Jalama Wines is a

California wine California wine production has a rich viticulture history since 1680 when Spanish Jesuit missionaries planted ''Vitis vinifera'' vines native to the Mediterranean region in their established missions to produce wine for religious services. ...

estate producing various

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

style blends and varietal wines. The winery is located in

Lompoc, California Lompoc ( ; Chumashan ) is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast, its population was 43,834 as of July 2021. Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called t ...

, 45 minutes north of Santa Barbara and the vineyard, located near Jalama Beach, is the westernmost vineyard in

Santa Barbara County Santa Barbara County, officially the County of Santa Barbara (), is a county located in Southern California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 448,229. The county seat is Santa Barbara, and the largest city is Santa M ...

. The vineyard is widely known for its hands-on farming techniques.

History

The Jalama valley, formerly part of an old Spanish land grant named

Rancho San Julian Rancho San Julian was a Mexican land grant and present-day ranch in present-day Santa Barbara County, California given in 1837 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to José de la Guerra y Noriega. The grant name probably refers to José Antonio Julian ...

, sits just a few miles from the Pacific. The area has a rich history of cattle ranching, farming and wine production dating back to the time of the first

California missions The Spanish missions in California () formed a series of 21 religious outposts or missions established between 1769 and 1833 in what is now the U.S. state of California. The missions were established by Catholic priests of the Franciscan ord ...

. A few of the original vines first planted by the natives of La Purisima Misson still remain nearby. Jalama Vineyard is on a portion of the family-owned and operated Cargasacchi ranch which includes the Cargasacchi Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills. The westernmost vineyard in Santa Barbara County, Jalama Vineyard is close to Jalama Beach and

Point Conception Point Conception (Chumashan languages, Chumash: ''Humqaq'') is a headland along the Gaviota Coast in southwestern Santa Barbara County, California, United States. It is the point where the Santa Barbara Channel meets the Pacific Ocean, and as ...

. This unique region is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean on three sides, resulting in foggy nights and cool, breezy days making the area ideal for growing

Pinot noir Pinot noir (), also known as Pinot nero, is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name also refers to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French language, French words fo ...

and

Pinot gris Pinot gris, pinot grigio (, ), or ''Grauburgunder'' is a white wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. Thought to be a mutant clone of the pinot noir variety, it normally has a pinkish-gray hue, accounting for its name, but th ...

. Starting in 1990, wine maker, Mark Cargasacchi consulted for other notable wineries in the

Santa Ynez Valley The Santa Ynez Valley ( Spanish: ''Valle de Santa Ynez'') is located in Santa Barbara County, California, between the Santa Ynez Mountains to the south and the San Rafael Mountains to the north. The Santa Ynez River flows through the valley f ...

until his estate began bottling the Jalama label in 2004. Jalama wines has made an impact with wine sales through the use of online social media markets.

Production

Within a area, the vineyard area extends , planted with varieties

Syrah Syrah (), also known as Shiraz, is a dark-skinned grape variety grown throughout the world and used primarily to produce red wine. In 1999, Syrah was found to be the offspring of two obscure grapes from southeastern France, Dureza and Mondeuse ...

and

Viognier Viognier () is a white wine grape variety. It is the only permitted grape for the French wine Condrieu AOC, Condrieu in the Rhone Valley (wine), Rhône Valley.J. Robinson ''The Oxford Companion to Wine'', Third Edition, p. 754, Oxford Univers ...

. Additional grapes

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebano ...

and

Mourvèdre Mourvèdre (; also known as Mataro or Monastrell) is a red wine grape variety grown in many regions around the world. It is found in the Rhône and Provence regions of France, the Valencia and Jumilla, Bullas and Yecla '' denominaciones de or ...

are sourced from vineyards located in the Santa Rita Hills.

References

External links

Jalama Wines official site
{{Coord, 33.8222, -116.5460, display=title Wineries in California Companies based in Santa Barbara County, California