The Perfect Combo: Vino and a Visit with Rescued Animals

When you’re busy and stressed out, it’s always a good idea to step away from your routine and do something out of the ordinary.

That’s exactly what I did earlier this week when I went to Malibu Wine Safaris with my childhood best friend, Erika… we go way back… I’m talking when we both spent hours on the ice, practicing jumps and spins, preparing for skating competitions.

But, I digress… let’s cut back to Wednesday afternoon when we drove about an hour up the coast to Malibu, headed north on Mulholland Highway toward the Conejo Valley.

When we arrived we hopped onto a truck with about 10 other people and began our tour of Saddlerock Ranch.

Our tour guide, JC, was all smiles and shared a ton of facts about the place, including that the owner, Ron Semler, purchased the property back in 1978 and still lives there today with his second wife, Lisa and four of his nine kids.

Back in the 70s, Semler started with 200 acres but today, he owns about 1100 acres.

The compound is now home to dozens of rescued animals including water buffalo, alpacas, llamas and even a giraffe named Stanley.

There are 88 acres of vineyards, and yes, included in the Safari tour is a wine tasting. Wine and snacks were appropriately timed after we fed the animals.

Leave it to a childhood best friend to plan the perfect afternoon that combined two of my favorite things… wine and wild animals… #loveit