Sanford Winery & Vineyards

Sanford Winery & Vineyards
5010 Santa Rosa Road
Lompoc, California
USA 93436
Phone: 800-426-9463
http://www.sanfordwinery.com/

Contact: Steve Fennell
Email: [email protected]

In Santa Barbara wine country, it all started with Sanford. In 1971 Sanford Winery and Vineyards discovered an overlooked, grape-growing treasure in the Santa Rita Hills. Recognizing a magical combination of climate and soil conditions much like those in France's famed Burgundy province, Sanford planted the area's first Pinot Noir in its Sanford & Benedict vineyard.

Pinot Noir has thrived in the Santa Rita Hills ever since, and so has Sanford Winery. The pioneering winery's Pinot Noir ranks among the best and most distinctive in the world. And Sanford's leadership helped put Santa Barbara and the Santa Rita Hills on the map of the world's great wine regions. Certified as an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in 2001, today the area is renowned for its Chardonnay as well as Pinot Noir.

Under the direction of Doug Fletcher, Vice President of Winemaking for Terlato Wine Group, Sanford maintains low yields to nurture the lush fruit. To retain the intensity and integrity of the Santa Rita Hills fruit, Fletcher's team uses a unique gravity racking system. Powerful hydraulic lifts raise and lower vats, minimizing handling and preserving the esters that give Sanford's wines complexity and delicacy.

Sanford's white wine fermentation takes place in both 60 gallon French oak barrels and stainless steel tanks, while the Pinot Noir is fermented in open-top stainless steel tanks and then finished in French oak barrels. Crafted in small lots, Sanford wines have a consistent style: Their full-bodied fruit flavors are balanced by mouth-watering acidity.The Santa Rita Hills AVA is 100The winery uses a unique system to move wine through the facility: a Gravity Racking System. Four 3600 gallon wine tanks are positioned on hydraulic lifts. The winery crew can move a 14 ton tank of wine below ground or 20 feet in the air. The crew then uses gravity to gently move wine from tank to barrel (or bottling) without pumping and agitation of the wine. This gentle handling is another component of Sanford's continual pursuit of improvement in winemaking. square miles of heaven for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and Sanford's estate vineyards - Rancho La Rinconada and Sanford & Benedict - lie within it. Sanford relies exclusively on these vineyards for its luscious, signature Pinots.

Winemaker: Anthony Terlato

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