Brewer - Clifton focus solely on site-expressive wines from the Sta. Rita Hills appellation using Chardonnay and Pinot Noir as voices of place. The area's cool climate, morning fogs, long growing season and diversity of soils combine to produce extreme wines that reflect the special characteristics of the area. The vineyards selected for Brewer - Clifton wines represent the full range of the Santa Rita Hills - from the furthest eastern point to the coastal vineyards to the west.

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It is within the rows of the vineyard that our wine is created. Each bottle of Brewer-Clifton wine should leave an impression of the vineyard, the vintage and the unique geological and climatic conditions of the Sta. Rita Hills appellation. In order to achieve this mission and goal, the majority of our energy throughout the year is spent in the vineyard ensuring that each receives the individual attention required to allow it to produce grapes with a sense of that particular place. Our approach is also simple, paying careful attention to signals from the vines and nature and responding to those with individually prescribed techniques. As each vineyard has its own unique requirements, we manage each according to their inimitable needs rather than a macro approach to farming. We are working to achieve a natural balance between the site, the vines, the aspect and the microclimates in each vineyard, using organic farming methods whenever possible.

We believe that a healthy vine will reward us with stellar fruit. Just as we look at the vine as its own ecosystem – from roots to shoots – we also look at the entire cluster as a key component to our wine profile. We farm the vines to achieve physiological ripeness throughout the entire cluster. Not only must sugars, acids and flavors be in balance, but seeds and stems must also be ripe as both are employed in our pinot noir fermentation. Because of our philosophy of including stems during fermentation for both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, we exposure the fruit zone early to encourage whole cluster ripening.

For those vineyards from which we source fruit, but do not control the farming itself, we work very closely with the owners and their vineyard crews to overlay our farming philosophy to the blocks designated for Brewer-Clifton in their vineyard. This means paying by the acre rather than by the ton so that multiple passes can be made throughout the year to achieve our goals without economic concerns to the grower. This win-win solution ensures that Brewer-Clifton receives stunning fruit from each of our designated vineyards. These vineyards are described in the Vineyard Sources section.

In 2007 we were able to assemble what, in our opinion, is a premier team of grower associates who manage vineyards directly and from which we receive the entire production. These vineyards are described in Our Vineyards.

Producing a product from the land which also reflects its own unique sense of place is an extremely humbling and rewarding endeavor. Our wines are truly a result of the fruits of our labor.

Please click here for a printable list and descriptions of all of the vineyards.