Bargetto Winery of Cannery Row

Bargetto Winery of Cannery Row has a tasting room on Cannery Row, wedged between souvenir shops and seafood joints. The entrance opens directly onto the sidewalk – easy to spot if you’re coming from the aquarium or just drifting along the main stretch. Inside, it’s a single room anchored by a long tasting bar that runs most of the length of the space. Most people walk in, claim a spot at the bar, and settle in for a flight. The room fits a handful of small groups, but the setup is straightforward: no lounge seating, no outdoor patio, just the bar and a few standing areas along the wall. The tasting menu covers both Bargetto’s Santa Cruz wines and a lineup of meads – not something found at every tasting room in town. Flights usually include a mix of reds, whites, and a couple of rotating meads, sometimes spiced or fruit-based like raspberry or mulled. Bottles fill the shelves behind the bar, and anything poured is available to take home. Printed tasting sheets sit at each spot, with notes on every pour and space to jot down preferences. Wine club sign-ups stack near the register for anyone interested in regular shipments. The atmosphere stays low-key and conversational. Most of the activity centers around the bar, with people comparing notes or picking up tips on tasting technique. The space works for quick stops or longer sessions, depending on how much sampling is on the agenda. There’s no food service and no outdoor seating, so visits revolve around the tasting itself. The location lands right in the middle of Cannery Row, just a few minutes’ walk from the bay and the aquarium. The tasting room acts as a satellite for Bargetto’s main Santa Cruz winery, so the lineup here pulls directly from what’s produced up the coast – all without leaving Monterey.