FORBES: Santa Barbara Is The Most Exciting Wine Destination In The U.S.

Santa Barbara is geographically diverse, culinarily astute, and gorgeous in all directions — the perfect formula for the wine country we all need right now.

The major viticultural areas in the United States offer wine lovers a range of sensory experiences and aesthetic styles — from the lush Pinot Noirs of the Sonoma Coast to the crisp Rieslings of New York’s Finger Lakes, and all the Cabernets and Chardonnays in between, not to mention urban wines and naturals. But there’s something about Santa Barbara right now that is really occupying its moment, staking claim to a confident space where good farming intersects with careful vinification as it taps into the oenological and cultural zeitgeist. Santa Barbara is geographically diverse, culinarily astute, and gorgeous in all directions — the perfect formula for the wine country we all need right now.

One of the reasons I make this rather bold assertion has to do with climate change. The geographical feature that figures most prominently in this analysis is the east-to-west valley that is the largest on the Western Pacific Coast — not just the California Pacific, but the entire span, from Alaska to the north down to Chile in the south. This large traverse, and its direction — which you can actually see from high coastal ridges, here and there — ensure the cool climate that so many of our favorite wine grapes love, especially the Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs that Santa Barbara is known for.

And even inland where the temperatures are much warmer, it’s not too hot to grow Cabernet Sauvignon. The Bordeaux varietal that made Napa famous is becoming increasingly hard to grow there, and Santa Barbara may just end up being one of its new favorite terroirs. Syrah is also especially promising in this area, given its need for warm days and long, slow growing seasons, so you’ll find both southern Rhône-style blends that include Syrah and 100% Syrah bottlings that capture the very best of this grape’s expression.

The chief white grapes of the Côtes du Rhône — Viognier, Marsanne and Rousanne — all fare well in this climate, and Santa Barbara winemakers are carving out their own niche with them.

Santa Barbara has seven AVAs (American Viticultural Areas), and I visited five of them last Spring in hopes of getting a better sense of this region that I’ve dipped into piecemeal for many years running. My initial impressions — that Santa Barbara is the most compelling wine destination in the U.S. right now — were borne out by three days of walking the vineyards, tasting the wines, and talking with the winemakers who call this place home. And the tasting room experiences are not formulaic, as in other popular wine destinations.

Here, creativity rules, both in winemaking and hospitality.

Here are nine highly recommended wineries to visit on your next foray into the wide world of Santa Barbara wines, representing five of the seven AVAs and offering a range of tasting room styles, from super-casual to quite formal.

Santa Rita Hills

Babcock Winery & Vineyards

Bryan Babcock, who’s been making wine since the 1980s, was a central figure in the formation of Santa Rita Hills as its own AVA, and his winemaking style is radically creative. Much like Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon fame, Babcock learned the rules in order not so much to break them, but to improve on them. He developed a unique “gravity-assisted” canopy system that allows vines to thrive, and his concept of “agristhetics” approaches the vineyard and its surrounds as a work of art.

He is currently reforesting his property, whose estate vineyards have been suffering from Pierce’s Disease, and he’s been buying fruit from friends and neighbors to continue his work across a wide range of varietals from classic Syrah and Pinot Noir to more obscure grapes like Petit Verdot and Picpoul.

The tasting room is a rambling outdoor space that is a vintage-lover’s dream, and the center of the property — a destination in itself — is Soulstruck Vintage, a barn filled with an impressive collection of vintage furniture, art, clothing, and other collectibles. Lisa Boisset Babcock, Bryan’s partner in life and work, is a designer and marketing expert and the mastermind behind the collection. Babcock is an ideal starting point for a Santa Barbara wine itinerary, welcoming and eclectic, with some of the region’s flagship wines and a chill vibe.

Pence Vineyards & Winery

Also in the Santa Rita Hills AVA but very different stylistically is Pence Vineyards & Winery, best described as rustically elegant. Blair Pence is has long been obsessed with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, especially the classic presentations of these grapes in Burgundy, so he spent many years traveling throughout the region — not to make Burgundian wines in Santa Barbara, but rather to understand the nuances and complexities of these grapes so that he could make the best possible versions of them back at home.

He describes his winemaking style as “non-interventionist” and “site-driven.” In other words, he and his team follow the grapes, and the resulting wines are classic in their inclinations.

You can taste them in the lovely bar up front, but you should really make the time to reserve a spot out amidst the 47 acres of vines, where peace and tranquility are the ambiance.

Ballard Canyon

Rusack

The heart of the Rusack portfolio is equal parts classic Rhône and Burgundy. They are studied without being stuffy — wines you can as easily lay down for a decade or more or crack open for an impromptu picnic with friends.

The center of the tasting experience is the redwood deck, built around and under the estate’s gorgeous oak trees, where you can hang out on comfortable couches and taste through the menu with a charcuterie and cheese plate — and you can even bring along your dog!

Gerbac also oversees the fun, and more experimental, wines being made at the Rusack’s Santa Catalina Island vineyard overlooking the ocean. (A visit there has become a bucket-list item for me.)

Santa Maria Valley

Riverbench

I tasted through a flight with CEO Laura Booras and, quite frankly, wanted to fill my cellar with the 2017 Riverbench Sparkling Pinot Meunier, a lush, yeasty, berry-forward wine that will continue to age well.

Santa Ynez Valley

Zaca Mesa & TREAD

Zaca Mesa and TREAD are a classic Santa Barbara anchor brand and a new pioneer label all wrapped into one. Zaca Mesa was the first to plant Syrah here in 1978, and it’s since gone on to produce some of the most classic and beloved Rhône-style wines, with a particular focus on Viognier and Syrah.

Head winemaker and GM Kristin Bryden launched the storied property’s new label, TREAD, this past Spring, which allows her to craft ultra-premium, site-specific wines that she and her team hand-select as representative of the vineyards’ finest selections each year.

Fess Parker Winery

Fess Parker, the actor who played both Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone, was a household name, but the legacy he left behind includes an even deeper story of wine. When Parker began faming the 714-acre Foxen Ranch in 1988, he had a vision of creating a sustainable family business that would carry on long beyond his time.

Second- and third-generation relatives have done his dream proud with a strong selection of single-vineyard micro-lots and clonal-selection Rhône and Burgundian varietals. The expansive veranda is a beautiful place to while away the afternoon as you gaze upon the gardens and vineyards beyond. The newer Epiphany label (from neighboring vineyards not part of the original estate) and the Addendum Napa Cabernet project are also yours for the tasting.

Fess Parker Winery brings out the pink mobile “bubble shack” for events and parties. There’s a lot to see, do, and taste at Fess Parker.

Bien Nacido Estate

One of the largest and most historically significant estates in Santa Barbara, Bien Nacido is rich with history and and old-California grandeur. The Miller family’s long story of farming extends to wine in multiple ways, including the estate wines made by head winemaker Anthony Avila, whose grapevines are tended by vineyard manager Chris Hammel.

Wines to seek out include the rarified Solomon Hills single-vineyard Chardonnay and the juicy-deep XO Syrah that will settle for nothing less than a rich meat or cheese pairing.

Optik

Optik is the Miller family’s new project with renegade winemaker Joey Tensley, who have partnered to envision the classic vineyards of Bien Nacido through a 21st-century lens, from the soulful label art to the fearless expressions of unmitigated fruit. Because Bien Nacido Estate is so large, most of its fruit is sold to other winemakers, and the Optik collaboration allows some of the best grapes to be featured in these single-vineyard bottlings.

The Block 11 Chardonnay and the 19 Pinot Noir 42a are my personal favorites, as they skew toward the mineral and savory-earthiness of the range.

Happy Canyon

Crown Point Vineyards & Winery

If you’re looking for gravitas, both in your wine glass and in the tasting experience, Crown Point is the ticket. Owner Roger Bower found synchronicity with an all-French winemaking team — veteran consultants Philippe Melka and Michel Rolland, along with rising star winemaker Simon Faury — who harmonize to produce exquisite Cabernet Sauvignons and blends in the traditional Bordeaux style. Refined, precise, serious, and rich, these wines are designed to age upwards of 25 years.

The tasting experience is evocative of visiting a château in Bordeaux, cool and dimly lit with a focus on the wines themselves in an elegant and rather formal setting. You’ll learn about how Happy Canyon is an ideal climate for growing Bordeaux varietals, with its long days of sunshine and foggy marine later in the late afternoon, reminding you that you’re just 12 miles from the ocean.

Crown Point wines are collector’s wines, its flagships being the 100% Estate Cabernets and the annual Estate Selection, representing the best lots of all five Bordeaux varietals grown on property.

One thing this three-day tour taught me is that there’s much more to explore in Santa Barbara — enough to fill another solid week of tasting, no doubt. And with a broad range of winemaking styles and tasting-room aesthetics at your fingertips, you can easily steer toward your own perfect itinerary while experiencing the ambitious and creative wines of this constantly evolving region.