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Riverbench Sparkling Wine

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In Santa Barbara county, the only place to taste a flight of sparkling wine every day is Riverbench Winery‘s tasting room in downtown Santa Barbara. They make 6 different sparklers…read below in their own words:

“Riverbench Reserve Blanc de Blancs Sparkling Wine – This investment of time and quality grapes leads to an exceptional bottle of sparkling wine.

2015 Riverbench Cork Jumper Blanc de Noirs Sparkling Wine – This is the queen of our sparkling wines. Complex, seductive, and mysterious, this is one you’ll want to open to celebrate any special occasion.

2016 Riverbench Cork Jumper Brut Rosé Sparkling Wine – Bright, fruity, and full of life, this gorgeous Pinot Noir based bubbly is worth savoring.

2016 Riverbench Cork Jumper Brut Rosé Sparkling Wine – Don’t be fooled: this wine is anything but super sweet. The touch of residual sugar brings out a whole different flavor profile of lime and brioche.

2016 Riverbench Pinot Meunier Sparkling Wine – Santa Barbara County’s only sparkling wine made with Pinot Meunier will always impress.

2017 Riverbench Blanc de Blancs Sparkling Wine – Our Blanc de Blancs is a classic and traditional take on sparkling wine, boasting pretty flavors of lemon curd and yeasty brioche.”

From their Santa Maria-focused Chardonnay and Pinot Noir program to their certified sustainable farming practices, the quality here is really high. Perfect for Burgundy (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) lovers.

Santa Barbara County Sparkling Wine Map: a Champagne Lover’s Guide

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First-ever Santa Barbara County Sparkling Wine Map: Where to Get Local Bubbles

Santa Barbara Bubbles: California ChampagneIt’s known by many names: Champagne, Sparkling Wine, Bubbly, Bubbles, Cava or Champers. California Sparkling Wine can’t be called Champagne — it’s not from the Champagne region of France — but it’s made in the same methode traditionelle, or method champenoise, used in Champagne. But Santa Barbara’s “champagne” is also delicious…and it’s local!

Download the printable Santa Barbara Sparkling Wine Map here (pdf).

Santa Barbara county has perfect conditions and grapes to make high-quality Sparkling Wine. Santa Barbara county is one of the world’s premier growing regions for Chardonnay & Pinot Noir – 2 of the main grapes in traditional Champagne. And lucky for us, there are more than 40 Sparkling Wine producers in the county trying their hand at it.

Now you can download the  Santa Barbara Sparkling Wine Map for you to find them all. Many producers don’t make enough quantity to have bubbles on a regular tasting list, but you can always ask at the winery. If they have some bubbles available; they’re likely to pour them for you. A good guideline: if you like the winery’s white wines, you’ll probably like their Sparkling Wine.

You’ll find Sparkling wine in Santa Barbara, Summerland, Los Olivos, Solvang, Santa Ynez, Buellton, Lompoc, Santa Maria Valley and Los Alamos, with more on the way. Even wineries without tasting rooms and getting into the bubbles business – the online-only producers are from some of the county’s highest-rated winemakers.

Download the printable Santa Barbara Sparkling Wine Map here (pdf).

Santa Barbara Bubbles: California Champagne

Contact me if you’d like copies for your tasting room!

Flying Goat Cellars – Goat Bubbles

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Goat Bubbles: Santa Barbara Sparkling Wine from Flying Goat CellarsOne of the original sparkling wine makers in Santa Barbara county using the traditional method to make bubbles — méthode champenoise — was Flying Goat Cellars. Norm Yost and Kate Griffith have been picking early, fermenting grapes, providing the proper environment for a second fermentation in the bottle and disgorging in the Lompoc wine ghetto since 2005. Flying Goat is one of the few bubbles producers in the county to master handcrafting sparkling wine at its own facility, where every step of production is done in-house.

Norm’s been a Pinot Noir maker, drinker and fanatic since landing in the Santa Ynez Valley in 1979. But for him, the Sta. Rita Hills‘ and Santa Maria Valley’s high acidity, low sugars, and great flavors were perfect for sparkling wine.

Flying Goat is the first to open a Bubbles Bar in their tasting room in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto, where you can taste all 5 of their stellar sparkling wines. Sounds like you need a road trip to Santa Barbara’s OG of sparkling wine!

Goat Bubbles:

  • Rosé (a fruity Pinot Noir)
  • Blanc de Blancs (Chardonnay)
  • Blanc de Noirs (Pinot Noir)
  • Brut Cuveé (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay)
  • Crémant (a tart fruit Pinot Blanc)