Stolpman Vineyards

Founded:

1990

Owners:

Stolpman Family

Location:

Ballard Canyon, Santa Ynez AVA, Santa Barbara, CA

We believe that the backbone of our company is the group of people who do the hands-on work in the vineyard; their diligent efforts and masterful skill are essential to producing the great grapes our winery receives.

We also believe that a better understanding of the entire process, not just the task to which a person is assigned, results in better teamwork and dedication to our goal. Stolpman Vineyards organizes regular vineyard crew visits to the winery, where our winemakers explain the year-round vinifying process.

In 2003, Stolpman Vineyards instituted the La Cuadrilla Project: Each year, the full-time vineyard crew (in Spanish, “La Cuadrilla”) is given a small section in the vineyard to manage as they please. Pruning, watering, and fruit yield decisions on these rows are all made by the vineyard crew. During harvest, La Cuadrilla decides when to pick the fruit, and our winemaking team helps them vinify the grapes. At the end, La Cuadrilla divides the wine among its members—each with a better understanding of how their work in the vineyard has a direct influence on what ends up in the bottle.Our climate-controlled winery in Lompoc is outfitted with state-of-the-art winemaking equipment. At harvest, the grapes are picked early in the morning and transported quickly to the winery. The winery crew then begins the process of cluster- and berry-sorting the grapes before vinification.