Wine Tasting

Taste six Burgundies from Maddalena Vineyard and enjoy appetizers in an event sponsored by Confete Latin Brasserie and Whole Foods Market. Guests receive a complimentary wine glass and raffle ticket. Wine event, 7 p.m. Confete Latin Brasserie, 7953 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood. (323) 848-7700. $15.

In Santa Barbara, the soon-to-open Caveau Wine Bar & Merchant is hosting a tasting of local wines from the 2012 vintage with more than 50 wineries taking part, including the Ojai Vineyard , Brewer-Clifton , Sandhi and Au Bon Climat . The beauty is that it's a futures tasting and wines will be offered at 20% off retail if purchased before they are released, i.e., in the future. This is the same event Doug Margerum (now making wine under the Margerum Wine Company label)

Here's a $99 coupon deal for a hotel stay that positions you perfectly to visit Hearst Castle and the beaches along Central California 's rugged coast. LivingSocial offers a one-night getaway in San Simeon that includes room, wine-tasting and easy access to springtime sightseeing. The deal: The stay is at the the Morgan at San Simeon , named for Julia Morgan, the architect of the dazzlingly ornate Hearst Castle. This $99 deal goes a long way; it includes a room with a king-sized bed or two queen beds, continental breakfast, a glass of wine, free Wi-Fi and a wine-tasting at Harmony Cellars that comes with a bottle of wine.

For a one-horse town, Los Alamos, Calif. (population 1,890), has an impressive assortment of art galleries, antiques shops and tasty restaurants. The picturesque community, near the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County, also has two fun wine-tasting rooms that offer a breezy respite from those in nearby tourist-clogged wine towns. The bed The 1880 Union Hotel (362 Bell St.; [805] 344-2744, http://www.1880unionhotel.com ; rooms for two, from $105) was built in 1880 as a stagecoach stop — and it looks as if it hasn't changed much since.

Wine master's weekend, March 7 and 8, Tenaya Lodge at Yosemite, 1122 Highway 41, Fish Camp, CA. Reservations and more information: (877) 322-5492 or www.tenayalodge. com. Dinner only, March 8, $85; weekend including one-night stay for two and dinner, $289.

Commercial Real Estate Women Los Angeles will stage its 16th annual wine tasting and auction Thursday at the City Club at 333 S. Grand Ave. in downtown L.A. The 6 p.m. event will benefit the heart center at Glendale Memorial Hospital. Cost is $75 for CREW members, $85 for nonmembers. For information call (310) 358-5115.

A wine tasting will be held at the Skirball Cultural Center Thursday to benefit people suffering from the neuromuscular disorder commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The event, organized by the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Assn., also features a guided tour of the museum's "Freud: Culture and Conflict" exhibit and a silent auction. The center is at 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles. Tickets: $40. Information: (818) 865-8067.

The Volunteer Center of South Orange County will sponsor its Third Annual "Toast From the Heart" wine auction, gourmet food and wine tasting Wednesday. The event, held at the Westin South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, will feature tastings and an auction of premium, award-winning wines from the United States market. The benefit will begin with the wine and gourmet food tasting at 6:30 p.m. followed by the wine auction at 8.

Mention Baja California and the average person thinks of beachside resorts, cheap tequila, the desert and cheap Kahlua. But the Mexican peninsula has a wildly diverse nature; consider the wine industry that exists there. The half-dozen wineries in Baja grow about 95% of the entire country's wine grapes. Beginning this weekend, they will celebrate this year's harvest with a Fiesta de la Vendimia (Festival of the Vintage). The partying will continue through Aug.

The Disneyland Hotel will host an evening with winemaker Rodney D. Strong of the Rodney Strong Winery at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 25. Strong will present an informal seminar and tasting of his 1985 Pinot Noir, 1987 Cabernet Sauvignon, 1987 Zinfandel, 1988 Chardonnay and 1989 Sauvignon Blanc. Complimentary fruit and crackers will be served, and validated parking is included. The location: North Ballroom of the hotel's entertainment and convention center. Admission: $10.

Hungry for a change of pace? Eat, drink and indulge your need to escape during a foodie weekend, a tasty trend sweeping the hotel industry. You can compare flights of wine, learn how to make sushi or whip up a classic French dessert. Then retreat to the hotel pool, spa or tennis court for alternative forms of recreation. It's all part of your weekend itinerary. The events, most of which are at high-end hotels, focus on food lovers who aren't content with simply dining at expensive restaurants.

The best time to go whale-watching in Egypt would have been about 37 million years ago. Smithsonian magazine recently profiled the amazing whale boneyard at Wadi Hitan where fossils reveal an important evolutionary tidbit: the whales had little legs and feet. In California, it's whale-watching season right now -- for Pacific gray whales, without feet. It's also a time when Mendocino and nearby towns host festivals to mark the whales' northbound journey from Mexico to Alaska.

Here's a $99 coupon deal for a hotel stay that positions you perfectly to visit Hearst Castle and the beaches along Central California 's rugged coast. LivingSocial offers a one-night getaway in San Simeon that includes room, wine-tasting and easy access to springtime sightseeing. The deal: The stay is at the the Morgan at San Simeon , named for Julia Morgan, the architect of the dazzlingly ornate Hearst Castle. This $99 deal goes a long way; it includes a room with a king-sized bed or two queen beds, continental breakfast, a glass of wine, free Wi-Fi and a wine-tasting at Harmony Cellars that comes with a bottle of wine.

Picture yourself  sampling wine or just unwinding at the South Coast Winery Resort & Spa -- for about $200 a night. Travelzoo has pieced together a Southern California getaway that includes staying in one of the 76 villas at the resort and more activities than you can do in a day.  The deal: This offer from Travelzoo comes with some sweet extras: overnight in a private villa with fireplace and jet-water tub, upgrade to a view room, mimosa...

NAPA VALLEY Winter wine tastings The Winter in the Wineries Passport offers tastings at 17 wineries in Calistoga, Calif. The wine passport, which is valid for several months and offered by the Calistoga Chamber of Commerce, is good for one tasting per winery, and buyers must be 21 or older. Some area hotels and restaurants extend discounts to passport-holders too. Participating wineries include Sterling Vineyards, Castello di Amorosa, Madrigal Vineyards, Rios Wine Co., Zahtila Vineyards, Von Strasser Winery, Tomey Cellars and more.

Visit Napa Valley in winter and you might want to bring along a passport -- a Winter in the Wineries Passport . It offers tastings at 17 wineries in Calistoga for $50. Don't worry; you don't have to sample all of them in one visit; the passport is good for several months. The deal: The wine passport offered by the Calistoga Chamber of Commerce is good for one tasting per winery, and buyers must be 21 or older. Some area hotels and restaurants extend discounts to passport-holders too. Participating wineries include Sterling Vineyards, Castello di Amorosa, Madrigal Vineyards, Rios Wine Co., Zahtila Vineyards, Von Strasser Winery, Tomey Cellars and more.

RECENTLY, Paul Houdayer, formerly of the L'Escoffier Restaurant atop the Beverly Hilton Hotel, staged an afternoon wine tasting at his current realm, Le Montrachet at the Las Vegas Hilton, comparing California varietals with their French counterparts. There was no scoring, just the fun of finding good wine values.

WITH the following accessories on the table, your tasting group will be able to swirl, sniff and sip like pros. Wine glasses. Four glasses each is ideal. Six is OK. Any more is confusing for novice tasters who are just learning to compare and contrast wines. If you have more wines than glasses, taste them in groups ("flights") and if desired, rinse the glasses in between.Glass stemware is a good choice. Just make sure the glasses are clean with no soap residue.

Napa is all about good wine and good food -- and a summer package from the River Terrace Inn on the Napa River makes it easy to take it all in. Free tastings at more than a dozen wineries and bars, as well as a restaurant credit good for $75 to $200, make August a good time to visit and explore. The deal: Some nice freebies come with the Summer Sip Away package: free bike rentals, a Downtown Wine Tasting Card with access to 12 winery tasting rooms and wine bars ($25 each)

The Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa has a midweek deal good for a late summer stay in Northern California's wine country . From now through August, snag a package that includes a suite, $50 daily credit and two wine tastings for $199 a night. -- The deal: The "Suite" Napa Summertime Special applies to midweek stays in a small suite starting at $199 plus tax. And you can use the $50 daily credit toward a round of golf, breakfast or other eats, spa services  and more. Wine-tasting passes for two are issued when you check in, so you won't know in advance which vineyards you may be visiting.