Since we started production in 1996, we have been very fortunate in being able to realize many dreams. The Sta. Rita Hills appellation has developed into a truly phenomenal appellation with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that rival any in the world.

Our good fortune was highlighted in 2005 by the opportunity to nurture and receive 100% of the fruit from the vines planted at Mount Carmel, located in the heart of our appellation. This afforded us the opportunity to assemble what, in our opinion, is a premier team of grower associates lead by Francisco Ramirez, with soil consultation from Stan Kadota.

Francisco Ramirez

Francisco has a long connection with the land and farming. His family farmed mangoes in his native Mexico and from this early experience he began his bond with the earth and elements. Here in the Lompoc Valley, he first grew commercial flowers before joining Melville Vineyards and immersing himself in winegrowing in 1997. Francisco and his team care for five vineyards, and consult with our contracted vineyards. You can feel Francisco’s joy as you read his approach to farming and overseeing our farming efforts throughout the Sta. Rita Hills.

Every year is different and so we must adapt our farming and care for the vines to each growing season. This is a happy challenge, because once you know your vines, you know how to react. This is the most important aspect to growing high quality wine grapes; knowing your vines. Even though they may be planted in similar places, with the same rootstock and clone – there is a difference. Knowing them well and their unique differences allows us to give them just the right amount of attention, whether it is in pruning and trellising, leafing or nutritional supplements.

In many ways, they are like people. Some are stronger and can carry more fruit. Some are challenged by wind or high mineral content in the soil and must carry a lighter crop load. And like people, in order to be healthy and able to do their work well, they must be fed, so we take very good care of the soil and provide organic food through the drip system. This replenishes the roots and brings health and energy to the shoots and leaves.

We must work with the elements – the cool temperatures, wind and fog in the Sta. Rita Hills – and ensure that the clusters get enough sun to ripen perfectly. We leaf aggressively, but using a test block to determine that perfect time to perform this critical function – at the point where the young berries do not get sunburned and early enough so that they are always used to the afternoon sun.

At Brewer-Clifton, our farming philosophy is based on balance; healthy vines, grapes with equilibrium of sugar, acid, tannin and flavor, ripe seeds and stems without dehydration in the clusters, the correct crop load for each vine and enough to sustain a living from the land with the highest possible quality. When all this works well together, you can feel the energy in the vineyard!

Stan Kadota

The earth and the soil that the vines inhabit are the basis for our wines, bringing not only nutrition to the vines but an individuality to each bottling. We are fortunate to have Stan Kadota, undoubtedly the most highly-respected soil consultant in the region, as an integral part of our farming team. As a result of his advice, our vineyards have never looked more vibrant, exuding a sense of excitement and energy. As you read Stan’s philosophy on farming, you will understand better why each of our wines speaks so much of its own unique sense of place.

Good agriculture is holistic agriculture combining the best of modalities and techniques with the goal of producing the highest nutritional quality crop possible. It is only through a holistic approach that this goal can be reached, addressing equally the physical, chemical and biological aspects of farming. Balance is the key. Given the above, then by default the farming practices will be ecologically sound, safe and clean.

Agriculture and farming are not “natural” events. Getting your food naturally is actually foraging. This is how the Native Americans lived, by foraging and following the food. They lived and died according to how bountiful the land and the season was to them. The food, and their health both physically and spiritually was in tune with the land. In bountiful times they thrived, prospered and were naturally healthy. In lean times they starved, were desperate and died early. It is not possible for our population to exist as foragers today on this basis. Agriculture was a great engineering invention and we owe our existence and prosperity to this basic fact of life. The best agriculture is an agriculture that works in concert with nature rather than trying to overpower or fool nature. The past 75 years of heavy synthetic chemistry and toxic pesticides are recent examples of the results of trying to control nature. Genetically manipulated organisms are the new attempt to “fool” nature. The negative effects of the toxic chemical era are now evident. We can only hope that the man-made manipulated life forms are less damaging than early evidence shows them to be. The alternative to both of these agri-business plans is holistic farming.

Farming is the process of collecting energy and directing this energy into the plants we grow then into the food we eat. The sun, through photosynthesis is the obvious major source of energy, though there are other energies, some subtle and some powerful. Some of these subtle energies are collected from throughout the cosmos that we have not fully identified a la Rudolf Steiner and Biodynamics. Energy is also collected by plants from nutrients in the soil and nutrients we provide. It is commonly thought that plants “grow” from fertilizers, but the energy concept a la Carey Reams says plants live off of the energy generated from the interaction of various “fertilizers”. Then there is the energy created by the soil microbial system that create compounds and substances from raw organic matter and minerals. Agriculture is beginning to recognize the significant role of electricity in agriculture, as is medical science, in plant growth. Only a holistic approach to agriculture will consider and collect these many forms of energy for incorporation into food.

When we conscientiously practice good agriculture we give "permission to life" as my mentor C.J. Fenzau would say. When you have a healthy, vibrant field you can feel the energy as soon as you walk in. In the wine business it would be a goal to transfer this living energy to the wine.