One of the SYV's most cherished traditions is our unwavering dedication to wine production. With nearly 300 different wineries, there’s always a risk of catching a case of choice paralysis or fatigue. But there in the heart of downtown Solvang, there is a place that prides itself on variety and the celebration of a local assortment of award-winning and world renown wines and independent breweries. For 12 years now, Alfred and Lisa Mesa have been tirelessly curating a myriad of choices of not only wines, but branching out to all corners of California for their micro beer selections as well. Once we learned they rotate their tap beer choices weekly, we had to sit down with the husband and wife team and ask some questions about how they ended up here, and how on earth they have the mental capacity to sift through the endless wine and beer possibilities.
What originally brought you to Solvang to open The Good Life?
Alfred: For Lisa it was reminding her of home. You know, small town, rolling hills. Lisa: We would come here and drive the back roads. We have so many photos from those first 2 years of visiting, not even wine tasting: just driving. It didn’t matter what time of year we would come, it was always so pretty and refreshing.
Happy 12 year anniversary, how has the last 12 years been?
Lisa: Sometimes I feel like its been a rollercoaster. Other times I feel like its been a constant climb up. When we opened in 2012, it was in the aftermath of the 2008 economic crash so there were a lot of empty shops. We knew we had a good concept, we just needed a way to let people know we were here. Our winemakers helped us a lot. We were the first store in this area to feature small production wines, and wineries that didn’t have their own tasting rooms. The sign we had that said “Beer” really captured people’s attention also… and there wasn’t a lot of beer on the central coast so it was good that we carried beer as well.
How do you both go about procuring your wine and beer options?
Lisa: It started off as us going to restaurants and looking at the labels on the menu and writing them down, calling them, and seeing if they wanted us to feature them in our tasting room. Hearing their stories is what pushed us to quit our other jobs and do this with the tasting room. The beer was a no brainer, we knew that would be a hit because there just wasn’t anything like that in this area. Alfred: Back in 2012 there was about 600 micro-breweries in the state, and now there are approximately 1,100. Because this place is run by the two of us, 6 days a week, it’s a lot of emailing, calling, looking at social media. As far as the selection goes, we just want it be well rounded. We’re looking for quality and to support the mom-and-pop’s that are trying to succeed.
As far as the selection goes, we just want it be well rounded. We’re looking for quality and to support the mom-and-pop’s that are trying to succeed.