2018 Rancho Sisquoc Merlot

About Rancho Sisquoc Merlot 2018:

Rancho Sisquoc Merlot 2018 received 90 points from Wine Enthusiast Magazine and 90 points and Gold at the 2021 Orange County Wine Competition

Tasting Notes:

Deep ruby color with a nose of red dried fruit and herbs is followed by soft red fruit on the palate with lightly toasted oak and a subtle, clean finish.

Barrel Selection:

20 months in French oak, 35% new

Growing Notes:

With a dry and mild climate cooled significantly by moist ocean fog and breezes, Santa Barbara County is a grape-grower’s dream. Part of the larger Central Coast appellation, Santa Barbara is home to Santa Maria Valley and Santa Ynez Valley. The conditions here provide an opportunity for nearly effortless production of high-quality cool-climate Central Coast wines.

Winemaking Notes:

Fresh zing of acidity and tart flavours.

About The Winery:

At Rancho Sisquoc Winery they believe in crafting quality wines in small quantities. As one of the first wineries in the Santa Barbara County wine region, the team has been around long enough to know that great wine is born from great vineyards. Here on the ranch they have over 300 acres of superb vineyards for our award winning estate wines. Located in northern Santa Barbara County on the Sisquoc River 14 miles east of Santa Maria, Rancho Sisquoc is part of an 1852 Spanish land grant. The Chumash Indians called this area “Sisquoc”, which meant “gathering place”. Today Rancho Sisquoc is again a gathering place, this time for wine lovers.

James C. Flood arrived in California in 1850 in search of opportunity and sunshine. As early as 1882 the Flood family was farming and ranching in California. James C. Flood’s grandson, Jim, and his wife, Betty carried on the farming and ranching tradition when, in 1952, they purchased the historic Rancho Sisquoc, which was an 1852 Mexican land grant.

In the 1950s the Floods ran Rancho Sisquoc primarily as a cattle ranch, while also farming beans and grain. Jim and Betty taught their four children Jimmie, Judy, Johnny, and Elizabeth, how to ride horses while rounding up cattle. Today, their great-grandchildren (6^th generation Floods) work on their riding skills with the cowboys on the ranch, as the cattle operation continues.

The chaparral watershed and classic Mediterranean climate inspired the Floods to plant their first vineyards in the late 1960s, some of the very first in Santa Barbara County. With the guidance of Napa Valley enologist, Andre Tchelistcheff, varieties were matched to the climate and soils of Rancho Sisquoc. In 1972, the Floods produced their first wine. With experience only gained through vintages, additional varieties have been chosen based on the ranch microclimates to create superb vineyards and award winning estate wines.

Betty Flood, an endlessly talented and creative artist, drew the wine label of the San Ramon Chapel. (Her hand-painted signs of historic landmarks are still throughout the ranch.) The Chapel, marking the entrance to Rancho Sisquoc, was built in 1875 and became the first official landmark in Santa Barbara County in 1966.

Today, quail still scurry and flutter throughout the chaparral and vineyards, Sunday mass is held at the San Ramon Chapel, and the Floods still use the original ranch house of 1900.