Claiborne & Churchill Vintners

Claiborne & Churchill Vintners
2649 Carpenter Canyon Road
San Luis Obispo, California
USA 93401
Phone: (805) 544-4066
http://www.claibornechurchill.com/

Contact: Claiborne Thompson
Email: [email protected]

Hours of Operation: Tasting room open daily 11am to 5pm


Founded in 1983 by Claiborne Thompson and Fredericka Churchill. Former teachers at the University of Michigan, the couple left the "Groves of Academe" for the vineyards of California in 1981 in order to start a new life in the wine industry.

With its first crush Claiborne & Churchill announced its special focus, producing 565 cases of Dry Gewürztraminer and Dry Riesling, modeled on the fruity but dry dinner wines of the French province of Alsace. Sourcing grapes from vineyards in the cool maritime valleys of California's Central Coast, three quarters of the production is dedicated to our signature wines, the Dry Riesling, Dry Gewürztraminer and Pinot Noir.

In 1995 construction of Claiborne & Churchill’s Straw Bale Winery was completed. This structure, a noteworthy example of environmental architecture and sustainability, was the first of its kind in California. With sixteen inch thick walls made from bales of rice straw, the winery is so well insulated that it maintains a constant cellar temperature, without the need for mechanical cooling or heating.

At Claiborne & Churchill, traditional European winemaking techniques prevail, including extensive use of barrel fermentation and barrel-aging (even with Riesling and Gewürztraminer), harvesting grapes with a lower sugar content, minimal manipulation of juice and wine, selected yeasts for different varietals, and limited use of SO2, all in the belief that the winemaker's task is to bring out the flavor and character that is latent in the grape. Our aim is to create pleasurable wines in which there is a harmonious balance of fruit and oak, structure and texture.

Winemaker: Coby Parker-Garcia

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ClaiborneandChurchillWinery

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