![]() The wind is so strong, that if you open the door to your truck haphazardly, it'll blow the door off the truck." "It's high, with six or seven radically different soil types, it's romantic and cool, and it gets that ocean breeze. So what does John Sebastiano Vineyard (JSV) have going for it that makes the vineyard the belle of Buellton? "The place is magic," says the vineyard's co-owner John Wagner, who also makes wine under the Peake Ranch label. The microclimates in Santa Barbara County make the area a phenomenal place to grow Syrah grapes, and if it's Syrah you desire, you want to roam the 100 acres at the relatively new John Sebastiano Vineyards. Lime zest, vanilla cream, candied ginger, and a salty minerality mingle with zippy acidity and a bright streak of delicious baking spices.Ģ018 Migration Bien Nacido Vineyard Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley ($70)Įlegant red and black fruit notes, fine silky tannins, salty crushed stones, and vivid volcanic ash earth notes, with a clove-tinged cherry on a spicy finish. ![]() Potent floral aromas on the long finish.Ģ016 Qupe Bien Nacido Reserve Block Eleven Chardonnay, Santa Maria Valley ($30) One of the most classic expressions of this site offers sleek, bright citrus aromas and flavors alongside toasty, buttered brioche, yellow apple, and vanilla bean notes. Wilkes, Ledge Vineyards, Migration, Ojai, Paul Lato, Presqu'ile Winery, Qupe, Twomey, and Tyler.Ģ017 Au Bon Climat Historic Vineyards Collection Bien Nacido Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Maria Valley ($35) Producers: Au Bon Climat, Bien Nacido Estate and Solomon Hills Estate, Chanin, Covenant Wines, Foxen, Fess Parker, Gary Farrell, J. "The excitement with winemakers right now is Rhône varieties, especially Syrah." DeLuca adds that what draws winemakers to the site is a very unique "saline character that pervades everything." "Bien Nacido on a label means a guaranteed certain level of quality," explains Nick DeLuca, Grape Sales Manager for The Thornhill Companies (the greater umbrella of Miller Family business, which also owns nearby Solomon Hills vineyard). Big-name producers like Joel Gott and Orin Swift buy grapes, but it's the smaller, boutique wineries that have made the vineyard famous, like the late Jim Clendenen's Au Bon Climat, Ojai, Qupe, Tyler, and Gary Farrell. As of today, there are 83 distinct clients purchasing grapes from Bien Nacido. The resulting wines enjoy a pronounced acidity.įifth-generation Californian farm family the Millers began planting Bien Nacido in 1973. While the site is home to several grape varieties, it's Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that thrive in the site's undulating hills and varying slopes and aspects, which are treated to Pacific Ocean breezes funneling up through the uniquely west-east oriented Santa Ynez Mountains. Bien Nacido's size is just about exactly 3,000 acres, of which roughly 600 acres are actually planted on vineyard land. It's the benchmark, crown jewel of the region. Bien Nacido is ground zero of California's Santa Maria Valley-it is the vineyard against which all of Santa Maria is measured.
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