Sanford Winery

Richard Sanford and Michael Benedict met as students at UC Berkeley; Sanford studied geography, Benedict botany. Sanford served as a Navy navigator in Vietnam before returning to California with conviction that California's cool maritime regions could rival Burgundy for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The pair spent years studying geological survey maps and climate data, eventually identifying the western Santa Ynez Valley near Lompoc as their target. In 1971 they purchased 738 acres and planted the Sanford and Benedict Vineyard, the first vineyard planted with Burgundian Pinot Noir clones in what would later become the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. The first commercial vintage from the partnership was 1976. Sanford and Benedict's partnership dissolved after the 1980 vintage. Sanford founded Sanford Winery in 1981 on a separate property within the future Sta. Rita Hills, where the new estate vineyard La Rinconada was planted in 1983.

• Sanford and Benedict met at UC Berkeley; Sanford served as a Navy navigator in Vietnam before returning to California
• Pair spent years on geological + climate research before purchasing 738 acres near Lompoc and planting in 1971
• Sanford and Benedict's pioneering partnership produced its first commercial vintage in 1976 and dissolved after the 1980 vintage
• Richard Sanford founded Sanford Winery in 1981 on a separate property; planted La Rinconada Vineyard 1983

Before 1971, no one had planted Burgundian Pinot Noir clones in Santa Barbara County. UC Davis's Winkler heat-summation framework classified the region as 'too cool' for Cabernet Sauvignon and 'too warm' for Pinot Noir, but Sanford and Benedict's geographic and climatic study suggested otherwise. Their planting and the early Sanford and Benedict bottlings (1976 vintage onward) proved that California's transverse east-west valleys could produce Pinot Noir of genuine Burgundian character. That demonstration drew Au Bon Climat, Qupé, Babcock, Wild Horse, and dozens of subsequent producers to the region in the 1980s. Without the 1971 Sanford and Benedict planting, the modern Santa Barbara County wine industry as we know it (including Sta. Rita Hills AVA approval in 2001) would not exist in its current form.

• First commercial Burgundian-clone Pinot Noir planted in Santa Barbara County, anchoring the cool-climate regional thesis
• Early Sanford and Benedict bottlings (1976 onward) catalyzed the 1980s investment wave (Au Bon Climat 1982, Qupé 1982, others)
• Richard Sanford served as founding chairman of the Sta. Rita Hills Winegrowers Alliance, leading the 2001 AVA petition
• Without the 1971 planting and 1976 bottlings, the Sta. Rita Hills AVA and Santa Barbara County's modern wine identity would not exist as currently constituted

Sanford Winery's style emphasizes Sta. Rita Hills' cool maritime fruit and structure, with Burgundian-influenced winemaking. Pinot Noir is hand-harvested, lightly destemmed (with selected whole-cluster inclusion in stronger vintages), fermented in small open-top tanks with native yeasts, and aged in French oak (typically 30 to 50 percent new) for 14 to 18 months. Chardonnay is whole-cluster pressed, fermented in French oak with native yeasts, undergoes partial to full malolactic fermentation depending on vintage, and is aged on the lees with periodic bâtonnage. The house style balances Sta. Rita Hills' fundamental acidity and red fruit clarity with structured oak treatment, producing wines that age well in the cellar. Estate Pinots typically run 13.5 to 14 percent alcohol, modest by California standards. Both estate vineyards are certified-organic, a relative rarity in Sta. Rita Hills.

• Hand-harvested, native yeast fermentation, whole-cluster Pinot inclusion variable by vintage
• 30 to 50 percent new French oak for Pinot Noir; 14 to 18 months barrel aging
• Estate alcohols 13.5 to 14 percent; balanced toward structured fruit and acidity rather than over-extraction
• Both estate vineyards (Sanford and Benedict, La Rinconada) are certified-organic; rare in Sta. Rita Hills

Richard Sanford received Lifetime Achievement Honors at the 2001 California Mid-State Fair Wine Symposium and was inducted into the Vintners Hall of Fame at CIA Greystone in 2017. He served as founding chairman of the Sta. Rita Hills Winegrowers Alliance and personally negotiated the 2006 name change from Santa Rita Hills to Sta. Rita Hills following the conflict with Chile's Viña Santa Rita. The estate's reunification with the Sanford and Benedict Vineyard in 2007 - when Terlato purchased the vineyard following the Bonny Doon Vineyard interlude - was a landmark moment for Santa Barbara County wine history. The Sanford and Benedict Vineyard remains the oldest commercially producing Pinot Noir vineyard in Santa Barbara County and is the source of multiple producers' single-vineyard bottlings including Au Bon Climat, Foxen, Cargasacchi, and others.

• Richard Sanford: Lifetime Achievement at 2001 CMS Fair Wine Symposium; Vintners Hall of Fame inductee 2017
• Founding chairman of the Sta. Rita Hills Winegrowers Alliance; led the 2001 AVA petition and 2006 name negotiation with Viña Santa Rita
• 2007 reunification of Sanford label with Sanford and Benedict Vineyard after 25 years of separation under different ownership
• Sanford and Benedict remains the oldest commercially producing Pinot Noir vineyard in Santa Barbara County, supplying multiple top producers

Sanford Winery was owned and operated by Richard Sanford from 1981 to 2002, then partnered with the Terlato Wines International family, with full Terlato acquisition completing in 2005 (Terlato had acquired majority interest earlier). Terlato's 2007 purchase of the Sanford and Benedict Vineyard reunited the label with the original 1971 plantings. Today Sanford Winery operates as part of the Terlato Wines portfolio, with the winemaking team continuing the estate's Burgundian-influenced direction. Annual production runs approximately 20,000 to 25,000 cases across the estate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay programs, single-vineyard Sanford and Benedict and La Rinconada bottlings, plus small lots of Vin Gris and Sauvignon Blanc. The estate's tasting room is housed in a historic Spanish-style hacienda on the Sanford Ranch property south of Buellton.

• Founded and operated by Richard Sanford from 1981 to 2002; Terlato Wines International full acquisition 2005
• 2007 purchase of Sanford and Benedict Vineyard reunited the label with its original 1971 plantings after 25 years apart
• Annual production approximately 20,000 to 25,000 cases; estate plus single-vineyard programs plus small white lots
• Spanish-style tasting room on Sanford Ranch property south of Buellton is a destination for Sta. Rita Hills visitors

Sanford Winery's two estate vineyards are both within the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. The Sanford and Benedict Vineyard, planted 1971, occupies roughly 100 acres of the original 738-acre property purchased by Sanford and Benedict; the vineyard sits at elevations of 250 to 600 feet with sandy loam soils and a notable diatomaceous earth component, all on slopes facing west and southwest into the Pacific marine corridor. La Rinconada Vineyard, planted 1983 by Richard Sanford on the property where Sanford Winery was founded, comprises approximately 65 acres at slightly warmer interior locations. Both vineyards are certified-organic. The estate primarily uses heritage Burgundy clones (Wadenswil, Pommard, Dijon) for Pinot Noir, including original cuttings from the 1971 Sanford and Benedict plantings that have been propagated to other sites across the state.

• Sanford and Benedict Vineyard (planted 1971): approximately 100 acres at 250 to 600 feet elevation; sandy loam plus diatomaceous earth; west and southwest exposures
• La Rinconada Vineyard (planted 1983): approximately 65 acres at warmer interior Sta. Rita Hills locations
• Both estate vineyards certified-organic; heritage Burgundy clones (Wadenswil, Pommard, Dijon)
• Original 1971 Sanford and Benedict cuttings have been propagated to vineyards across the California cool-climate Pinot map