Day Tripping to Lompoc & Santa Barbara County for a Taste of Good Wine

By Cori Solomon

It does not take much to entice my husband and me to drive up to the Central Coast to go wine tasting. Santa Barbara County has so many areas to visit, including Solvang, Los Olivos, Santa Ynez, Los Alamos, and Lompoc. The various appellations of Santa Barbara County open the door to many options for tasting wine and a day trip to the area. There are wineries at every turn in all these places. If you are a lover of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and cool climate Syrah along with other coolclimate varieties, visiting Lompoc is the place to go, especially to the industrial park that houses the Lompoc Wine Trail, formally known as the Wine Ghetto.

Our journey is uneventful as we leave Los Angeles, but once we hit Ventura, I thoroughly enjoy the drive. We are past the hustle of Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. Calmness sets in as we view the the landmarks you saw in the movie Sideways. The

California coastline, but once we pass through the tunnel and start our ascent up to Buellton, we truly notice the difference. The landscape changes to pastures filled with oak trees, telling us we have arrived in Santa Barbara wine country. The Central Coast beckons us knowing we are destined to enjoy a good time.

Folded Hills

Once we hit Santa Barbara, we know that we have a 45-minute drive to Buellton's exit and the 246, the highway that leads east to Solvang and west to Lompoc. If you crave wine before you reach Buellton, stop in Gaviota at Folded Hills, the winery owned by Andrew and Kim Busch. Just off the 101 freeway, the winery is known for its Rhone varietals. From their beer empire, they now have a Farmstead lucky, you can also see the Clydesdale horses, a camel, zebra, and donkey that live in harmony on the property.

Wine Picks: Don't miss August White, a blend of Grenache Blanc, Clairette Blanche, and Roussanne. In Reds, I recommend Grant Grenache.

Wine Along the Highway 246

Back on the road for a few minutes, you will soon reach the exit of the 246 and will recognize many of that grows various crops, including grapes. If you are

film made Pinot Noir and the area famous. Heading west on the 246, you will pass several of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA vineyards and wineries, including Babcock, Foley, Dierberg, and Melville. Some of my favorites along the 246 are Dierberg and Melville. Both settings are ideal for a picnic, although with COVID, you need to check ahead of time for the specific rules.

Photos (From left): Red wine pour, Courtesy get stencil.com; Folded Hills tasting room with Kim Busch and Tymari; Dierberg Star Lane

Wine Picks: At Dierberg, I have always enjoyed the unoaked Chardonnay. At Melville, I recommend the Syrah.

Sta. Rita Hills AVA

Most of the wineries in Lompoc are part of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. It began with a vision that Michael Benedict and Richard Sanford had in the late 60s and early 70s. They planted the first vineyard in 1971, known as Sanford and Benedict, and were the pioneers of the area. By 1997 several of the pioneering winemakers were determined to make the Sta. Rita Hills, an AVA. That occurred in 2001. Today there are over 59 vineyards in the appellation.

The region is known for its Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and other cool-climate varieties. The combination of marine-based soil with higher levels of calcium, its east/west orientation, and the diurnal changes due to the cooling influence of the Pacific ocean and fog create ideal growing conditions for cool-climate wines.

You enter the Sta. Rita Hills AVA once you are about four miles west of Buellton, and the AVA western boundary is just before you hit the town of Lompoc. The boundary on the north is the south side of the Purisima Hills and on the south the north side of the Santa Rosa Hills.

Lompoc

Lompoc is known for its flower fields, murals, and its budding wine industry. It happens to be the flower seed capital of the world. The city is about 10 to 15 minutes from Surf Beach and Ocean Beach Park for those that want to walk along the beach. Vandenberg Air Force is a 10 to fifteen-minute drive north. If you are in Lompoc on the day of a launch, look to the sky to view the rocket taking off.

The area initially was settled by the Chumash Indians. In 1787 the La Purisima Mission was established. An earthquake in 1812 destroyed the Mission. It was rebuilt in its current location and now

part of the California Park System. Before COVID-19, you could enjoy an evening under the stars at the La Purisima Mission while attending Wine and Fire, the Sta. Rita Hills Wine Alliance's yearly event. It is one of my favorite outdoor wine events.

Lompoc Wine Tasting

I discovered the wine scene in Lompoc while attending yearly dog shows in the area. I would skip a day showing my dog to explore the many wineries or enjoy a Santa Maria styled barbeque. Like Santa Maria, the barbeque is a big part of the local scene.

Wineries are scattered all over Lompoc's southern end. Most are located in an industrial park just north of Ocean Avenue near 12th St.

Some of the wineries with tasting rooms on the wine trail include Ampelos, a winery dedicated to biodynamic farming. Sampling their Rosé is a must because a small amount of Riesling enhances the spices in the wine. Sweetzer Cellars, another winery that I highly recommend where almost any of their Chardonnays and Pinots are worth tasting.

There are also wineries with tasting rooms close by but not in the industrial park—one of the newest wineries in town is Camins 2 Dreams. At Camins, try the Gruner Veltliner. Liquid Farm has a tasting room in Lompoc, as well as Los Olivos. Liquid Farm produces some of the best Burgundian Chardonnays I have ever tasted. The winery started producing only Chardonnay and Rosé, saying they would never make any Pinot Noir. A couple of years ago, they began creating Pinot Noir. Their Pinot is pretty darn good. If you run into winemaker James Sparks, ask to taste his label.

Known as the blue whale, you will find Kitá, KesslerHaak, Transcendence, and Zotovich. Although I

mention Transcendence here, my last road trip to Lompoc took me to Kessler-Haak and Kitá.

Transcendence

I have known Transcendence winemaker/owner Joey Gummere for years, and he focuses on making Chardonnay, Rosé, Pinot Noir, and Syrah. My favorite story with Joey is when I sampled the Chardonnay that goes to Japan and the same Chardonnay he produces for the US. What a difference in acidity on the Chardonnays. The version sold in Japan was off the charts with acidity. The Japanese market desires wines with very high acidity.

Kessler-Haak

Kessler-Haak Winemaker/owner Dan Kessler came from the tech industry. He started creating his wine using a box kit at home. From this elementary winemaking process, Dan won a gold medal. Dan later planted 200 plus grapevines in his backyard. As Dan's interest in wine increased, he obtained a Winemaker's Certificate from the UC Davis Distance Learning Program. All this lead to a life-changing move to Lompoc, where he purchased 40 acres along Highway 246 in 2004.

I have known Dan since 2011 and seen the growth in his wines. In 2012 Dan started to make sparkling wine and the brut with its opalesque color to this day is my favorite. Dan has challenged himself by going beyond the traditional wine of the area to experiment with

Photos (From left): Transcendence Winery; Dan Kessler of Kessler-Haak Wines; Kessler-Haak tasting room

Cabernet Franc, Nebbiolo, and Cabernet Sauvignon. My favorites at visiting his tasting room recently were the 2016 Pinot Noir Ohana Estate. Ohana means family in Hawaiian, which makes sense why this is Kessler-Haak's flagship wine. Its composition utilizes all the clones on his estate. Therefore it is a family of clones on a family estate. I also liked the 2014 Pinot Noir Intuition and the 2015 Syrah.

Kitá

The Chumash tribe owns this winery. Their winemaker Tara Gomez, a member of the Chumash tribe, overcame many challenges as both a woman winemaker and the first Native American winemaker. She represents the first Native American winery recognized in the United States. Many of Tara's philosophies on balance are carried over to her 2nd winery Camins 2 Dreams.

Both Tara's philosophy and that of the Chumash is the pursuit of balance in the winemaking process. It expresses the place, purity of the varietal, and grape. Ultimately the balance between the earth, terroir, vine, nature, and weather conditions or how we, the consumer, interprets the wine all comes into play. It is the relationship between all components of wine blended together. Balance also means giving back to the land t h r o u g h sustainable

Photos (From left)): Kita wines; The wines of Kita; Tara Gomez and the Camp 4 Vineyard

practices. All these parts signify Kitá Wines' meaning of balance.

The vineyard has a balancing spiritual quality for the Chumash. The Chumash tribe, therefore, becomes the shepherd of the vineyard. That vineyard is the Camp 4 Vineyard at the entrance to Happy Canyon AVA.

Kitá means "Our Valley Oak." The oak tree represents the tree of the Santa Ynez Valley, and like the tree, the grape signifies the fruit of the area. Therefore the wines of Kitá symbolize the essence of the Santa Ynez Valley.

At Kitá I recommend trying the 2018 T’AYA a blend of Marsanne, Roussanne and Grenache Blanc, 2018 Sauvignon Blanc, 2017 Grenache and the 2017 Syrah.

Wine Tasting in the Vicinity

Not only are their great wineries in Lompoc, but it is a 30-minute ride along the backroads to Los Alamos where you can enjoy wines, dine at Pico, or get a sandwich at Bob's Well Bread.

Buellton is 20 minutes from Lompoc, and it is worth checking out Alma Rosa's tasting room or dining at Industrial Eats, which is where we dined on our last visit.

About 30 minutes away, Solvang offers a cute Danish atmosphere with wonderful pastry shops, gift shops, and restaurants. Some of my favorite wine tasting rooms are Wandering Dog Wine Bar, Crawford Family Wines, where you must try their Albarino, Lucas and Lewellen, and Buttonwood.

Los Olivos, a quaint town approximately 40 minutes away from Lompoc, offers many wine tasting rooms. My favorites are Tercero, Liquid Farm, and Andrew Murray.

Whether you visit Lompoc, Los Alamos, Buellton, Solvang, or Los Olivos, you will certainly enjoy a wonderful day of wine tasting. For me, Lompoc holds a special place in my heart because it is where I learned so much about the nuances of wine and wine writing.

Photos (From top): The town of Solvang; La Parisima Mission; Los Olivos; Melville Winery