Organic/Natural Wines of Santa Barbara
Organic/Natural Wines of Santa Barbara
Many Santa Barbara vineyards such as Alma Rosa, Beckman, Sea Smoke, Grimm’s Bluff are moving toward organic, sustainable, and/or biodynamic farming practices. Some such as Demetria and Bien Nacido have been practicing some form of organic/biodynamic farming for years. Due to this supply of sustainable grapes, natural winemakers have been springing up in the Santa Ynez valley. Here's a look at a few of them.
Nowadays is one of three brands produced by Municipal Winemakers whose mission is to "…embody wine as it was made in antiquity- handpicked, biodynamically or organically farmed, foot crushing, and aged in oak. Think cloudy, funky, unfiltered, and chemical-free."
The brains behind Muni Wine is David Potter, who got his start working at Sunstone. Most of his wines are created with handpicked grapes that are whole-cluster fermented. For instance, their 2020 Pet-Nat is a blend of skin-fermented and whole bunch pressed Reisling, while their "Is What It Is" Chardonnay was farmed organically and pressed to old French oak with little to no intervention but for a minuscule amount of S02 at unfiltered bottling.
You can try their wines at one of their two tasting rooms- one in the Funk Zone in downtown Santa Barbara, or for the more adventurous, up the coast at the Los Alamos Hotel in the charming/rustic Santa Ynez Valley town of Los Alamos.
Another reason to check out their valley digs- Los Alamos hosts several excellent restaurants (Full of Life Flatbread, Pico Los Alamos, Plenty on Bell) as well as other (not necessarily natural wine) tasing rooms- Casa Dumetz (woman winemaker), Bedford (the first guy up there!), and lo-fi wines (see below).
Lo-Fi was birthed at Martian Ranch when Mike Roth and Craig Winchester had the opportunity to work with some leftover fruit. They launched Lo-Fi in 2014 while Roth was working as winemaker (and still does) at Coquelicot Estate, whose estate vineyard is, in fact, certified organic and who provides Lo-Fi with most of their fruit.
Lo-Fi believes in “…neutral barrels, native yeasts, little to no sulfur additions, and no adjustment of pH. We love whole cluster fermentation. We adore carbonic maceration. We embrace a nothing added, nothing taken away philosophy that gives birth to wines that are young, vibrant, and alive.”
Their tasting room is open Friday, Saturday & Sunday from noon until 6 pm and is located at 448 “B” Bell St. Los Alamos, CA 93440.
Solminer grows and produces Natural, Organic, and Biodynamic Wines and is one of the few tasting rooms in Los Olivos to pour natural wines. The winery was born more or less in 2009 when Anna and David Delaski met and fell in love with each other, as well as with Santa Barbara wine country. All they needed was a chance meeting with a winemaker and a property for sale near Los Olivos to inspire them to move from LA.
Their "deLanda" vineyard is certified organic and biodynamic. All their wines are biodynamic and/or organic and use only native yeasts, while many are unfined and unfiltered.
As of this writing, the most diverse natural winery of the bunch is producing around 20 different wines, including a Pet-Nat Sparkling Rose and Sparkling Riesling, Gruner Veltliner, and a Blaufrankisch. Their roster is rounded out with a few Syrah's, several red blends, and a few quixotic varietals (St. Laurent!).
Solminer Wine Co. tasting room is at 2890 Grand Avenue, Los Olivos, CA 93441 and open from 11am-5pm Thursday through Monday.
A few other “natural” suggestions:
Wine bar with a rotating chef residency committed to serving natural wine and provisions.
Chef Alejandro Medina and famed sommelier Rajat Parr serve creative Indian cuisine with an array of natural wines. Parr also makes wines in a low-intervention style.
Lenka Davis is the wine director and the first sommelier to curate a comprehensive natural wine program in Santa Barbara.
Scott Bull curates’ tours with Santa Barbara County's natural wine producers.