Sommeliers of the American Riviera 2025 Sta. Rita Hills AVA Review Thanks to Santa Barbara County's east–west orientation, with the cold Pacific to the west and the rising sun to the east, the region is home to every grape growing climate on earth, all in the distance of about thirty miles. The American Viticultural Area (AVA) of Sta. Rita Hills is located in the southwest, approximately ten miles from the Pacific Ocean. It is the southernmost Region 1 climate zone in the northern hemisphere, and has one of the longest growing seasons in the world. Its cool ocean breezes and kaleidoscope of soil types make it the ideal location to cultivate Burgundian varieties. The Sta. Rita Hills AVA is generally considered to be a world-class growing region for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay especially. The region is comprised of three sets of foothills. Cradling the region to the south are the Santa Rosa Hills. In the middle are the Santa Rita Hills, for which the region is named. And encapsulating the region to the north are La Purisima Hills. The serene and picturesque country lane of Santa Rosa Road runs through the southern corridor alongside the Santa Ynez River as it flows west into the ocean. It was here that in 1971 Richard Sanford and Michael Benedict first planted Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Soil types in the southern corridor range from sandy loam to loamy clay to alluvial wash, limestone, a variety of metamorphic rock, and the very curious diatomaceous shale. The more frequently travelled Highway 246 runs through the northern corridor where, comparatively, sand and clay are the dominant soil types. For its annual review, Sommeliers of the American Riviera (StAR) tastes blind, that is to say that those judging are blind to the identities of participating producers. The wines are judged solely on their appearance, aroma, flavor, and structure, according to what the international sommelier community considers to be a classic example of the highest quality wine a given grape variety can produce when grown in a particular region. Of the 50 wines tasted for the StAR 2025 Sta. Rita Hills Review, the following received 90 points or higher: Dragonette Cellars, 2022 Radian Vineyard, Pinot Noir — 96 Tyler Winery, 2022 Mae Estate, Chardonnay — 95 Sanguis, 2023 Whale Song, John Sebastiano Vineyard, Chardonnay — 94 Evan's Ranch, 2023 Morgan's, Pinot Noir — 94 SAMsARA, 2022 Rancho La Viña, Pinot Noir — 94 Evan's Ranch, 2023 Las Brisas, Chardonnay — 93 The Joy Fantastic, 2022 Estate, Pinot Noir — 93 Lafond, 2022 Estate, Chardonnay — 93 Liquid Farm, "Golden Slope", Chardonnay — 93 MarBeso, 2023 Spear Vineyard, Chardonnay — 93 Melville, 2023 Estate, Chardonnay — 93 Melville, 2023 Block M, Pinot Noir — 93 Pence Vineyards, 2022 Rosa, Chardonnay — 93 Strange Family Vineyards, 2022 Estate, Chardonnay — 93 Donnachadh, 2021 Estate, Chardonnay — 92 LaBarge, 2022 Estate, Pinot Noir — 92 Lafond, 2022 Estate, Pommard Clone, Pinot Noir — 92 Paul Lato, 2023 "Ma Jolie", Peake Ranch, Chardonnay — 92 SAMsARA, 2023 Zotovich Vineyard, Chardonnay — 92 Story of Soil, 2023 La Rinconada, Pinot Noir — 92 Alma Rosa, 2022 El Jabali, Chardonnay — 91 Babcock, "Top Cream", John Sebastiano Vineyard, Chardonnay — 91 Dragonette Cellars, 2023 Bentrock Vineyard, Chardonnay — 91 The Joy Fantastic, 2023 Estate, Chardonnay — 91 MarBeso, 2023 Our Lady of Guadalupe Vineyard, Pinot Noir — 91 Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2023 Estate, Pinot Noir — 91 Paul Lato, 2022 "Stand by Me", Drum Canyon Vineyard, Pinot Noir — 91 Sandhi, 2020 Sta. Rita Hills, Chardonnay — 91 Sandhi, 2020 Sanford & Benedict, Pinot Noir — 91 The Set, 2022 Sta. Rita Hills, Chardonnay — 91 Donnachadh, 2021 Estate, Pinot Noir — 90 Liquid Farm, 2023 Sta. Rita Hills, Pinot Noir — 90 Spear Vineyards, 2022 Block 13, Pinot Noir — 90 What we liked most about Dragonette's Pinot Noir was its balance of vibrant acidity with smooth tannins, soft texture, and successful combination of ripe fruit character and rose petal notes, with earthy, iron flavors to ground it. What we liked most about the Tyler's Chardonnay was that it offered complexity without being complicated, showing lots of beautiful flavors and aromas of peaches, dried herbs, white flowers, and a salinity to its finish like salt spray from the ocean. Tech sheets:  Dragonette Cellars, 2022 Radian Vineyard, Pinot Noir   Tyler Winery, 2022 Mae Estate, Chardonnay   Thank you to all the producers that participated in this project, and congratulations especially to Dragonette and Tyler! Your hard work and passion bring joy to us all. Emily Johnston, founding member Carlos Mascherin, founding member Kathryn Hope, senior member