With 2,300 wineries, California produces 90 percent of the nation's wine, and ranks fourth in the world in terms of production, behind only France, Italy and Spain. To promote the industry, the California Wine Institute and the California Travel and Tourism Commission teamed up to promote the state as the "capital of culinary travel."
Last week, members of those organizations, along with the Monterey County Vintners and Growers Association, hosted about a dozen wine, food, lifestyle and travel writers on a media tour stretching from San Francisco to Santa Barbara. On the Monterey County stop, the group spent an evening at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, where they were introduced to several Monterey County winemakers, local sustainable wine-growing practices, and Monterey County's tourism opportunities.
