Tag archives: pinot noir
“I’m really just overwhelmed by the whole thing,” Richard Sanford tells me, soon after a recent dinner honoring his life’s work. And I can tell he means it, which I find a bit surprising, actually. After all, the man widely known as the pioneer of the Santa Barbara wine industry is no stranger to accolades […]
As a wine lover, writer, and wine travel media personality, there are few things I enjoy more than discovering wines that surprise and delight – and pinot noir continues to be one of those wines that never gets old. While I typically reach for a glass of pinot during cozy fall evenings, the Global Blind […]
It’s going to be extra festive at this year’s World of Pinot Noir event. The annual party celebrating Burgundy’s most famous red grape – a multi-day affair that has been luring industry bigwigs and thirsty consumers alike ever since it was launched along California’s Central Coast in 2001 – turns 25 this year! Fêted across […]
As winter sweeps into Santa Barbara, its crisp touch ignites an irresistible craving for soul warming meals, and the perfect wines to match. Embracing hearty pastas, savory stews, and dishes that stick to your ribs, this season demands the company of bold, full-bodied red wines. Many of us savor the richness of red wine, understanding […]
Presqu’ile’s just-announced land purchase will give it a footprint across two of Santa Barbara County’s most revered wine-growing sites. The family-owned winery has already made a name for itself with the wines produced at its Santa Maria Valley location. Founded in 2007 by the Murphy family, the 123-acres estate just north of Highway 101 is […]
“The practices we use to do business today, from a sustainability standpoint, are the same ones my grandfather used 95 years ago,” vintner Steve Sangiacomo told me this week. “How we farm, how we treat our employees – it’s all about responsibility.” Sangiacomo Family Wines is a premium wine brand in Northern California – they […]
Pierre Lafond passed away this past Sunday at the age of 92, after 60 years in Santa Barbara enterprise overlapping a 25-year career in architecture. Pierre Lafond and his wife, Wendy Foster, developed a number of shops in Montecito and in greater Santa Barbara. And they were vintners and early adopters of Central Coast viticulture, […]
“People do tell me – ‘Wait, I thought you said you’d never do pinot!’” jokes winemaker Larry Schaffer. We’re chatting inside his sleek Tercero tasting room in downtown Los Olivos. And he’s pouring me his latest release: pinot noir. Schaffer’s Tercero label has always been a bastion for imaginative, thoughtful Rhône wines. And his approach […]
Pinot noir buffs from all over the world have their eyes – not to mention, their taste buds – set squarely on Santa Barbara. After a COVID-driven virtual-only experience last year, and a truncated live event at the pandemic’s onset in March of 2020, the World of Pinot Noir (WOPN) is making a big in-person […]
Spring has ushered in some unique wine selections and tasting opportunities from local wine experts. We checked in with a few for some fresh ideas on what to pour. Before we dive headfirst into summer, and while many of us are at home preparing spring meals with family and close friends, I wanted to take […]
Pinot noir lovers normally have the first weekend in March highlighted on their calendars. After all, it’s a weekend usually dedicated to the World of Pinot Noir (WOPN), the annual gathering of winemakers and wine consumers who fete Burgundy’s most famous red grape. Launched in 2001, the event has been held at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara […]
At its core, it is business as usual at Alma Rosa Winery – nothing’s changed. The popular label founded in 2005 is still in the hands of wine legend Richard Sanford, still growing grapes organically and still producing some of the best pinot noir and chardonnay that Santa Barbara County has to offer. But a […]
The pinot noir you buy at the local shop is, almost always, that winery’s latest release, and usually its youngest wine. A younger pinot – from the 2017 vintage, for example – usually delivers exactly what we pinot lovers want: it’s fruity and fresh, soft and supple, luscious and delicious. Vibrancy and flavor make a […]
