Lompoc Wine Tasting
The secret is out … the rolling hills around Lompoc are producing some of California’s best wines.
While the movie Sideways (
2004) is often credited for putting this region’s Pinot Noirs on the tasting map, it’s the combination of climatic conditions, rare east-west hill orientation, calcium-rich soil composition, and wine maker ingenuity that makes the magic.
The result? A flavorful concentration of fruit that produces extraordinary Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Syrah and other cool climate wines.
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Start your tasting adventure in town in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto – a cluster small urban wineries and tasting rooms in an industrial park setting. But don’t let the exterior fool you – inside the tasting rooms are some amazing wines and creative winemakers. In fact, it’s the largest concentrations of world-class, small-production tasting rooms in Santa Barbara County, and a mecca for artisan wine production.
Near the Wine Ghetto, just a few blocks away in Midtown Lompoc, are two highly acclaimed wineries to visit: Brewer-Clifton and Longoria. Midtown is also home to the Lompoc Wine Factory, a community-based wine production facility for local winemakers.
Head to the Sta. Rita Hills for some beautiful scenery and wine country ambiance, along Highway 246 and Santa Rosa Road. This is California wine tasting at its best. You’ll find beautiful estate wineries and vineyards including Babcock, Foley, Melville and Sanford.
Lompoc winemakers are not just bottling some of California’s best Pinots and Chardonnays, but also an array of sparkling wines to tickle your taste buds. Flying Goat Cellars launched the Lompoc sparkling wine scene in 2005 with Goat Bubbles and has produced 11 consecutive vintages, all hand-made in their Lompoc Wine Ghetto facility. Since then, Lompoc-based Fiddlehead Cellars, Kessler-Haak, Palmina Wines and other local producers have jumped on the bubbly bandwagon, contributing to a total of nearly 40 sparkling wine producers in Santa Barbara County.
With about 30 tasting rooms and wineries to choose from in and around Lompoc, come see for yourself why Sunset Magazine has named Lompoc “the new wine country.”
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Wine Association Partners:
