Small Sips - Issuu

from Edible Santa Barbara Fall/Holiday 2022

TASTING THE OCEAN IN SANTA BARBARA WINES

By Anna Maria Giambanco DiPietro

Merriam-Webster defines terroir as “the combination of factors including soil, climate and sunlight that give wine grapes their distinctive character.” Oxford breaks it down as “the complete natural environment in which a particular wine is produced, including factors such as the soil, topography and climate.” Terroir is arguably the most fascinating and misunderstood component of winemaking and tasting.

Esteemed wine writer Matt Kramer refers to it as the “somewhereness” of a wine. Marketing ephemera touts it, folks butcher its pronunciation (it’s “ter-WAH”) and casual enophiles, somms and scientists alike can discuss it ’til the cows come home. But when it comes to the relationship between terroir and wine, not everyone’s on the same page.

A French word with Latin roots meaning “land” or “ground,” terroir is more than just the influence of a geological site. It’s an amalgam of the effects of socioeconomical, political and cultural aspects; human stewardship of the land and vines (including the native flora and fauna on and surrounding the vineyards); production methods; and the climate of a grape-growing region.

All of these things contribute to the finished product. Is terroir real? Can a vineyard, AVA or region magically “appear” when you uncork or uncap a bottle?

By no means am I indicating that upon opening a bottle of, say, Greg Brewer’s Diatom Chardonnay (named for “diatomaceous earth, which is a plankton fossil found in the oceanic landscape of Santa Barbara County), or Justin Charbonneau’s Rio Vista Vineyard Pinot Noir, briny sea water, kelp and uni will come pouring out.

I’m talking about the Pacific’s influence. The wind, ancient seabeds, fog and how they inform the Carignan, Clairette Blanche and Pinot Gris of California’s Central Coast winemaking sweet spot.

In Vintners’ Voices

I’ve spent the better part of the past five months exploring the concept of tasting a place—specifically, tasting the sea in the wines of this winemaking fantasyland, Santa Barbara County. Here’s what a few of the magic-making vintners of Santa Barbara County had to say:

Karen Steinwachs

“Winemakers here will often call out ‘salinity’ in tasting notes, which may be unusual and definitely does not mean ‘salty.’ When we say we can taste the sea in our coastal wines, it’s that sense one gets when walking on a beach with crashing waves hitting the sand: a crisp, refreshing and almost crunchy sense of clean. The vines are caressed by maritime breezes from the Pacific Ocean and our soils do include ancient diatomaceous earth from when the sea covered the land, so there are minerally notes in the wines as well. But it’s really the ‘feeling’ that one remembers when enjoying our wines!” —Karen Steinwachs

Justin Charbonneau

“The east-west transverse mountains create a funnel that opens up to the Pacific Ocean at the western end of the Lompoc Valley where the Santa Ynez River meets the sea. When it gets hot inland (SY Valley) in the afternoon, the heat rising creates a vacuum effect that pulls the marine layer in from the Pacific Ocean. Lompoc just happens to be right in the middle of that wind funnel.” —Justin Charbonneau

Jessica Gasca

“With our ancient ocean earth providing the perfect base for our vines and our east-west mountain ranges that give us the direct impact of the (Pacific Ocean) marine influence, this really is the ideal place to grow grapes.” —Jessica Gasca

Matt Dees

“Our proximity to the cold Pacific is the only reason we are able to grow these grapes here in Sta. Rita Hills. Everything revolves around that coastline. As with everything in wine, the final product is the result of thousands and thousands of micro and macro influences. That being said, when one tastes a Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay, it is immediately obvious that this is a coastal region. One can taste the salt, sense the freshness and feel the cool ocean breeze. Chardonnay and the sea have an amazing relationship.”—Matt Dees

Bryan Babcock

“Perhaps nowhere else in the world is the influence of the ocean on its local viticultural districts as profound as it is on California’s South Central Coast. Here, within Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties, we find three major maritime valleys that are like open climactic channels to the ocean, inviting cool ocean air deep into their interiors throughout their wine-growing seasons. Like nowhere else, the Santa Ynez, Santa Maria and Edna Valleys create an almost venturi-like effect (a reduction in fluid pressure that results when a fluid flows through a constricted section of a pipe), sending cool air inland to bathe and calm their vineyards with lower temperatures—leading to longer growing seasons and deeper, more intensely flavored fruit for wine. This tectonic gift of nature, along with a tremendous diversity of soils, creates an absolute cornucopia of winemaking opportunities that range from our surf to our inland mountains.” —Bryan Babcock

Kathy Joseph

“For the 34 years of my career at Fiddlehead, I’ve always sought to acquire grapes from growing districts perfectly suited to the varietal. Pinot Noir, in particular, demands a cool climate to attain that extraordinary balance and texture that I love in wine. I planted Fiddlestix Vineyard with this mantra because of the influence of the nearby Pacific, and living within those vines so fully embraces the sea’s influence. We are blessed with fog-laden mornings and sun-kissed afternoons, and the noticeable daily breezes sustain our cool temperatures.” —Kathy Joseph

Rajat Parr

“The Pacific Ocean is the most important influence on our wines. It controls the temperature, ensuring we have cool nights all through the summer. We rarely have long heat spells due to the cool ocean.” —Rajat Parr

The Taste of a Place

**Story of Soil wine**
PHOTO BY ERIN FEINBLATT

Some might consider it an utterly romantic notion, but I really do feel that a bottle of wine can hold the taste of a place. And even though terroir is a French word, it’s a global term. Here in Santa Barbara County, living on soil loaded with marine sediment among the vines, I can’t help but see the obvious correlation between the fog rolling in over Lompoc and the wines produced by my neighbors. Starting at about 4pm today, the Pacific sent in that marine layer, and now as it seeps in, rolling over the curves of the Sta. Rita Hills outside my window, the ocean air kisses the vines on Santa Rosa Road and a bit further down on 246, into Buellton; she tucks the vines in and sends them to bed, helping the berries cool off after another dusty, dry, hot Central Coast day.

We’ll see what transpires as Jessica, Bryan, Kathy, Karen, Justin, Greg, Rajat and their peers harvest this year. Bottling the sea. Capturing the taste of this place, with its tiny fossils, cool coastal climate, sandy, alluvial soil and unique east-west mountain range. It’s the perfect storm for balanced wines of character. Each vintage is a message in a bottle to the rest of the world—from Santa Barbara County, with love.

Anna Maria Giambanco DiPietro is a writer based in Santa Barbara County. With her WSET 2 with distinction certificate in tow, she writes for numerous publications focusing on the wine and food scene. You’ll likely find her tucked away among the vines planning her next pairing. IG: @AnnavedaBeauty