Santa Barbara Wine Country | A Comprehensive Guide

Back to Concierge

Santa Barbara’s Wine Country has evolved from its humble 18th century beginning to become a world-class viticultural mecca. Today, there are more than 275 wineries and over 14,000 acres of vineyards yielding 1+ million cases of wine each year. The value of its wine grapes alone is close to $1 billion annually. Awards and accolades from wine experts, afficionados and highly respected competitions keep piling up.

A Brief History of Santa Barbara Wine Country

Santa Barbara Wine Country grape growing and winemaking history began in 1782 when Father Junipero Serra brought grapevine cuttings from Mexico to be planted near Sycamore Creek. In 1804, the largest mission vineyard, 25 acres, was established just north of Santa Barbara, adjacent to San Jose Creek on land that is now part of the town of Goleta. An adobe winery was built as well, and it still stands as Goleta's oldest landmark.

In 1884, Justinian Caire imported grape slips from France and planted a 150-acre vineyard on Santa Cruz Island. His prize-winning wines were shipped to San Francisco for bottling.

Meanwhile, a grapevine planted in 1842 on a farm in Carpinteria grew to monstrous proportions. In fifty years, it had a trunk measuring nine feet around, an arbor covering two acres and an annual yield of ten tons of grapes.

Santa Barbara County's first modern-day winery, aptly named Santa Barbara Winery, was founded in 1962 by Pierre Lafond, the then 32-year-old owner of a popular wine and cheese shop. It wasn't until two years later, however, that the county's first commercial wine grape vineyard was planted in what is now referred to as "Santa Barbara Wine Country" – by UC Davis viticulture graduates Uriel Nielsen and Bill DeMattei. Lafond's own vineyard was planted in 1972. Other pioneers included Firestone, Sanford, Rancho Sisquoc and Zaca Mesa.

Around 1980, vineyard owners and winemakers began fine-tuning vineyard plantings and winemaking to reflect Santa Barbara's terroir. Chardonnay and pinot noir began replacing chenin blanc and white Riesling, and the county's cooler regions began hosting Rhone varietals such as syrah, grenache, mourvedre, viognier, marsanne and rousanne. Today, chardonnay, pinot noir and syrah are the most widely planted grapes.

From the Earth to the Bottle in Santa Barbara Wine Country

The Terroir

Santa Barbara Wine Country is home to a topographic feature not found anywhere else in the contiguous U.S. – a pair of mountain ranges running east-west rather than north-south. The result is a funnel effect that ushers in fog and cool air from the Pacific Ocean, thereby extending the growing season and allowing the grapes to develop intense flavors and optimum acid-sugar ratios as they ripen slowly and evenly. These favorable conditions, combined with plentiful sunshine and soils conducive to growing exemplary wine grapes, are the perfect elements for a world-class wine growing region.

The AVAs

There are seven American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) in Santa Barbara Wine Country. The Santa Ynez Valley AVA is the largest and is home to more than 40 wineries and many acres of vineyards. It consists of the warmer eastern part of the valley — farther from the ocean and, therefore, the recipient of less cooling ocean influence — and the significantly cooler Santa Rita Hills in the west, closer to the ocean. The difference is so great in the two parts of the valley that the Santa Rita Hills has now received its own AVA designation. One of the newest AVAs, Ballard Canyon, lies in the heart of the Santa Ynez Valley AVA.

The fourth AVA, Santa Maria Valley, is bounded by the San Rafael Mountains (as they curve northward) to the east and the Solomon Hills and the city of Santa Maria to the west. Windy, cool and often foggy, this is another cool-climate growing area more similar to Burgundy, the French home of pinot noir and chardonnay, than to Bordeaux, where merlot and cabernet sauvignon are the mainstays. Those grapes are grown in the warmer, eastern part of the Santa Ynez Valley.

The AVA, with the second-smallest vineyard acreage (500+), is Happy Canyon. Nestled in the far eastern portion of the Valley, Happy Canyon's almost 24,000 acres span elevations from 800 to 3,400 feet. It's combination of warm climate and rocky, mineral-rich soil makes it the perfect home for Bordeaux and Rhône grape varietals.

Until recently, the newest AVA, the Los Olivos District, rests along the western flank of Happy Canyon. The towns of Solvang, Los Olivos, Ballard and Santa Ynez are within this district. Today, the newest and smallest Santa Barbara wine country AVA, with around 340 acres of wine grapes produced at nine ranches, is Alisos Canyon. It’s a burgeoning Rhone-focused wine region home to varietals syrah, grenache, viognier and cabernet franc.

The Wines

Because Santa Barbara Wine Country is blessed with a myriad of microclimates, winemakers are able to produce a wide array of wines to please virtually any palate. After forty years of experimentation and fine-tuning by vintners in order to match grape varietals with the region's terroir, however, a handful of varietal wines and blends are taking center stage and achieving acclaim. Chardonnay, Pinot Gris (Pinot Grigio) and Viognier are standouts among white wines, while Pinot Noir and Syrah shine in the red wine category.

As plantings of Bordeaux and Rhône varietals increase and mature in the Happy Canyon AVA and elsewhere, however, wine lovers will be seeing more top-quality Cabernet Sauvignon blends, Merlots and Sauvignon Blancs emerging from Santa Barbara's Wine Country. Coming on very strong, however, are Rhone varietals and blends

Wineries, Events, and More

The most comprehensive information about Santa Barbara's wine country, wines, wineries and wine events may be found at the website of the Santa Barbara County Vintners Association.

Back to Concierge

Client Reviews

“It was an emotional experience selling our mother’s home in Montecito that we all loved so much but Cristal made the process easier on our whole family by guiding us through the transaction every step of the way. She knows the market so well and everything she recommended was on point including the asking price, painting, and staging the home, which looked beautiful and helped the buyer envision her new home. We sold it the first day it hit the market with an offer above asking! Cristal did an incredible job communicating with us and the buyer to ensure that the transaction would run smoothly. We highly recommend using Cristal, she was a pleasure to work with! ”

- J & A

“Cristal is a pleasure to work with! Her knowledge of the local real estate market coupled with her amazing listening skills resulted in her showing us an array of homes that were all excellent choices. Her low-pressure patient attitude made us feel extremely comfortable with the whole process. I cannot recommend her highly enough.”

- M.F.

“Cristal Clarke is #1 in her field - and you don't become #1 by luck. Cristal works harder, and longer, and with more charm and patience than any real estate agent I have ever worked with in the past; her calendar has no weekend, her days have no clocks, her only concern is selling your property as soon as possible and for the best price on the market. Am I a fan? You bet!”

- P.B.

“We have used Cristal now several times and cannot express how grateful we are for her expertise, dedication, and unwavering support throughout the entire home-buying process. Cristal is knowledgeable, patient and attentive. Her attention to detail is remarkable, and she consistently went above and beyond to provide us with all the information and resources we needed to make informed decisions. Cristal is a skillful negotiator and advocate. She can navigate complex negotiations with professionalism and grace and felt like a true partner to us in the home-buying process. Cristal has a genuine passion for real estate and a deep commitment to her clients' satisfaction. I cannot speak highly enough of Cristal and her exceptional service. She is a true expert in her field and her dedication to excellence, combined with unwavering support is the reason we choose to work with her for all our real estate buying needs.”

- T.C.

“Cristal is a top-notch realtor who sold my home before it ever went on the market. I had two competing offers that enabled me to get top dollar for my home. Not only is Cristal superb but her team is extraordinary. I cannot say enough about Cristal and her team. They are simply phenomenal, the consummate professionals, who took care of every possible detail, making the sale and transition period, smooth from our end. They are also lovely, caring people, who knew all the right professionals, to get the job done. Thank you, everyone!”

- D.R.

“I could list lots of cool adjectives to describe Cristal. All good by the way. But, that is not why I or anyone should hire Cristal. My reason for hiring her, which proved to be correct, is very simple. She got the job done. And, she does it time and time again and with zero issues. And, that is why she is one of the top agents in the country. End of subject. ”

- M.A.

“Working with Cristal was a complete pleasure. Cristal was extremely patient with us as we evaluated nearly 2 dozen homes over a span of 2 years. Her knowledge of the market is unmatched. Cristal provided us with exceptional counsel as we evaluated opportunities and negotiated pricing. The closing process was handled thoroughly and efficiently. We could not be happier with our purchase and even more happy to now call Cristal our friend.”

- D.K.

“Cristal Clarke has conducted numerous real estate transactions for me beginning 13 years ago with the purchase of a Lemon Ranch. She has handled both large and small purchases and sales with equal dedication. As a negotiator, you can’t find anyone better. Her transactions are always conducted in the most appropriate and professional manner. Cristal has considerable knowledge of the Santa Barbara market.”

- S.N. Decker Ph.D.

“Living in Europe, we were to say the least, unaccustomed to the nuances of Real Estate acquisition in California and Cristal steered us through the process with absolute professionalism and personal attention to detail at every turn. Her in-depth knowledge of the market place combined with enthusiasm and drive was the only reason we secured the property of our dreams and will be forever grateful. If you are looking for personal discrete and private representation of the highest quality we suggest you look no further than Cristal Clarke.”

- Johan and Paula van den Berg

“Cristal is very straightforward, cheerful, helpful, professional and trustworthy….we felt very lucky to work with her.”

- John and Lacey Williams

“After considering our many choices, we are grateful it was Cristal Clarke of Sotheby’s International who represented the sale of our Montecito cottage. We are familiar with Cristal’s reputation of hard work and dedication to clients, but it was her attention to detail that made our experience so positive. She offered suggestions for staging the property, worked in harmony with potential buyers and was even able to secure back up offers. The sale of our cottage was completed much sooner than we expected, due in great part to Cristal’s professional skills and support. We highly recommend Cristal as a first choice for anyone needing representation with real estate.”

- Michael & Nancy Lee

“Our experience in working with Cristal Clarke resulted in the successful and discrete acquisition of a property which was not yet on the open market. Her knowledge of the Montecito/Santa Barbara area and vast expertise blended with her passion for real estate and architecture, provided us with the very highest level of professionalism and personalized services. Cristal exhibited a rare combination of excellent communications, attention to detail, creativity and patience.”

- Richard and Catherine Frinier

“Cristal really breaks the mold. She knows every nook and cranny of this real estate market, understands value, and follows up on everything, all the time. She was incredibly patient with our two year quest to find the perfect house. Every house hunting trip from across the country was well planned, and our time was never wasted. On top of her professionalism and expertise, she is delightful to spend time with. We are thrilled with the home we purchased, and grateful to Cristal for so wisely advising us through this process, right through to the close and beyond.”

- Laurie Siegel

“We met Cristal first in the course of renting a winter home (for three years), then buying a house using her as our agent. She was amazingly good at listening to our wants and showing us homes that fit our needs. Her mastery of the paperwork was perfect. Most importantly, there was never a situation where we doubted her straightforwardness or integrity. If we do another real estate transaction in Montecito (which I doubt, we’re happy with what we purchased), without question we’d use Cristal again.”

- Ken Saffir

“Susan and I just want to thank you for your efforts in the sale of our home. You are really quite amazing. Your competence, persistence, optimism and humor made the entire process effortless. Every problem that arose, you somehow fixed; any obstacle, you overcame. We have bought and sold many homes. It has never been such a painless and enjoyable process!”

- Michael & Susan Marquart

“A little something about “our” realtor, Cristal Clarke. My wife and I came to Santa Barbara about fifteen years ago looking for a seasonal home from which to enjoy the weather and amenities of the central coast. Being in the real estate business myself I was familiar with agents and brokers so entered the market with open eyes. We “flipped” a few houses in the early years, dealing with various agents and finally ended up in Montecito. That’s when good fortune put us together with Cristal. To say we were impressed is to put it mildly. Cristal really knows the market. She is familiar with the area, its history and trends. When we have questions about a particular property she either has the answers immediately or gets back to us by phone or email. There is no waiting or wondering with Cristal. She is an agent who is “on top of it.” Her recommendations as to price points, contractors, inspectors and title agents have proven to be exceptional, showing great insight and the highest professional standards. We consider ourselves exceedingly fortunate to say that Cristal Clarke is our realtor and would recommend her services to any serious buyer or seller.”

- Rob & Judi Kelch