Santa Barbara

Vineyards

The vast expanse of the Central Coast is matched only by its diverse topography. Stretching 250 miles south from San Francisco Bay to Santa Barbara County, the region’s 90,000 acres of vineyards are woven together by a single thread: proximity to the Pacific Ocean. The undeniable influence of the sea shapes the terroir here, as it ushers wind and fog across the vines, creating California’s longest growing season. We don’t like to rush around here. We give our grapes plenty of time to develop their signature cool-climate flavor and bright acidity.

Along the Coast

Central Coast

Our corner of the Central Coast starts in Santa Barbara County, fanning inland to Paso Robles and north to Monterey County. Santa Barbara County is home to wind-swept hillsides and exceptional, cool-climate fruit. Equally shaped by cooling breezes funneled in from the Pacific Ocean, Monterey County is renowned for grapes with an elegant balance of flavor and acidity. Even in Paso Robles, the warmest appellation in California, the coastal influence reaches some 25 miles inland to cool the vines, giving this region its signature warm days and cool nights.

The Path to the Pacific

Santa Barbara County

Millions of years ago, the land where our vineyards now rest was under the surface of the ocean. Geological shifts over millennia lifted the seabed, creating unique pockets of sandy soil where wine grapes thrive. Today, when California’s north-south coastal mountain range reaches Santa Barbara County, it abruptly turns, carving out the only east-west orientation between Alaska and Cape Horn—and framing the valleys with a direct passageway to the Pacific Ocean. Fog and sea breezes meander through those valleys to the vineyards—whose soil was once part of the sea—blanketing the vines and extending the growing season. With more time on the vine here, our coastal grapes develop an unmatched intensity of flavor and a palate-pleasing acidity.

A Hidden Gem

Los Alamos Vineyard

Our home vineyard, “Los Alamos Vineyard” rests just 20 miles from the Pacific Ocean in Santa Barbara County, parallel to the region’s unusual east-west coastal range. The valleys carry more than wind and fog to Los Alamos. This incredibly unique vineyard—even compared to nearby vineyards—is perhaps most notable for its soil, comprised almost entirely of sand. It heats up quickly, initiating bud beak earlier than neighboring sites and affording the grapes more time to ripen before frost sets in. Extremely porous, the sand allows water to drain more rapidly, letting us curtail vine growth earlier in the season—right after berry set—which translates to smaller grape clusters with more concentrated flavor.
The ocean gives us so much of what you taste in the glass. My job is to translate that coastal character in each wine we make.
Viticulturist Matt Frank

Winegrowing

Among the Vines

For any viticulturist, all roads lead to the vineyard. To the rows of vines that ebb and flow with each season. To the hills and the soil and the grapes. Viticulturist Matt Frank has found his calling on our unique Central Coast vineyard, Los Alamos, where the vines are anchored almost entirely in coastal sand from the Pacific Ocean. Coursework in the world-renowned viticulture program at the University of California at Davis provided an impressive foundation for Matt’s expertise, but his passion for cultivating sea-swept grapes is what elevates the character and flavor of our coastal wines.
The ocean gives us so much of what you taste in the glass. My job is to translate that coastal character in each wine we make.
Viticulturist Matt Frank

Winegrowing

Among the Vines

For any viticulturist, all roads lead to the vineyard. To the rows of vines that ebb and flow with each season. To the hills and the soil and the grapes. Viticulturist Matt Frank has found his calling on our unique Central Coast vineyard, Los Alamos, where the vines are anchored almost entirely in coastal sand from the Pacific Ocean. Coursework in the world-renowned viticulture program at the University of California at Davis provided an impressive foundation for Matt’s expertise, but his passion for cultivating sea-swept grapes is what elevates the character and flavor of our coastal wines.