and Thacher.
