Vasquez Rocks in Agua Dulce. Photo copyright 2016 by Anna Boudinot
Some people like to relax by getting into nature. Some people like to relax by drinking wine. I live in California because there are ample opportunities to do both.
Out of a desire to get away without spending a lot of money nor spending a lot of time in the car, I recently drove from one end of Los Angeles County to the other and wound up in Agua Dulce.
You have probably seen Agua Dulce without realizing it. It is home to a famous and unusual geological phenomenon called hogback ridges, massive stone formations jutting out of the earth at 45-degree angles. The formations in Agua Dulce are known as Vasquez Rocks, and have been featured in TV shows and movies for decades. Remember when Captain Kirk fought the Gorn? That was at Vasquez Rocks. The strange terrain has made it a popular backdrop for science fiction and westerns, including Westworld, Roswell, Blazing Saddles, Bonanza, F-Troop, and The Outer Limits. Other notable productions filmed at Vasquez Rocks are Dante's Peak, The A-Team, and the Michael Jackson music video "Black or White." (I had forgotten how awesome that video is, by the way -- do yourself a favor and click on that link.)
If geology or seismology turns you on more than pop culture, you're going to love Vasquez Rocks Natural Area. The rock is 25 million years old and is made up of beautiful multicolored layers of sandstone, shale, conglomerate, and basalt. After erosion eliminated the softer layers of stone, earthquakes along the Elkhorn Fault, an offshoot of the San Andreas Fault, pushed the "Rocks" up out of the earth at crazy angles. The tallest outcropping has a peak of 150 feet.
Vasquez Rocks are named for Tiburcio Vasquez, a cattle rustler and stagecoach robber who used the rock formations as a hiding place in the 1800s. He liked to portray himself as a Robin Hood figure because he stole from whites and gave money to "Californios" -- Spanish-speaking Californians who had lived in the area since California was part of Mexico. As white Americans streamed into California and seized the Californios' land, Vasquez was seen as a heroic defender of the native people. In fact, he was the real-life inspiration for the Zorro character.
Vasquez Rocks. Photo copyright 2016 by Anna Boudinot
In 1874, the governor of California and the state legislature established a posse to hunt Vasquez down. It was a brutal manhunt fueled by nationalism and the concept of manifest destiny. "Americans needed to capture Vasquez so they could symbolically crush the rebellious Californio spirit and any idea of rebellion or a return to L.A.'s Mexican village past," KCET explains.
The posse was tipped off by someone in Vasquez's family who was outraged that Vasquez was sleeping with his own niece. Vasquez was shot, captured, convicted, and sentenced to death. "Vasquez Rocks may be the only park in the United States, if not the entire world, named after a notorious bandit who was hanged," states a handout from the Vasquez Rocks Natural Area. Today you can enjoy a pleasant hike through the rugged and picturesque scenery while pondering the relevance of nationalism today.
Many of you have been reading this and wondering, "what about the wine? She mentioned wine." Sorry, I got sidetracked.
After an invigorating hike, head a few miles north to visit two really good wineries. The more stately of the two, Agua Dulce Winery, impressed me to no end. I had not expected to stumble across such polished wines there, which spanned the basic varietals of chardonnay, cab sauv, merlot, and the like. The tasting room employee who poured wines for me walked me through an imagined tour of culinary Italy that culminated in a stop at my local BBQ joint on the way home from the airport. For some reason I found this really enchanting.
I happened to visit the winery on the day of their annual "Stompfest," and a dozen women dressed like Lucille Ball roamed around waiting for the grape stomping competition and Lucy lookalike contest. The wines were a little pricey, so I left with only a chardonnay in hand, purchased because it was the first California chardonnay I had ever liked (read: not oaky or buttery at all).
Reyes Winery. Photo copyright 2016 by Anna Boudinot
Reyes Winery, a vegan winery, has a cozy, no-frills feel that reminded me of Penman Springs in Paso Robles. Rather than cheese, one of the wines was paired with pretzel M&Ms. Many of the visitors in the tasting room lived in the area and greeted the proprietor warmly as she handed out homemade cake to all of us.
Everything I drank there was as disarming as homemade cake and had a price tag to match. Their selection was vast, with several different red blends. Some of the wines weren't that great, while others blew me away. It made me wonder if they shouldn't narrow their scope a little bit. I was delighted to see that they made an amber wine.
Also called orange wine, amber wine is essentially a white that drinks like a red. This unconventional fermentation process is seldom seen these days but dates back thousands of years. I bought a bottle and later wished I had bought two. I'll definitely be heading back soon, because I want to try their monthly hike led by vintner Robert Reyes. It follows a two-mile trail through the Sierra Pelona Mountains and ends with a wine tasting and brunch. Now that sounds like a relaxing day.