What if everything you’ve ever been told was wrong?
This quandary is at the heart of an ongoing, initially accidental farming experiment happening right now in the Santa Maria Valley. Given that all of modern agriculture proclaims to know about what it takes to grow high-quality wine grapes — a formula reliant on irrigation, fertilization, cultivation, and meticulous year-round attention — how could an untended patch of pinot noir produce some of the most delicious results winemakers have ever seen, especially during the drought-addled vintage of 2021?
Despite no water for the entire growing season, no nutrients added to the soil, no pruning to shape the vines into efficient fruit-making machines, and no spraying of anything — organic or otherwise — to fight back the foggy region’s notorious mildew, these vines alongside 101 in the sandy hills east of Orcutt produced tiny berries (prized for intense flavors), widely spaced clusters (which hinders mildew), and a hefty load of fruit.
