AN ADVENTURE IN JULIAN, CALIFORNIA

Writing and Short Film by Honest Films | Photography by Jasmine Fitzwilliam | Styling by Tawnee Gomez & Brynne Myer.

Living in San Diego, or rather anywhere in Southern California, it’s pretty easy to get used to the “endless summer” we have out here. It’s great! Almost never below 70, not many rainy or gloomy days and the ocean is never far from reach. But even with all this greatness we find ourselves longing for something a little different, especially when autumn rolls around. Leaves that change color, a crisp cool breeze on your face and the need to actually wear a sweater. So a few weeks ago some friends and I decided to ditch sunny San Diego and head east into the mountains to a small town called Julian. Just about 90 min away is a fun little community know best for it’s apple orchards. More specifically apple pies and apple cider, of the hard variety. We are a group of creatives who all work together in the wedding and event industry so it wasn’t hard to get some fun stuff together and have ourselves a little adventure.

Our first stop was Mom’s Pies. They have two locations and we opted for the one that’s not right down town for two reasons. One- it’s a stand alone shop that has a lot of picturesque scenery. Two- and possibly more importantly, Julian Hard Apple Cider is only a short walk away. So naturally we stopped in and grabbed a few bottles of cider after buying our pie. Next we were off to Menghini Winery, one of Julian’s first wineries! The owners are super nice and their wines are delicious too. Stop in and grab a tasting for only $5 to taste all 7 of their wines, or $10 if you want a sweet Menghini glass to take home! We took a little walk through the vineyards, which was beautiful as the leaves had turned and were amazing oranges, yellows and golds. After a quick frolic through the vines we headed behind the winery for a  picnic with our pie and cider. It was a perfect fall day and less than two hours from our homes on the coast. So if you love sunny California, but are looking to get a little taste of fall, do not fret, it’s just a short drive away in Julian, Ca.