10 Reasons Winemakers Travel Over 100 Miles to Secure Santa Lucia Highlands Grapes

#1) I CHOOSE THE SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS

I am a Sonoma girl. I live in Sonoma County, home to world class coastal, cool climate pinot noir and chardonnay. I love Sonoma County wine grapes and craft delicious Sonoma County wines. And yet… my pinot noir epiphany launched with a bottle of Miner Family Garys’ Vineyard Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands.  

WSJ September 26, 2003: Dorothy Gaiter & John Brecher review domestic pinot noir for the Tastings column

#2) SEDUCTIVE AROMATICS

 “Massive cherry/berry, lilac, roasted nose that you can smell across the room…serious wine…’I could wear this behind my ears,’ Dottie says…a rich, mouth-coating splendor.”

WHO WOULDN’T FALL IN LOVE?

I mean really, who wouldn’t fall in love this irresistible description? With this alluring, evocative description from their September 26, 2003, Wall Street Journal column, Dottie and John turbo-charged my love affair with the Santa Lucia Highlands. I immediately bought that very bottle. The next day, I knew I had to make wine in homage to that very bottle.

#3) AUTHENTIC PEOPLE CRAFT AUTHENTIC WINES

Legendary, Superstar Winegrowers Mark Pisoni (L) and Gary Franscioni (R) at Soberanes Vineyard

An Inauspicious Beginning

The first time that I met legendary wine grower Gary Franscioni, he immediately forgave my son’s restroom indiscretion (TMI?). Now, 16+ years later, Gary’s empathy and warmth remain emblematic of SLH winegrowers writ large. Authenticity and integrity are core tenets of their ethos. Good grapes meet good people.

Authentic Hearts and Authentic Humor

Superstar winegrower Mark Pisoni is always game to be silly with me. Mark does not have a social media handle; he doesn’t have Instagram (actually!). And yet, whenever I ask him to film an Instagram Reel with me, he concedes. And he’s good. Like he understands the assignment.

And They Deliver

When winegrower Mark Pisoni says your Soberanes fruit is arriving on the early truck, he means early. During one memorable vintage, I leapt from a salon chair, mid root refresh, with tin foil attached to my head, because my fruit arrived at Grand Cru before I did. I didn’t know the early truck delivered THAT early. (No, I do not have photographic evidence. But the salon billed me for a full color treatment nonetheless).

#4) RELATIONSHIPS ARE THE HEART OF SLH

Take Good Care of that Fruit

When an SLH grower sends fruit, it bears his / her reputation. And you better believe that SLH fruit arrives on time and in better condition than from growers in other winegrowing regions. That’s because in SLH, the winegrower/winemaker relationship is sacrosanct. It’s also a little bit magical. Back in 2010, on the eve of my inaugural harvest of Soberanes pinot noir, my grower Mark Pisoni called to remind me to “take good care of that fruit,” a tradition we now carry forward every vintage.

#5) SLH WINEGROWERS ARE FARMERS FIRST (LIKE THE REAL KIND)

Perhaps You’d Prefer a Side of Romaine With Those Grapes?

The first time Mark sent me a grape sample - along with 6 heads of romaine, 6 heads of cabbage, and three cauliflower, I knew it was a hint… to eat more veggies.

#6) REPUTATION

Ask Adam

When I asked 30+ year industry veteran Adam Lee why he chooses the Santa Lucia Highlands he replied:

“Why do I travel 160 miles to source Pinot Noir from the Santa Lucia Highlands? It certainly isn’t for the pleasure of navigating East Bay traffic on I-880 at five in the morning. Nor am I drawn south by the expensive gas or moderately clean [gas station] bathrooms…I make the trip for one reason: the Santa Lucia Highlands produces some of the finest Pinot Noir grapes in California.”

#7) SUPERLATIVE VITICULTURE

Santa Lucia Highlands pinot noir is as pretty as a picture

“Forty under 40” start winemaker Moret Brealynn explains:

““I’ve never been a morning person. I like to stay up late and sleep in—that’s my preferred way to start the day. But to get from Sonoma County to the Santa Lucia Highlands and beat Bay Area traffic, we have to be in the car at 4 a.m….Working with fruit from here goes against just about everything my body clock tells me I should be doing.

But then I walk these vineyards. I see the passion and knowledge the farmers bring to growing this fruit… [and] suddenly, that 4 a.m. alarm feels like a pretty small price to pay.”

Moret Brealynn pictured in the Sanra Lucia Highlands

#8) TERROIR (I.E. THE “X’ FACTOR)

SLH is extraordinary winegrowing terroir. We can talk about the blue grand canyon, ways the fierce afternoon winds affect grape phenology to limit evapotranspiration. But you probably just want to know firsthand, why winemakers are cultishly devoted to SLH winegrapes.

 Adam reminds us the Santa Lucia Highlands “possesses a rare combination of advantages [including] the world’s most talented and dedicated grape growers. [Proximity to] California’s coast channels powerful afternoon winds into the vineyards, cooling the vines and extending the growing season. Those long, steady ripening periods allow Pinot Noir to develop remarkable flavor, structure, and complexity. At the same time, the region’s relative protection from early autumn rains often permits growers and winemakers to harvest patiently and without interruption.”

There are also cool trees.

Ever wonder why Mark named my block “Tree Block?”

#9) I HEART THE SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS

Moret Brealynn sums it up beautifully:

“There are easier places for me to source grapes. There are certainly closer ones. But I don’t choose vineyards because they’re convenient. I choose them because I believe they can make exceptional wine.”

Exceptional grapes from the Soberanes vineyard provide exceptional juice leading to exceptional wine

#10) NO I JUST DIDN’T SAY THAT

I do not have a favorite child. I do not have a favorite pup. I do not have a favorite pinot noir. Except at this particular moment, representing a particular instance in time. Of all the wines being offered in the upcoming 2026 Fall Allocation, the 2024 Soberanes pinot noir kinda has my heart (today). She is aromatic, nuanced, layered, smooth, and sexy. She is all the things a pinot should be: brambly red berries; damp, tilled earth with sage and chaparral; and warm clove and allspice shimmering like sexy silk. She is also sexy because she is naked.

Have you ever run out of labels? Asking for a friend…

No I do not have a favorite.

Our fall allocation opens Labor Day weekend. Stay tuned for details. And thank you to everyone who voted for Chewie.