Edhat Staff
2017 Santa Barbara Polo & Wine Festival (photo by Andrew Thill)
By edhat staff
A group of soulful musicians are scheduled to gather on September 8th for the 2nd annual Santa Barbara Polo and Wine Festival.
Held at the luxurious Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club, this festival combines a unique California offering of polo, Santa Barbara County wine, and music for a fun one-day experience.
Soul music legend Booker T. Jones, gritty blues artist ZZ Ward, energetic and dynamic band The California Honeydrops, and the jazz-inspired blues artist Quinn DeVeaux are all scheduled to perform as well as DJ sets by Soul Dust Productions.
Also, $1 of every ticket sold will be donated to Notes for Notes, a local non-profit organization dedicated to the growth of music education for youth. Notes for Notes is also sponsoring a local youth band, the Jazz Villians, as the festival’s opening artist. This young jazz combo has been making their mark in Santa Barbara and in just 2 years, the six-piece has already played venues such as The Lobero Theater, Marjorie Luke Theater, SOhO, and Ventura’s Squashed Grapes.
Summerland Winery, Sanford Winery & Vineyards, Jardesca, Standing Sun, Old Creek Ranch Winery, and Lavender Oak Winery will be in attendance pouring wine during the tasting hour.
Don’t forget the polo matches. This year the festival is kicking off the 8-goal polo series, hosting two official polo games for the crowd to enjoy. If you’ve never been to a polo match before, there are official rules and suggested attire. To sum it up eloquently, polo is where people on horses hit a ball with sticks into a goal area and spectators dress slightly more formal for a summery Santa Barbara day.
The highlight of polo matches is always the champagne/wine divot stomp. This is a polo tradition where patrons take to the field at the close of the match to flip over divots with their shoes and drink their beverage of choice.
The event begins at noon on Saturday, September 8th and a variety of general, VIP, and group tickets are available for purchase at sbpoloandwine.com
