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2020 was a year unlike any in recent history. Seemingly overnight the world as we all knew it was turned upside down by a rapidly-spreading virus, and today most of the planet is still trying to acclimate to what our lives look like in the age of COVID. For us personally the potential danger of our newborn son being exposed to the virus coupled with the uncertainty of how easily it spreads kept us sheltering at home for most of the year, but in that time of restraint we were badly longing for the explorative wine country visits that had become a regular part of our lives. Thankfully in the long days since the initial lockdown the hard work of scientists, doctors, nurses, and other frontline workers made it possible to return to some semblance of normalcy even in the midst of this global pandemic, and after some time we were finally able to take our first wine trip since the start of our COVID inflicted hiatus.
Choosing which region to visit on our first COVID-era trip was an impossibly tough decision. We consider ourselves lucky to be living in Los Angeles and enjoy that our location grants us easy access to all of California's most spectacular winegrowing appellations, so naturally just about everything was on the table. After some deliberation we narrowed in on Santa Barbara County as an ideal choice for us partially due to its close proximity - as this beautiful stretch of wine country is only about 2 hours away up the 101 Freeway. With the help of our friends at The Wine Militia we planned our perfect trip, then just a few weeks later we packed our bags and made our way up the coast for what became an amazingly fun and safe weekend.
On top of its close proximity we chose to visit Santa Barbara Wine Country because of how seriously the wineries, restaurants, and hotels in the area have been taking expert-recommended COVID precautions and overall guest safety during these crazy times. We noticed wineries in particular have done an incredible job at shifting their focus towards outdoor and socially-distanced tasting experiences, which can provide a wonderful way for guests to taste wine and take in the scenery while minimizing contact with others. Santa Barbara's weather also happens to be extremely pleasant and consistent all year long which is not the case in some more northerly regions, and this makes it even easier to spend as much time as possible outside here.
After a short drive up the coast from LA to Santa Barbara we got settled into our hotel and then began our excursion with a stop at Bob's Well Bread, a legendary local bakery in the quaint town of Los Alamos, for breakfast and to connect with The Wine Militia team. There Lamar and Sonja met us alongside Phil from the Santa Barbara Vintners Association to chat about the region and what our plan was for the visit. After some coffee, conversation, and small bites we caravanned with Lamar and Sonja over to one of our absolute favorite producers in the region: Presqu'ile Winery.
Located in the cooler coastal reaches of Santa Barbara County within the Santa Maria Valley AVA, Presqu'ile Winery is an extremely exciting estate producer that specializes in Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and a handful of other unique cool climate grapes. Their picturesque property boasts some of the most spectacular views in the area and has terroir that is perfectly suited to creating incredible wine. While their wine has long been spectacular the Presqu'ile team has also stepped up their overall hospitality experience during the pandemic and now offers an exquisite array of food to enjoy alongside their delicious wine. While we tasted through their current releases we also sampled a gourmet arrangement of small bites, and we were blown away by the quality and thoughtfulness of their eclectic offerings that included everything from ceviche to gazpacho. Many of these dishes were even made using organic produce grown on the estate! Our visit to Presqu'ile Winery was absolutely perfect and we highly recommend a stop there for anyone visiting the region.
Our next stop brought us a bit further south to the picturesque Refugio Ranch. Located southeast of Solvang in the foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains, this idyllic ranch contains an incredible patchwork of vineyard blocks that each take advantage of the natural undulating hills of this sprawling 415 acre property. Unlike the cool coastal terroir of Presqu'ile Winery, the Refugio Ranch estate is located in the Santa Ynez Valley AVA which sees much warmer daytime temperatures offset by cool and often foggy nights, and this helps produce deep and powerful wines that manage to retain incredible acidity and freshness. The Refugio team specializes primarily in Rhone varieties highlighted by Syrah and Grenache, although their vineyards also contain spatterings of a range of other interesting grapes.
While we previously have had relatively little experience with the wines of Refugio Ranch we found our visit to their property to be completely revelatory. Not only are the property and vineyards absolutely gorgeous, but the wines completely blew us away. Refugio Ranch has crafted an impressive lineup of rich and extracted wines that maintain excellent balance and finesse, and beautifully represent the more decadent yet rugged side of what is possible in Santa Barbara County. We found their Petite Sirah to be particularly impressive with its dense core of dark and concentrated fruit, and we would certainly consider it one of the greatest examples of the variety we have ever tried from the region. Refugio Ranch might have been new to us then, but rest assured we will now be closely following this estate moving forward.
Our next stop of the trip was to another major favorite of ours: Foxen Winery, who is truly one of Santa Barbara County's most legendary and iconic producers. Founded in 1985 by industry pioneers Bill Wathen and Dick Doré, Foxen consistently crafts a diverse range of wines using fruit sourced from many of Santa Barbara's greatest vineyards. While they are known primarily for their hauntingly ethereal and terroir-expressive Pinot Noir, the Foxen team also produces a series of incredibly compelling bottlings using Bordeaux, Rhone, and Loire grape varieties. All-in-all there might not be a single winery in the region whose wines better represent the incredible quality and diversity that Santa Barbara County is capable of producing.
While we have long considered ourselves true fans and have tasted their wines many times in the past, we had the opportunity to meet with founder Dick Doré and his lovely wife Jenny on this special visit and our appreciation for what they have accomplished has never been greater. Now in their 35th year in the industry the Foxen operation is clearly firing on all cylinders, and we can confirm that each and every one of their offerings are unquestionably impressive. From their unique old-vine Chenin Blanc and rare dry-farmed Chardonnay to their single vineyard Pinots and incredibly classic Bordeauxs, these remarkable and delicious wines are not to be missed. If you are curious to discover what Santa Barbara wine is all about we would argue that there is no single better place to start than with Foxen Winery.
After enjoying an amazing morning with Dick and Jenny Doré we departed for our last winery visit of the weekend, and a short drive later we found ourselves in the heart of Los Olivos at Tercero Wines. Founded by winemaker Larry Schaffer, Terocero boasts a quaint tasting room where they pour a unique lineup of fun and exciting wines. Larry led us through a diverse selection of primarily Rhone varieties, and we were particularly impressed with the muscular and rugged expression of Mourvedre that he poured. The Tercero tasting room is in an absolutely awesome location, and we highly recommend a walk around downtown Los Olivos when stopping by.
Our trip to Santa Barbara Wine Country might now be over, but we're happy to report it greatly succeeded in reigniting our passion for this unquestionably special place. We firmly believe that Santa Barbara is truly one of California's greatest hidden gems, and we look forward to continuing our exploration of this incredible region very soon!
