Star Lane Vineyard 4 Items

Founded in 1996, Star Lane Vineyard was birthed from a 250-year vision instigated by the Dierberg family. Ten years into patient exploration for land to sustainably cultivate world class Bordeaux varietals, founders Jim and Mary eschewed the common path and saw unrealized potential in the Happy Canyon area of Santa Barbara County. Now in our second of 10-generation plan, we carry on a legacy of sustaining land through crafting high quality wine.

Since the early 19^th century most of the acreage has been grazed to provide beef for local populations. This continues today and Star Lane Vineyard offers a slice of “old California” with ancient oak trees, pines, coastal chaparral, and numerous native plants. The Dierberg family planted east facing slopes in well drained silty-loam soils of various cobble content from magnesium rich serpentine to calcium/silica rich chert. Ranging from 750 to 1500 feet above sea level, it is one of the highest elevation vineyards in all of Santa Barbara County. The natural low vigor of the vines is excellent for developing flavors and depth in the wines while preserving freshness at reasonable potential alcohol levels.

In 2013 President and Winemaker Tyler Thomas joined the team to further drive discovery of the property through wine cultivation. Our focus is on small lot fermentations, minimally handled, to help discover the inherent nature of this varied property. “Great wine is discovered, not made,” Thomas noted, “and the goal of the winery is to serve the vineyard and overall sustainability of the property.”

By leveraging control over all our farming, a state-of-the-art facility, and simple winemaking designed to usher the fruit to the bottle, we produce numerous bottlings of certified sustainable Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc, and Syrah from Star Lane Vineyard.