Nielson Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley AVA

 Nielson Vineyard pays homage to its namesake, Uriel J. Nielson, who in 1964 planted the first commercial vineyard in Santa Barbara County, a region previously considered too cold to grow grapes. Known as a viticulture pioneer, Nielson didn’t heed warnings from neighboring farmers and didn’t flinch in his stance that Santa Barbara County could be one among the top winegrowing regions in the world.

From Nielson Vineyard, we sourced a California heritage Pinot Noir clone called Swan. This clone was named for Joseph Swan, who was a pioneer in the Russian River Valley. In the 1980s, Norm worked near Joseph Swan's vineyard in Russian River and for decades he's been curious about the intriguing fruit. He's delighted to finally have the opportunity to make his own expression from it. Norm was sold on the potential of the Nielson fruit after tasting a barrel sample of Bill Wathen's (Foxen) Nielson Vineyard Pinot Noir. Our wine benefitted from a graceful aging of 18 months in French oak barrels with 25% new oak.

The legendary vineyard has served as a longtime model for viticultural experimentation and sustainable farming practices throughout the region.  The Byron family achieved its sustainability certification through CCSW (Certified California Sustainable Winegrowing), which requires the implementation of stringent winegrowing standards based on over 200 published practices.  Such vineyards and wineries must also pass a third-party audit each year to maintain their certification status.

Nielson Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley AVA