Sea Smoke producer profile: The quiet evolution of an emblematic American Pinot

The California coastline may be synonymous with sunshine, but equally pervasive is the blanket of fog that unfurls from the sea most days. A consequence of cold wind sweeping over warm ocean currents, it’s a hauntingly beautiful phenomenon known as ‘sea smoke’.

Just a few hours’ drive from Los Angeles, the Sta Rita Hills in Santa Barbara County are a semi-desert region at the 34th latitude. An arid, southerly locale, ‘it’s a seemingly unlikely place to grow great Pinot Noir,’ says Victor Gallegos, general manager of Sea Smoke Estate Vineyards.

Yet, buoyed by sea smoke and the unique geography of Santa Barbara County, Sea Smoke Vineyards has helped establish the Sta Rita Hills AVA as one of America’s foremost Pinot Noir regions.

Scroll down to tasting notes and scores for Sea Smoke’s latest releases

A unique geographic anomaly

Along most of the California coastline, mountain ranges run parallel to the ocean, forming vast shields that shelter inland regions from cold coastal wind and fog. Santa Barbara, however, falls in a rare stretch of traverse mountains that run perpendicular to the ocean.

The narrow corridors of its hills and canyons serve as funnels, directing maritime winds and fog deep into the interior.

Despite its southerly latitude and sun-drenched California terroir, this coastal influence renders the Sta. Rita Hills AVA is a ‘Region 1’ viticultural area akin to Chablis, Tasmania or Champagne, according to the Winkler Index.

Intense sun exposure combined with moderate temperatures allows grapes to ripen over extended growing seasons. The wines they produce are intensely flavourful while maintaining acidity and freshness.

The Sta Rita Hills’ unique climate, topography and rich clay soils have transformed the AVA into a nexus of California’s wine illuminati. Alongside Sea Smoke, producers like Brewer Clifton, Sanford & Benedict, Piedrasassi, and Sine Qua Non have cemented the region as sacred ground for America’s most celebrated expressions of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah.

But the Sea Smoke Vineyard is a particular sweet spot within the AVA, with vines planted exclusively on south-facing slopes overlooking the Santa Ynez River at elevations ranging from 66 to 219 metres.

Directly exposed to the sun, the estate’s vines harness the full spectrum of the valley’s offerings – the intensity of southern California sunshine moderated by high elevations and the chilling effects of coastal fog and wind. Its flagship Pinot Noirs are luxuriantly ripe yet brim with vitality and grace.

Rise to Fame

Sea Smoke was founded by Bob Davids, an entrepreneur who made headlines when his toy company, Radica Games, was acquired by Mattel for US$230 million in 2006.

In 1999, Davids acquired a former horse farm in what was then the Santa Ynez Valley AVA (the Sta. Rita Hills AVA wasn’t carved out until 2001) and planted the first 40ha of vines.

Many attribute the winery’s rise to its appearance in the 2004 wine-country dramedy Sideways. But they had a waiting list virtually from inception, owing to enthusiastic press reviews as early as the first vintage in 2001.

Even today, 80% of their wines are sold direct to consumers through a mailing list. ‘The waiting list is about 4,700 people today, which is kind of low,’ says Gallegos. ‘At its peak, it was more like 9,000.’

The remaining 20% is sold by allocation through traditional distribution channels. Without fail, the wines have sold out every vintage.

Unapologetic yumminess

Put simply, Sea Smoke is defined by its ‘yumminess’, Gallegos explains, an unapologetically voluptuous, fruity style he likens to ‘lushness, texture and mouthfeel’.

Vinifications are separated by vineyard blocks and clones. But the two flagship Pinot Noirs, the Southing and Ten, aren’t linked to any specific plots. Instead, they’re meticulously crafted barrel selections aimed at capturing two distinct facets of the house style.

Each December following élevage (ageing), Gallegos and winemaker Don Schroeder begin a three-month process of blind tasting and grading barrels based on overall character, structure, mouthfeel and oak expression. The graded lots are assembled into a complex flavour palette from which final blending decisions are made.

‘The first thing we ask is, “is this a Southing-type barrel, or is it a Ten-type barrel?”,’ explains Gallegos.

Southing is Sea Point’s more elegant, bright-eyed and pure-fruited expression of Pinot Noir. Ten, named for the estate’s 10 Pinot Noir clones, is muscular and grippy. ‘It’s meant to be robust, something that appeals to a Cabernet lover with more of an oak component,’ Gallegos says.

Longtime fans may remember Botella, their entry-level bottling of Pinot Noir. ‘Essentially, it was Sea Smoke’s declassified wine,’ Gallegos says. ‘Anything that didn’t fit Southing or Ten ended up in Botella.’

But as the vineyard matured, Botella was discontinued as Gallegos and Schroeder ‘found it more and more difficult to find barrels for it,’ he says.

Sea Smoke at a glance

Founded: in 1999 by Bob Davids. First vintage in 2001.

Winemaker: Don Schroeder

Director of Vineyard Operations: Julian Malone

Location: Sta Rita Hills AVA in Santa Barbara, CA

Production: 20,000 cases [240,000 bottles]

Key wines: Southing Pinot Noir (8,000 cases), Ten Pinot Noir (8,000 cases), Chardonnay (3,000 cases), Sea Spray Blanc de Noir (1,000 cases).

Area under vine: 172 acres (69.61 hectares)

Elevations: 218 feet to 720 feet (66 to 219m) above sea level

Soil: A base of semi-siliceous shale with calcareous strata and diatomite. Top soils of rich Botella, Gazos and Lopez clays.

Embracing change

Despite the winery’s enduring cult success, its forward, powerfully fruity wines have been divisive too. In a 2007 article for GQ, Alice Feiring declared their Pinot Noir as one of the most overrated wines in the world – ‘an overly fruity, mushy, and slightly gelatinous wine,’ she wrote.

And in recent years, as cool-climate regions like the Sta Rita Hills AVA have become hotspots for a distinctly spry, racier style of winemaking, Sea Smoke’s lush, even bombastic, style has fallen out of favour with many.

But their modus operandi has never shied from hedonism. ‘If you think about the continuum of Pinot Noir from the Old World to the New World,’ says Gallegos, Sea Smoke pushes the needle ‘to something like 75% towards the New World’.

Simultaneously, the brand has not been immune to change. Longtime observers refer to a shift in house style with the departure of Kris Curran, the initial winemaker in 2007.

At the time, Gallegos explains, ‘we were looking for little more complexity and balance in the wines. Earlier harvests dialled back alcohol levels from 15.5% abv to 14.5%.

In the cellar, more wine is fermented with native yeasts isolated from the Sea Smoke Vineyard. And the proportions of new French barrique have been scaled down in favour of larger-format, neutral 600 litre demi-muid and 1,000 litre foudre.

While its characteristic voluptuousness is intact, the contemporary style is brighter, fresher and more nuanced than one might remember from two decades ago.

Despite the changes, ‘we never lost sight of that lushness and yumminess that makes Sea Smoke distinct,’ says Gallegos, ‘but I would say our winemaking became a little more precise’.

A quiet conversion to biodynamics

Most impactful in its evolution has been the estate’s quiet conversion to biodynamic farming.

‘We started with a test plot in 2005 and after three years, the light bulb went off,’ says Gallegos. ‘There’s just this energetic quality – this palate focus, like a through line in the wine.’

The entire estate has been farmed biodynamically since 2013 but the transition wasn’t overtly stated until 2017, says Gallegos.

And while the estate is Oregon Tilth Certified Organic, they opted not to pursue a Demeter Biodynamic certification due to complications in producing enough manure on-site.

‘We farm biodynamically because we like what it does for the wines, and it’s the right thing to do as stewards of the land,’ he explains.

Beyond Pinot

Sea Smoke is first and foremost a Pinot Noir producer, but its Chardonnay and sparkling wine have gained notable acclaim too, sometimes unintentionally.

‘We never wanted to be a Chardonnay producer,’ Gallegos admits. ‘Chardonnay was our poor, blonde-headed stepchild,’ he says. ‘So much that we called it “Gratis” and gave it away to list members as a thank you.’

Gratis, Gallegos admits, was made, without much attention, a prototypical ‘in-your-face California Chard’. But as demand for Chardonnay increased, Gallegos and his team reevaluated their approach towards greater complexity, balance and finesse.

Sea Smoke’s labour-intensive foray into sparkling production was considerably more deliberate. Sea Spray, its traditional method blanc de noirs made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes, takes nearly five years to produce.

Its southerly latitude and solar intensity produce a style of sparkling wine that’s wholly unique, explains Gallegos.

‘Even at very low brix, we get a lot of flavour accumulation and really interesting berry and fruit characters that give an impression of sweetness,’ he says. This flavour intensity ‘gives us a lot more space to do a no-dosage sparkling and pull it off well,’ he adds.

Keeping things small

Despite an oversized reputation and expansive 400ha estate, the company’s operations have remained intentionally modest. A quarter of a century since its founding, only 69ha are planted with vines, and production remains steady at 20,000 cases. Quality over quantity has remained the mantra.

The entire team consists of only 10 people, says Gallegos, and among their core leadership, the average tenure of employment exceeds 20 years.

The winery has no tasting room and declines requests for vineyard tours. Its social media presence is sporadic at best. And ‘in 22 years, we’ve never spent a dime on advertising,’ Gallegos says.

The wines, after all, speak so boldly for themselves.

Tasting notes for Sea Smoke:

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