WINE Sipping Season: High-Profile Events Target Wine Lovers

 

The renowned World of Pinot Noir event returns to the Ritz-Carlton Bacara this weekend (courtesy photo)

It’s never too early for great wine.

Each year, March marks the start of what I call the Sipping Season. In the vineyards, bud break will begin – dormant vines waking up to welcome what’ll become the year’s harvest. And across the Santa Barbara area, high-profile wine events will begin, too – unique opportunities for lovers of wine to sip what’s new, exciting and delicious. 

Here are three of the best.

World of Pinot Noir

Hey, fellow procrastinators, this awesome event begins tonight, so get your tickets now! World of Pinot Noir returns to the Ritz-Carlton Bacara with three days of tastings, seminars and dinners, and features some of the best Burgundy-inspired wines in the world. Dozens of brands include some of the very best in Santa Barbara County – Au Bon Climat, Brewer-Clifton, Dierberg, Native9, and The Hilt – along with global powerhouses from premium wine growing regions in Sonoma, Chile, and France.

The Grand Tastings on Friday and Saturday ($175 or $300 for early entry) give consumers access to hundreds of wines, including new and upcoming releases, and the special chance to mingle and chat with the winemakers themselves. There is an amazing amount of wine to choose from here, so my suggestion is to focus on regions to explore, or on specific wineries you want to get to know. The early-bird-gets-the-worm approach works, too.

Seminars offer more intimate chances to delve into various styles and to learn how terroir can drive how pinot noir smells, tastes, and feels. Friday’s “The New ‘Grand Cru’ of California” session ($150) will spotlight 10 of California’s top-tier labels, like Sanford and Merry Edwards, and the Saturday “Global Wine Conversations” seminar ($150) will lead guests on a blind tasting challenge of pinots from all over the world.

Friday and Saturday each feature wine lunch events ($175) and mega dinners with several pinot noir winemaker celebs ($275-$500), each feast featuring cuisine from Bacara’s renowned culinary teams.

If you’ve done WOPN before, you’ll be back! And if you’ve never been, this is the one wine event you don’t want to miss. 

For tickets, including the Weekend VIP Passport ($2,250) that gets you all-access, go to worldofpinotnoir.com

Santa Barbara County Women Winemakers and Culinarians Celebration

Come celebrate the women of wine and culinarians of Santa Barbara County (photo by Deborah Chadsey Photography)

Yes, men are welcome – but this event is all about celebrating the talented women who help define Santa Barbara County as a world-class wine and food destination. 

Coinciding with International Women’s Day, and back for its 7th year, this event has been rebranded and also expanded to offer up no less than five days of delectable events. It all begins Wednesday, March 6th with a dinner featuring Camins 2 Dreams, the label driven by the wife-and-wife team of Tara Gomez and Mireia Taribó, with food from Michelin-recognized Peasant’s Feast in Solvang ($110). Thursday, March 7th, presents three dinners across the Santa Ynez Valley, from Los Olivos to Las Alamos ($75-$150). And Friday night is all about “Sips and She-Nanigans – A Sassy Soirée” ($95) at the Fess Parker Winery estate, a fancy wine-and-cocktail party that’ll go late into the night and highlight female chefs, female winemakers, and entertainment from various comediennes.

As per usual, the Saturday Grand Tasting sold out early, but tickets remain for Sunday’s “Bubbly Bash” ($95) at the Inn at Mattei’s Tavern in Los Olivos, with sparklers from labels like Seagrape, Story of Soil, and Alma Rosa.

Food and wine aside, this is a premium opportunity to meet and celebrate the growing team of women – 19 gourmands and 34 winemakers, no less – who are defining today’s culinary culture in Santa Barbara County. Say hi to Casa Dumetz’s Sonja Magdevski, Sunstone’s Brittany Rice, Dana V’s Dana Volk, Dreamcôte’s Brit Zotovich, and Los Olivos Café’s Chef Brooke Stockwell, among so many others. Proceeds will go to She Raised Her Hand, a new initiative aimed at empowering women veterans. 

Find your tickets at SBwomenwinemakers.com

Saunters & Sips

Loubud Wines’ Laura Hughes is among the myriad winemakers featured at Saunters & Sips (photo by Frankie Osegueda)

This quintessential spring event brings the coveted cool-climate Sta. Rita Hills winegrowing region to the Santa Barbara shore. Saunters & Sips ($129) is all about rosé and sparkling wines made with the world-premium pinot noir and chardonnay grapes that grow so prolifically in the vineyards cradled by the Purisima Hills and Santa Rosa Hills between Buellton and Lompoc. More than two dozen brands will represent the world-renowned AVA and dole out pours of their newest releases – Flying Goat, Ampelos, Loubud, Fiddlehead, and Babcock among them.

The afternoon event from 2:30-5:30 pm will offer up those famous ocean views from the Carousel House along Cabrillo Blvd. Food stations will feature Thai dishes, empanadas and BBQ sliders, and The Down Yonders will play live music all day.

This is one of the two major events presented each year by the Sta. Rita Hills Alliance, which was founded in 1997 to promote the region that features more than 60 vineyards across 30,000 acres – 3,000 of them planted to wine grapes. Their four-day Wine & Fire feast is slated for August. 

Go to www.staritahills.com/events for tickets

And One more

A last-minute date change offers up a rare chance this weekend to get dibs on winemaker Ryan Carr’s premium portfolio. Carr Winery’s downtown Santa Barbara location – a unique venue inside a 1940s Quonset hut – is hosting a Cellar Raid ($30 or $10 for wine club members), giving consumers the chance to taste and buy 80+ wines from vintages 2006 to 2016. The flat rate pricing – three bottles for $125, six bottles for $250, and a 12-pack for $500 – represents a potential of savings of up to 80% on some bottles. Most wines are expected to sell out, so show up early. The event happens Saturday, March 2, from noon to 6 pm. 

Check out carrwinery.com for more information

No reason to go thirsty! Cheers!  

A Winery Takes on Mental Health: Alma Rosa to Host 5th Annual Fundraiser Walk

 

Participants walk through the Alma Rosa estate during last year’s “Peace of Mind” walk

Winemaker Samra Morris and I are sharing wine, and the conversation soon turns to mental health.

“It’s a common human experience,” she tells me, “and yet people are still scared to share their struggles with it, for fear that they will be judged.”

We agree that COVID exacerbated mental health issues for many of us. “Even I, as a winemaker, have my moments,” she says. But we also recognize that our shared push through the pandemic forced us to confront it, to recognize its pervasiveness, and, as she puts it, “to have openness and to have more awareness” about ways to battle mental health issues. “It’s okay to talk about it,” she adds.

Morris is among the champions of Santa Barbara County’s Alma Rosa Winery’s goal of elevating the consciousness around mental health. Since 2020, the wine brand has been hosting “Peace of Mind: 10,000 Steps in the Right Direction,” a fundraising walk through Alma Rosa’s sweeping 628-acre Sta. Rita Hills estate. Slated to return Saturday, May 18th at 9 am (May is Mental Health Awareness Month), the 10,000 steps equate to about four-and-a-half miles, experienced across undulating hilltops and budding vines, and culminating in a midday wine reception featuring Alma Rosa’s latest releases and pours from neighbor wineries, like The Hilt; with additional snacks and drinks presented by Pressed Juicery, Kate’s Real Food, and Leisure Project. There’s a ticketed private lunch with local vintners at Alma Rosa’s historic Ranch House, too. 

MJ wine columnist Gabe Saglie visits with Alma Rosa winemaker Samra Morris

Registration to participate is $55 per person (the lunch that follows is extra), and 100% of proceeds benefit two organizations earmarked by Alma Rosa proprietors Bob and Barb Zorich. One Mind is a non-profit founded in 1995 that funds neuropsychiatric brain research; their One Mind at Work initiative has brought supportive workplace mental health practices to more than seven million employees. The Mental Health Wellness Center has been providing mental health support to Santa Barbara adults, families and youth for 77 years, including their onsite recovery day program that sees hundreds of individuals, both housed and unhoused, living with severe mental illness. 

The Zoriches will be matching individual donations dollar-for-dollar, up to $35,000, and matching corporate sponsorships up to an additional $25,000. Since its launch, “Peace of Mind” has raised more than $745,000. You can join the cause at almarosawinery.com/about/community-commitment.

“There’s something special about bringing people together in a beautiful setting, sharing stories,” Morris continues. “Being with others, being out in nature – it helps to talk openly about mental health.”

Morris and I are sitting inside Alma Rosa’s tasting room in downtown Solvang, an airy space where a wine bar anchors comfy indoor seating and which leads out to a lovely 1,000-square-foot courtyard. As we tackle the nuances of mental health, we’re also sipping – a chance to get acquainted with her latest releases.

Samra Morris is the first and only Bosnian winemaker in California. Bachelor’s and master’s degrees in food sciences from the University of Sarajevo originally had her going down the brewmaster route. But a move to Napa steered her toward wine, and after stints with labels like Mondavi and Grgich Hills, and after a role as head of quality control for the wine cans and kegs program at Free Flow Winery, she headed south for the Central Coast. She joined Alma Rosa as assistant winemaker in 2019, joining the brand founded by winegrowing pioneer Richard Sanford in 2005 and purchased by the Zoriches nine years later. Winemaker Nick de Luca’s sudden departure made the 2019 vintage “a trial by fire,” Morris remembers, but the challenges helped her prove her mettle, and she was quickly promoted to the wine team’s top spot. The releases that have followed have been a snapshot of her skill and what she calls fastidious “attention to details.”

The Alma Rosa tasting room in Solvang offers guided tastings seven days a week

As we’re chatting, actually, an Alma Rosa club member visiting the tasting room from San Diego approaches Morris to compliment her on how, as he put it, her “stewardship of the wines” since she arrived has “really improved their quality.” 

Morris sources grapes mostly – about 98% – from the Alma Rosa estate, known as El Jabali, along with fruit from nearby vineyards she describes as “distinctive and expressive” – La Encantada, which was also planted by Richard Sanford, as well as Rancho La Vina and Radian. They’re all in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA, and all set along the north end of Santa Rosa Road, where “seashells that are still in our soils” offer “salinity notes and chalky tannins” and lead to wines that are “bright and refreshing.”

We taste through the current tasting list, including the 2021 La Encantada Pinot Gris ($35); it’s clean and zippy white wine, with a soft body and hints of spice, that was fermented and then aged for 14 months in mostly stainless-steel tanks.

The 2022 North Slope Pinot Noir ($55) blends grapes from all the aforementioned vineyards, though mostly estate fruit. It’s “slightly polished,” she tells me, meaning the wine is put through large filters to get rid of “bigger compounds.” Aged in 30% new French oak barrels, the wine shows a very pretty nose, with a supple fleshiness on the palate and bursts of red fruit flavors.

Morris affectionately calls the 2021 La Encantada Pinot Noir ($85) “the prettiest lady in the cellar” for its pervasive rose petal notes. Its body is splashy and lithe, and the flavors are buoyed by subtle white pepper notes.

The 2021 El Jabali Pinot Noir ($90) is the “cab lover’s pinot,” says Morris, made with a clone of pinot noir that yields distinctly smaller clusters – the winemaker calls them “cute.” The wine is layered, rich, and dynamic.

The Alma Rosa portfolio also features other pinots, some made in small batches from select areas of the estate, along with several chardonnay, sparkling, and Rhône wines. The Solvang tasting room is open seven days a week – the lineup of pours rotates regularly and tastings are $30 per person – and guests are also welcomed at the vineyard. The wines are made at a facility in Lompoc, though there are plans to eventually build a winery right on the Buellton estate.  

Find out more at almarosawinery.com.

Super Bowl Travel to Las Vegas Means Big Spends + 'Excessive Celebration'

If you're headed to Las Vegas for Super Bowl LVII, the first the iconic destination has hosted the biggest game in professional sports, then you're not really looking for bargains. You're ready to invest big. And you're ready to party big.

Let's talk partying big, first. Las Vegas has launched a global campaign -- Excessive Celebration Encouraged -- that leans big into this simple fact: when one of the biggest event in pro sports meets the ultimate destination for over-the-top revelry, only excessive celebration will do. To promote it, they've released a music video -- check it out here -- featuring NFL all-pro wide receiver Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson and Grammy-nominated artist Tobe Nwigwe. Celebrators around the world can join Las Vegas in encouraging excessive celebration at Super Bowl LVIII by signing a special change.org petition.

If you head to Las Vegas to catch the battle between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs. you won't be alone. Las Vegas is already the biggest destination in the world for Super Bowl, with crowds historically topping 300,000. The fact the game's in-town this year is expected to see that incoming crowd surge by 50% to 450,000! Many will be taking in the action live at Allegient Stadium, the state-of-the-art facility that opened in 2020 and houses more than 65,000 fans. The rest will be descending on parties, activations and events spread throughout the city across several days.

Ticket prices continue to fluctuate, through they're being gobble up via third-party sites from $6000 a pop, with a pair of seats at the 50-yard line going for more than $100,000 and those fancy suites commanding, in some cases, in excess of $2 million!

Tobe Nwigwe and Chad "Ochocinco" Johnson 

Despite the fact that airlines like United have added flights into Las Vegas form the Bay Area and Kansas City, flight prices are soaring. And although the city boasts more than 150,000 hotel rooms, the price to stay is ballooning, too.

Most football revelers, though, will avoid the sticker shock to watch the gam in person by taking advantage of a ton of activities that the city is hosting over the five-day period culminating with the big game on February 11th. The Super Bowl Experience at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center -- think of it as an interactive theme park of football-inspired experiences, complete with chances to mingle with NFL icons -- happens February 7-10, with tickets at $50 a day. There are plenty of watch parties at resorts like MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, Resorts World and The LINQ. And among the cool activations throughout the city: the Giant Chocolate Egg created by the pastry team at The Aria -- at 10 feet by 5-1/2 feet, and made with 1000 pounds of milk and dark chocolate and 50 pounds of fondant, it took 230 to complete! There's also the Frito-Lay immersive experience at the New York-New York, a foodie experience from Pepsi at the Delano and celeb appearances by stars like former quarterback star Doug Flutie at the MGM Sportsbook at Mandala Bay.

The Aria pastry team's Chocolate Football

For music fans, several big names are taking to the stage during Super Bowl weekend, including Chrstina Aguilera at the Voltaire Theater inside the Venetian, Kelly Clarkson at Planet Hollywood and Bruno Mars at Park MGM's Dolby Live Theater.

Click here for a thorough roundup of activities and events around Super Bowl LVIII from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Bureau.

If you're heading to Las Vegas for the big game, here are a few reality check tips from me!

• Especially for those of you flying out of the Bay Area, shop for one-way fares from multiple airports and multiple airlines -- it could be cheaper than committing to one roundtrip flight
• Stay longer -- flight and hotel prices will drop big time over the days following Super Bowl Sunday, so consider flying back home, say, Wednesday
• If you're driving in and/or out, prepare for congestion on the highways leading to Las Vegas, especially on I-15 -- pack snacks, have your kids' devices charged and make sure your tank (or battery) is full
•  Consider alternate ways to get around -- with rideshare and cabs in high demand, and with plenty of dependable congestion, ride the Monorail, which features several stops and is clean and accessible, and the trams, like the one at the Aria and the one that whisks you between the Excalibur, the Luxor and Mandalay Bay
• Book your restaurant reservations and entertainment tickets in advance ASAP to ensure access 

For most of us, of course, the best seat in the house will be at home, in front of our favorite TV! Either way, enjoy Super Bowl LVIII!

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How to Make the Most of National Plan for Vacation Day

Did you take all your paid time off last year? If you're like most Americans, you didn't! Data from the U.S. Travel Association over the last few years show that only 25%v of us tap all of our PTO before year's end. The rest of us leave an average of 4-1/2 vacation days on the docket and, depending on which state you call home, they don't always roll over into the new year.

National Plan for Vacation Day launched in 2017, and it falls on January 30 -- the last #travelTuesday of the month -- in 2024. The idea is simple: carve out time that day to map out your vacations for the year. Even if things change down the road, earmarking getaways while tapping all of your PTO puts trips on your horizon and adventures to look forward to! 

Here are five quick tips to maximize your vacation planning on this year's National Plan for Vacation Day!

• Take time off around holiday weekends: Working with time off that's already on the calendar will give you several 4- or 5-day vacations that only cost you one or 2 days off. For example, think about taking Feb. 16 and 20 off, the Friday and Tuesday around President's Day weekend; that Monday Feb. 19 is a national holiday, and tapping two of your paid days off suddenly gives you a five-day getaway!
• Traveling during a holiday? Book now! Use National Plan for Vacation Day to lock down vacation time now around popular holiday weeks or weekends, since popular spots will sell-out early and overall costs won't come down. Want to take the kids away for spring break? Book now! Want to visit your favorite beach during 4th of July weekend? Book now! You know you want to get away over Thanksgiving? Book now!
• Go off-season: I think we'll see a big push this year to visit your favorite destinations, but without the crowds. There's a sustainability argument here: going off-season helps manage the impact on the places we visit. What's more, fewer people and lower prices are always a plus. Book travel to popular summer spots in the spring or fall, instead, and winter havens during the summer.
• Watch the fine print: Whenever you see a really hot travel deal -- and we're likely to see various travel brands doling out promos on National Plan for Vacation Day -- make sure you read the fine print. Even the totally legit bargains are likely to come with strict change or cancelation policies.
• Use your miles: I'm one of those travelers who loves to see their airline mileage account grow. Bottom line, though, is that your miles are only as valuable as where they'll take you. Use National Plan for Vacation Day to tap your miles to book your next few flights!

On Discovery Princess Sep. 2023 -- our first Alaska cruise!

One last note: look for some of the best bargains coming from the cruise industry. No less than eight new high-profile ships are slated to hit the water in 2024, including Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas, which set sail on Caribbean itineraries this past weekend, the Sun Princess, which launches next month, and the Disney Treasure, which will be introduced in December. More cabins, more deals for you and me!

Safe travels!

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2024 Travel: My Top 5 Destinations

12/30/23

American travelers proved they are hungry for travel in 2023, setting multiple records. At the same time, airlines did a better job -- cancelation rates down about 50% year over year. So, with all signs pointing to more robust travel volume in 2024, here are my top 5 destinations to consider in the new year!

The Wailea sunset, Dec '23

Maui

I visited this beautiful Hawaiian island earlier this month -- my first visit since the Lahaina firestorm. (Read my Maui travel update here.) And while that historic town will remain off limits for awhile, as the healing continues, the rest of Maui is wide open and needy of travel dollars. Keep in mind: most Maui jobs are linked to tourism, so respectful, mindful visitation will go a long way to help Maui rebound. Hotel rates have not necessarily dropped, as they continue to house displaced residents and groups like FEMA, the Navy and the Red Cross. But airfare and rental car rates will remain competitive. And, thanks to a ton of reinvestment in resort communities like Wailea, there's plenty that's new to experience. Visit the Maui Visitors Bureau for updates and trip ideas.

Las Vegas

I'm hearing that 2024 is being touted as the official post-pandemic bounce-back year for Las Vegas -- and there's plenty that's new. For one, that famous skyline has a whole new look, thanks to the opening of eye-popping landmark attractions like The Sphere and the brand-new Fontainebleau Las Vegas hotel. The new year will also help establish Las Vegas as a legit sports town! The Super Bowl in February will only be the beginning, as the town formerly defined by gaming and shows will draw football and hockey fans in earnest. Check out Visit Las Vegas for events calendars and inspiration.

• Watch my "Top 5 Destinations for 2024" segment on KTVU Fox 2!

Talking wellness in Indian Wells, Nov '23

Greater Palm Springs

Want wellness? In 2024, the nine communities that make up Greater Palm Springs will be top of mind for travelers looking to recharge, reconnect and relax. The spa scene in places like Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells has been totally reinvented, with spa menus reflecting new, upgraded self-care options. The outdoor adventure scene is booming, with more than 100 trails throughout the area. And the regional airport in Palm Springs, with new direct flights from throughout the U.S., is making it that much easier the get there. Visit the Greater Palm Springs website for all the info.

Ireland

Ashford Castle, on the Wild Atlantic Way, July '23

The Emerald Isle is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the designation of The Wild Atlantic Way in 2024. One of the longest driving routes in the world, at 1500 miles, the west coast of Ireland is a road tripper's dream, offering spectacular vistas and amazing destinations like Ashford Castle and the Cliffs of Moher, and famous spots like Limerick, Galway and Donegal. Hospitality reigns supreme here, and with airlines like United and Aer Lingus ramping up flight offerings to the west's Shannon Airport from cities like Boston, New York and Chicago, getting to the Wild Atlantic Way will be easier and more affordable in 2024, especially off-season. Get updates and inspiration from Tourism Ireland.

Finding wellness in Los Cabos

Mexico

Some of our favorite south-of-the-border destinations are aiming to attract U.S. travelers in 2024 with two key hooks: wellness and luxury. Destinations like Los Cabos are focusing on natural attributes -- crystal clue water, sweeping desert landscapes -- to appeal to people seeking wide open spaces and ways to rejuvenate and relax; a slew of new luxury resorts are also enhancing the appeal of Los Cabos. In Nayarit, luxe brands like St. Regis and Rosewood are opening their doors in 2024, and the traveler focus will be on gastronomy and nature. And in Valle del Guadalupe, robust investments are creating a unique adventure and foodie destination. Look for continued airfare competition to Mexico in 2024.

Here's to new adventures in 2024 -- follow along with me at #gabethetravelguy!

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Four Months After the Lahaina Fire, Maui is Calling All Travelers

It's been just over four months since the August firestorm that destroyed the historic town of Lahaina, on Maui's northeastern shores. The Lahaina area, and the entire island, are healing. But as re-openings continue, and as other parts of the island still feel the pinch of the inevitable travel slowdown that followed, the call is out for visitors to come back.

Visiting just-reopened Leoda's

Lahaina accounted for 15% of Maui's travel-related economic activity. Tourism is also responsible for 40% of Maui's economy and jobs, though when you consider the ancillary industries that dovetail from the hospitality industry -- ranchers, farmers, fishermen, artists, cab drivers -- that figure is likely double that. The year-over-year inbound numbers show the fire's devastating impact: down 11% from the U.S. west coast, down 55% from Japan, down 24% from Canada.

While the downtown Lahaina core remains off-limits, except for local residents and businesses with limited day passes, the surrounding area, and the totality of Maui, is open for business. Artists and shopkeepers who lost their Lahaina storefronts are hosting street fairs, and the popular Leoda's Bakery and Pie Shop, a short drive south of downtown Lahaina, reopened just last week. 

In Wailea, the luxe destination about 45 minutes south of Lahaina, resorts, restaurants and shops are hoping that brand new offerings and experiences will lure travelers in 2024. At the Fairmont Kea Lani, Hawaii's only all-suite resort, set on 22 oceanfront acres, all 413 rooms and 37 two-story oceanfront villas have been totally renovated. A new 2000-sq.ft. cultural center, which will be open to the public, will premiere on Dec. 21. And a new bar, Pilina, featuring 100% sustainably- and locally-sourced cocktails and 52 ocean-facing seats, will open in January.

Enjoying the Wailea views from the Fairmont Kea Lani

At the AAA 5-Diamond Four Seasons Resort Maui next door, the popular Ferraro's Restaurant, totally reimagined, just reopened. The neighboring Grand Wailea has just reopened all its eateries after renovations. And the Wailea Beach Resort has launched a brand-new category of rooms at their ground floor tower building, focusing on outdoor living and featuring outdoor soaking tubs and fireplaces.

The Wailea Golf Club, home to three ocean view, award-winning courses, just took delivery of a new fleet of energy efficient golf carts that lower electricity needs and reduce wear on the natural turf.

The west-facing positioning of Wailea makes it an idyllic sport for sunset-viewing and for enjoying whale-watching season, which runs from Dec. 15 through May 15.

Find out more at wailearesortassociation.com.

The call for tourists comes with a clear caveat: visit Maui mindfully and carefully and with respect for the local culture and population. The payback will be a relaxing, enriching travel experience in one of the most beautiful spots on the planet. Airfare deals, especially from the west coast, will offer plenty of incentive over the next several months.

For visitors who want to take their giving back further, there's a slew of volunteer opportunities, from food and donation sorting and distribution with services like the Maui Humane Society to coastal cleanup and shoreline restoration projects through various groups. Donations can also have a significant impact. Find out more at mauinuistrong.com.

Aloha, and see you on Maui!

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Santa Barbara Wine Legend Jim Clendenen, of Au Bon Climat, Passes Away

story to be published in The Montecito Journal on 5/20/21

The Santa Barbara wine industry – and the wine world as a whole – lost one of its superstars when Jim Clendenen died over the weekend. He passed away at his home in Buellton, in his sleep. He was 68 years old.

Jim Clendenen (credit: Bob Dickey)

Wine aficionados who did not know him personally certainly knew his wine, especially his flagship brand, Au Bon Climat. Loosely translated to “a well exposed vineyard,” the label was the prime vehicle for his unapologetic approach to winemaking, especially to making pinot noir and chardonnay. His wines were influenced by his admiration of Burgundian techniques and were consistently fresh, balanced and restrained.

Those who did know him, though, would say that the man behind the wines – or “The Mind Behind” as he dubbed himself – was anything but restrained. When Jim Clendenen walked into a room, people noticed. He was ebullient and exuberant, enthusiastic and energetic. His loud shirts and flowing hair, in fact, were extensions of a wonderfully dynamic personality.

“It’s funny, I always think that winemakers are their wine,” says fellow winemaker Doug Margerum. “But Jim wasn’t. If his wines were more reserved, he was certainly larger than life.” He calls Mr. Clendenen, who was godfather to his son Evan, a mentor. The two men were also business partners in the wine project, Vita Nova.

That was one of Mr. Clendenen’s trademarks, actually – his imaginative approach expanded his creative horizons, and he pushed out various boutique endeavors, like Barham Mendelsohn, under which he crafted pinot noirs from Sonoma’s Anderson Valley, and Clendenen Family Vineyards, for which he made artisan-style versions of varieties like gewurztraminer, chenin blanc and petit verdot; his nebbiolo was barrel aged for five years.

But it was Au Bon Climat, or ABC, that became his most famous calling card. It made him – and by extension, his home base of Santa Maria Valley and all of Santa Barbara County – recognizable in wine drinking circles both domestically and around the world. The various “Winemaker of the Year”-type accolades he won over the years came from publications like The LA Times, Food & Wine Magazine and Germany’s Wein Gourmet. The latter, actually, called him “Winemaker of the World.”

“He did a magnificent job at spreading our message,” says winemaker Fred Brander, who became fast friends with Mr. Clendenen in 1978, before either became a torch bearer for Santa Barbara County wines. “If Robert Mondavi can be credited with championing Napa, then Jim was his counterpart down here in Santa Barbara.”

photo credit: Bob Dickey

It was Mr. Clendenen’s friend and fellow culinarian Frank Ostini, of Hitching Post II fame, who discovered Mr. Clendenen Saturday night, after several calls to Mr. Clendenen from family had gone unanswered. “We were so blessed to have him a part of our lives,” says Mr. Ostini, who enjoyed a 40-year friendship with Mr. Clendenen. “I will dearly, dearly miss him.

When Mr. Ostini moved the Hitching Post wine production to the Au Bon Climat facility in 2019, it was “a homecoming,” he says, since the HP label produced wines there back in the 1990s and moved out only when space became tight. (Mr. Clendenen’s good friend Bob Lindquist also made wine at ABC for many years, until he sold his Qupé wine brand in 2018.) What’s remained the same at Au Bon Climat, says Mr. Ostini, are the faces of the employees – a team of close to 30 people, many of whom have worked at ABC for decades. That’s a testament to Mr. Clendenen’s professional generosity.

“These are such great people who’ve now lost their leader,” says Mr. Ostini. “We’re here to hug them and hold them, and to be a part of keeping the whole thing going.”

Mr. Clendenen’s daughter, Isabelle, who works in sales at ABC, confirms that the world of Au Bon Climat will live on. It is, after all, “a family business through and through,” she says. “Even if you’re not related by blood, you’re still a member of our family.”

Isabelle, 26, shared personal insights into the man so many consider a superstar:

“A lot of people are focusing on what he did for the wine industry, but he was also devoted to charity work. He supported charities in places as far away as Atlanta and North Carolina and Alabama. He was really focused on children, because children were the most important thing to him.

“People say he was loud and strong, but he was also a very sensitive person. He cried as easily as anyone.

“And he had a hatred for social media. Especially Facebook -- that one was the worst. He was such an emotional person that all he wanted was a physical connection with people.”

Isabelle’s brother Knox, 21, resides in Japan. Jim Clendenen married and divorced twice, most recently to Morgan Clendenen, a winemaker of viognier for many years under the Cold Heaven label.

“I know how Isabelle and Knox feel,” says Drake Whitcraft, who took over Whitcraft Winery when his father, the legend Chris Whitcraft, passed away in 2014. Drake, too, was in his 20s. “It’s indescribable how deep a void is created, losing your dad. You only get one.”

On Mr. Clendenen, Drake Whitcraft adds, “Jim is a force to be reckoned with in the wine industry – not was -- is, even posthumously. Jim was not only a great winemaker… he had the business savvy, too. And anyone who met him knows how he could captivate a room with stories told with precise details, as if he were experiencing them right then.”

For a story I wrote in 2015, Jim Clendenen, center, met with fellow winemakers to reminisce about the Santa Barbara Wine Festival at the SB Museum of Natural History. Also pictured, from left: Bob Lindquist, Ken Brown, Richard Sanford, Doug Margerum, Drake Whitcraft and Fred Brander.

Jim Clendenen was born in Ohio and graduated with high honors in pre-law from UCSB in 1976. He’d already been to Burgundy and Champagne, though – he turned 21 in France, in fact -- and the allure of pinot noir and chardonnay would eventually win out. A stint at Zaca Mesa Winery in 1978, under the tutelage of winemaker Ken Brown, led to Mr. Clendenen working three global harvests, an amazing feat, in 1981 – Santa Barbara, Australia and France. He founded Au Bon Climat in 1982 with friend Adam Tolmach, who’d leave in 1990 to launch Ojai Vineyard. Mr. Clendenen would go on to grow Au Bon Climat by using European-inspired, Old World techniques, a course to which he stayed true even when California winemaking, especially in the 1990s and early 2000s, leaned toward bigger, richer wines.

“That’s to be admired,” adds Mr. Brander. “He didn’t get caught up in fads or styles. He kept true to Burgundy, to winemaking that was not modern or popular. He let the vineyards do the talking.”

Mr. Clendenen took his winery, which has a tasting room in downtown Santa Barbara, to a yearly production of some 50,000 cases. He sourced grapes from a variety of vineyards, including Sanford & Benedict and his own sustainably farmed Le Bon Climat. He was one of the biggest fruit purchasers at the famous Bien Nacido Vineyard in the Santa Maria Valley, which is owned by Santa Barbara’s Miller family.

“I’ll remember him for always sticking to his guns,” says Nicholas Miller, who runs sales and marketing for the family’s wine enterprises. While Bien Nacido is best known for its pinot noir and chardonnay, “we were growing things like merlot and nebbiolo for Jim – he definitely pushed the limits at Bien Nacido.”

Mr. Clendenen was also known for his hospitality. Lunches he hosted regularly at ABC, in fact, became legendary. “You never knew who’d show up or which wines would be poured,” recalls Mr. Miller. Actually, Mr. Clendenen was known for one of the most extensive library of older vintages on the Central Coast, many of which would get poured at his lunches. And the cooking – homegrown but always gourmet, and plentiful – was done by the Mind Behind himself.

Those who knew him well will say that the pandemic took its toll on Jim Clendenen in various ways. The threat to his compromised health meant, by necessity, that he had to become more reclusive. And a lifestyle defined by endless wine dinners, meet-and-greets and journeys around the globe to promote wine coming to a sudden halt – that was not an easy new reality for someone who thrived on the human bond.

“Him passing away – that was something he was afraid was going to happen soon,” admits Isabelle.

A memorial for Jim Clendenen is being planned. 

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