The grapes for our Cabernet Sauvignon are sourced from top vineyard sites in the Wahluke Slope AVA located in the famed Columbia Valley near the edge of Red Mountain. The region is one of the driest, warmest climates in the state, perfect for Cabernet Sauvignon. The vineyards are composed of sandy and alluvial soils with vine shoots on original roots as phylloxera has never been in Washington State.
Oregon’s famed Willamette Valley runs approximately from Portland in the north to Eugene in the South and produces some of the world’s finest Pinot Noirs. The grapes for our wine are sourced in different locations along the valley which has rich alluvial soils on the valley floor as well as a selection of volcanic-sedimentary soils on the hillsides.
Our winery and 100-acre estate vineyard is located on the western end of the Santa Ynez Valley in the Sta. Rita Hills. The Sta. Rita Hills appellation benefits from the rare east-west valley allowing strong winds, morning fog and overall cool temperatures to roll through fromthe Pacific Ocean. These conditions lengthen the growing season while nourishing grapeswith a rare combination of full ripeness, concentration, beautiful structure, minerality and acidity. As a result, the classic cool-climate varietals thrive here.
In 1962, Pierre Lafond reestablished Santa Barbara County’s wine making tradition by founding Santa Barbara Winery. The winery was the first since prohibition and has played a pioneering role in the subsequent development of the Santa Ynez Valley as a world-class wine growing region. Pierre purchased land in 1971 on the western end of the valley and began planting what is now a 97.5-acre vineyard.
The Master Family, Charlie, Mel and Janie, founded Tortoise Creek in 1997 partnering with small, sustainable growers to produce wonderfully balanced and structured wines at great values. They named it after a beautiful creek they would often visit on their vineyard property which was a home to a family of tortoises.
In 2004 the Masters joined forces with the Sager Family, longtime friends and associates, and together set out to produce truly exceptional wines from California’s best regions, while upholding the original philosophy of making wines true to origin and character.
An environmentally conscious winery, Vinum Cellars works only with sustainable growers to create Eco-Friendly products. The packaging choices are made specifically to minimize their carbon footprint. Some of those features are: Domestically produced light weight, Eco-Series glass; labels and cartons using only non-toxic, water based inks and each of these suppliers recycles 100% of the waste created by manufacturing our packaging.
