Sea Smoke

Bob Davids, an industrial designer and entrepreneur (his toy company Radica Games was later acquired by Mattel in 2006), was a longtime Burgundy collector who set out in the late 1990s to find a California Pinot Noir site that could give him the structure he admired in Cote de Nuits. He acquired a former horse farm along the Santa Ynez River between Lompoc and Buellton in 1999 and planted the first vines on a series of south-facing slopes. The Sta. Rita Hills AVA itself was not granted until 2001, the same year as the inaugural Sea Smoke vintage. By 2003 the wines were a regional phenomenon, with critic scores and waiting lists that quickly outran production. The estate's name refers to the cool maritime fog that pours inland through the transverse east-west valley each morning, smothering the vines until early afternoon.

• Property acquired 1999 by Bob Davids; vineyard planted on south-facing slopes overlooking the Santa Ynez River
• First commercial vintage 2001, the same year Sta. Rita Hills was approved as an AVA
• Recognized as Santa Barbara County's first cult winery by 2003 on the strength of critic scores and mailing-list demand
• Name refers to the heavy Pacific fog that rolls inland through the Sta. Rita Hills transverse valley each morning

Sea Smoke validated Sta. Rita Hills as a serious cool-climate Pinot Noir address at a time when the AVA was still being defined on paper. The estate's south-facing orientation is the rare exception in an appellation dominated by west and northwest exposures, and the resulting wines, denser and more muscular than the regional norm while keeping the cool-corridor acidity, established a stylistic pole that other producers measured themselves against. By the early 2000s Sea Smoke was being called Santa Barbara County's first cult winery, with closed mailing lists, secondary-market premiums, and consistent mid-90s critic scores across Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator, and Wine Enthusiast. The estate's full transition to biodynamic farming by 2013 was a notable step at scale for the AVA. Constellation Brands' May 2024 acquisition was a marquee deal for the region, bringing Sea Smoke into one of the world's largest wine portfolios while retaining the existing leadership team and the brand's stylistic direction. Long-term grape contracts with a small number of outside producers including Foxen have extended the vineyard's stylistic reach beyond the estate label.

• One of California's earliest true cult Pinot Noir labels; closed mailing list since the early 2000s
• Consistent mid-90s point scores across Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator, and Wine Enthusiast
• Entire estate farmed biodynamically since 2013
• May 2024 Constellation Brands acquisition kept the existing leadership team and stylistic direction in place

Sea Smoke Pinot Noir is hand-harvested, cluster-sorted in the vineyard, and gently destemmed after an overnight chill. Musts are cold-soaked in open-top fermenters for around five days, then inoculated with cultured yeast for a slow primary fermentation. Tanks are hand punched-down twice a day, with total maceration running roughly 14 to 18 days for Southing and 16 to 28 days for Ten. Pinot Noir is aged in French oak with a meaningful new-barrel percentage and typically holds for around 16 to 18 months before bottling, longer than most Sta. Rita Hills neighbors. Chardonnay is whole-cluster pressed, fermented in French oak, and aged on lees. The signature profile is dense black cherry, baking spice, structured tannin, and bright cool-climate acidity, with cellar potential in the 10 to 20 year range. Alcohols typically sit around 14 percent.

• Hand-harvested, gently destemmed Pinot Noir after overnight chilling
• Five-day cold soak in open-top fermenters, cultured yeast, manual twice-daily punch-downs
• Long maceration (14-18 days Southing, 16-28 days Ten) and extended French oak aging
• Whole-cluster pressed Chardonnay aged on lees in French oak; alcohols around 14 percent for both varieties

Bob Davids owned Sea Smoke from the 1999 founding until May 2024, when he sold the estate to Constellation Brands. The acquisition transferred the brand, inventory, winery, and 1,100 acres of land, including 256 acres planted to vine. General manager Victor Gallegos, head winemaker Don Schroeder, and vineyard manager Julian Malone all stayed on. Schroeder joined the cellar in August 2003 as assistant winemaker under Kris Curran and was named head winemaker in January 2008. Sales remain mailing-list driven, with limited restaurant placement and no public tasting room. The estate sits within the Sta. Rita Hills and is farmed biodynamically by the in-house team. A small number of outside producers, most notably Foxen, hold long-term fruit contracts and bottle their own single-vineyard expressions of Sea Smoke fruit.

• Owned by founder Bob Davids 1999 to May 2024; acquired by Constellation Brands in May 2024
• Acquisition included brand, inventory, winery, and 1,100 acres with 256 acres planted
• Don Schroeder: assistant winemaker August 2003 under Kris Curran, head winemaker January 2008 to present
• Mailing-list driven sales, no public tasting room; long-term fruit contracts with a small number of outside producers including Foxen

Sea Smoke Vineyard is the estate's sole fruit source. The site sits on the south bank of the Santa Ynez River, with vines planted on south-facing slopes at elevations from roughly 200 to 700 feet. The orientation is unusual for Sta. Rita Hills, where most plantings face west or northwest into the Pacific marine corridor, and gives the property slightly warmer afternoons and more direct sunlight while still receiving the AVA's signature morning fog. Pinot Noir is planted to 10 distinct Burgundian clones across multiple designated blocks, with Chardonnay on additional sections of the estate. Soils are predominantly sandy loam over marine sedimentary deposits, with a notable diatomaceous-earth component reflecting the AVA's geologic past. The estate has been farmed biodynamically since 2013, with the in-house viticulture team handling planting, canopy work, and harvest.

• Sole estate vineyard; 256 acres planted on a 1,100-acre property along the Santa Ynez River
• Rare south-facing exposure within Sta. Rita Hills; elevations roughly 200 to 700 feet
• Pinot Noir on 10 Burgundian clones across multiple designated blocks; Chardonnay on additional estate sections
• Sandy loam over marine sedimentary deposits with diatomaceous earth; biodynamic farming since 2013