With tall ceilings, cozy wraparound leather couches, clean white tile countertops, and walls dotted with a few key vintage posters, the new Tyler x Lieu Dit tasting room on Canon Perdido is an oasis of tranquility. The hip minimalist design serves as the perfect canvas for vibrant pops of color and flavor from their beautiful selection of ruby-red pinot noirs, scarlet cab francs, and peach-hued rosé.
Its ample space, shareable food menu, comfortable interior, and bountiful beverages also make it an ideal location for a convivial evening with friends or an intimate one-on-one hang. Justin Willett, the winemaker for both Tyler and Lieu Dit, had not planned on having both Santa Barbara tasting rooms in one place, but when they found the former home of Fresco’s Café tucked next to the Lobero, the opportunity just made sense.
“This is what we all envisioned without knowing it,” explained Gennevieve Pelletier, who co-owns the space with the Willett family. As she graciously led me and a friend through tastings of their two labels, we realized it’s no coincidence that the bar oozes Brooklyn charm. Pelletier was living in Williamsburg and a member of the Tyler Wine Club when she first met Willett. She attended one of his wine dinners at Charlie Bird restaurant in the city, they hit it off, and he shared some of the new wine labels he was working on. “We tried the Lieu Dit brand and realized it was right up our alley,” Pelletier said of his line of Loire-style varieties. “We knew that one day we’d want to be more hands-on.”