California
Biden Heads to California Wine Country for First Post-Presidential Trip
At 11:15 a.m. on Jan. 20, Donald Trump was sworn back into the White House as the 47th President of the United States. And by 2 p.m. on the same day—after a quick farewell visit to Joint Base Andrews—the now-former president, Joe Biden, was on his way to celebrate retirement in Santa Ynez, California.
The central California wine town, made famous as a world-class pinot noir destination in the 2004 film Sideways, is familiar territory for Biden, who spent a few days there in August 2024 after deciding to withdraw from the election. On that trip, he stayed at billionaire pal Joe Kiani’s ranch; his official agenda did not specify where he would stay on this visit, but local news reports say a motorcade was headed in the direction of Kiani’s 8,000-acre estate shortly after Biden’s arrival in town.