Overview Gainey Ranch is the most diversified sustainable farming operation in the Santa Ynez Valley. Purchased by the Gainey family in 1962, the 1,800-acre ranch is comprised of vineyards, vegetables, fruit, hay crops, cattle and horses. Three generations of Gaineys have shaped the ranch into a thriving estate of innovation while preserving the region s heritage. In the 1980s, the Gaineys were among the first to plant vines and build a winery in the area. Later, they were the first to have vineyard holdings in both Santa Ynez Valley and the Sta. Rita Hills appellation. Today, the Gainey family produces Bordeaux and Burgundy varietal wines from these two outstanding regions; and is committed to farming sustainably to protect its workers, benefit the environment and produce excellent wines. PRESCIENT GRAPE GROWERS Gainey Vineyard was the first winery to own properties in both the warm, eastern end of the valley, where the family concentrates on Bordeaux varieties, and the cool, western end of the valley, where they focus on Burgundy varieties. Gainey s Home Ranch Vineyard was first cultivated in 1983 and remains planted predominantly to Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. The 120-acre Evan s Ranch was purchased in 1996, five years before the Sta. Rita Hills AVA was established and when only a few winemakers had discovered the potential of this untapped Pinot Noir-growing region. Named after Dan Gainey s great-grandfather, it was planted in 1997 with 50 acres of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah. In 2007, the Gaineys added Rancho Esperanza, a 50acre vineyard west of Evan s Ranch. SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES Gainey Vineyard is committed to farming its vineyards in a safe and sustainable way. To that end, the winery employs a variety of viticultural practices as part of its sustainable efforts, including using cover crops and compost and natural amendments to condition the soil. Weeds are controlled by hand instead of spraying with pre-emergent herbicides that can leach into the groundwater. No poisons are used to contain gophers or other harmful animals. And when counts of harmful insects reach a high-threat level only organic-material sprays are used. WINEMAKING High quality and long-term consistency of fruit are two principles that guide all farming decisions at Gainey. Dan, general manager and director of winemaking John Falcone and winemaker Jeff LeBard work closely together to meet these objectives. By controlling all aspects of grape growing, Gainey is able to ensure that quality takes priority over farming economics. The result are low-vigor vines that produce small yields and fruit with great concentration and complexity. PROGRESSIVE FARMERS In the early 1960s, the Gaineys converted 400 acres of rangeland to farmland. Twenty years later they increased their farming operations by 200 acres and transitioned to organic farming practices. In 2009, in celebration of the winery s silver anniversary, Dan chose to shine a spotlight on the ranch s diversity by devoting 25 acres to boutique farming. Within this parcel a wide variety of small crops are cultivated, including arugula, beets, fennel, lettuces, kale, chard, strawberries, mustard greens, sugar snap peas, sweet onions and raspberries. These crops are sold at farmers markets hosted at the winery, as well as to local restaurants, bringing the food and wine of Gainey Vineyard together on the table.
History It all began with a horse. Daniel C. Gainey, an Irishman living in Minnesota, was a simple man with passions deeply rooted in agriculture. He was also an entrepreneur who turned Jostens, Inc., into a Fortune 500 company. In 1939, he received a gift at a company sales meeting that changed his life and set the course for his family s future an Arabian colt. With that colt, Daniel C. found a new passion. He quickly bought a large farm in Owatonna, Minnesota, and in 1940 started building stables for his growing family of Arabian horses. He spent his free time developing his horse facilities and growing the family of horses. Over time, his penchant and skill for choosing specific physical characteristics and breeding them into his Arabians led to the Gainey Fountainhead Arabian, certified with the Arabian Horse Registry. By 1956, Daniel C. opened a Jostens plant in Summerland, California, near Santa Barbara, offering him the opportunity to spend more time working in sunny California. A few years earlier his son, Daniel J., had assumed a role at Jostens and the two began to split their time between Minnesota and California. In 1962, father and son purchased 1,800 acres on the eastern end of Santa Barbara County s Santa Ynez Valley with the vision to create an agricultural future for their family. Within a year, 400 acres of rangeland were converted into farmland. The following year, the Gainey Fountainhead Arabian equestrian facilities were built and nearly 250 horses were kept on the property. Daniel C. passed away in 1979 at age 81, before the family s agricultural focus would expand to include viticulture. Daniel J., who dreamed of growing grapes with the same passion his father had poured into breeding horses, planted 51 acres of Bordeaux varieties on the northern boundary of the Gainey Ranch in 1983 and named it the Home Ranch Vineyard. In 1984, Daniel J. and his son Daniel H., Dan, opened their Spanish-style winery and released their first wines, including a Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, made by winemaker Rick Longoria. The winery quickly became one of the most popular destinations in the area and was named as one of the best wineries to visit on California s Central Coast by Wine Spectator. In 1996, the family purchased and planted a 120-acre parcel along Santa Rosa Road in what would later develop into the Sta. Rita Hills AVA, becoming the first winery to own properties in both the warm, eastern end of the valley, where the family concentrates on Bordeaux varieties, and the cool, western end of the valley, where they have planted Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. One year later, Dan was instrumental in forming the committee, which he and Richard Sanford chaired that developed the application for forming the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. His work with the committee and its subcommittees included selecting the boundaries of the AVA, creating the Sta. Rita Hills Winegrowers Alliance, and developing the alliance s bylaws and articles of incorporation. Further demonstrating their dedication to the region, the Gaineys purchased Rancho Esperanza in 2008, a 50-acre parcel west of Evan s Ranch. Today, in addition to the vineyards, cattle and crops on Gainey Ranch, 100 acres remain devoted to the handful of Gainey Fountainhead Arabians, which live in stables near Dan s father s home. The spirit of the West is expressed daily at Gainey Ranch through Dan s efforts to always strive for the best, while maintaining the integrity of the land.
Vineyards Gainey was the first winery in Santa Barbara County to own vineyards in both the warm, eastern end of Santa Ynez Valley and the cool, western region of the valley in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. Santa Ynez Valley The Santa Ynez Valley AVA is known for its warm days and calm winds. Flanked by the Santa Ynez Mountains, the only range on the Pacific Coast that runs east-west, the valley is marked by cool ocean breezes that flow inland. Gainey first planted grapes on its Home Ranch in 1984, in the warmer, eastern section, which has gained acclaim as a region for growing Bordeaux varieties. Today, there are 100 acres of vines planted on the Home Ranch divided into four vineyards: Los Robles, Hillside, Meadowlark and Patrick s Vineyard. The first three surround the winery on rolling hills. Red varieties, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Franc are planted in the tops of the hillsides where the soil is shallow with gravel beneath it. The white varieties Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling are planted lower where the soil is heavier and includes a mixture of gravelly loam, clay, sand and Positas. The fourth and most recently planted vineyard, Patrick s Vineyard is more steep than rolling. The hillside vineyard boasts only 20 inches of topsoil a clay loamy soil so rich and dark it looks almost black. Its Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot vines are planted using 6-foot by 3-foot spacing and are only 24 to 26 inches off the ground to benefit from the radiant heat of the Monterey shale beneath the soil. Ground cover is used to prevent erosion and like all of the vineyards, irrigation is used as needed. Sta. Rita Hills The Sta. Rita Hills AVA benefits from strong winds, morning fog and cool temperatures. These conditions provide a long, cool growing season averaging 30 to 45 days longer than most of California s grape-growing regions. These maritime conditions also limit vine yields providing grapes with a rare combination of intense ripeness, concentration, structure, minerality and acidity. The Gainey family purchased its first Sta. Rita Hills property in 1996, five years before the region was designated a sub-appellation of the Santa Ynez Valley AVA. At Evans Ranch, the Gainey s 120-acre property in Sta. Rita Hills, there are four vineyard parcels on a strip of land stretching from the Santa Ynez River to the top of a hill. La Marina, the lowest vineyard, has sandy soil and is planted entirely to Chardonnay. Rising just above it is Lone Oak, a vineyard on the mid-section of the hillside with Botella clay loam soil ideal for growing Chardonnay, Syrah and Pinot Noir. Las Brisas is the steepest vineyard with Tierra gravelly loam soil and winds that whip through the rows of Chardonnay, Syrah and Pinot Noir vines. At the highest section is Todos Santos. It has the same soil series as Las Brisas and is planted entirely to Pinot Noir. West of Evan s Ranch is Rancho Esperanza. Neighbored by Brewer-Clifton, Melville and Babcock vineyards, the 50-acre parcel has elder series sandy loam soil that looks like coffee-colored sand. High-density spacing was used for the 36 acres of Chardonnay and 14 acres of Pinot Noir planted in the spring of 2009.
Stewards of the Land Gainey Vineyard is committed to farming its vineyards in a safe and sustainable way a way that protects its workers, benefits the environment and produces its fine wines. The winery employs a variety of viticultural practices as part of its sustainable efforts, including using cover crops and compost and natural soil amendments to condition the soil. Weeds are controlled by hand instead of spraying with pre-emergent herbicides that can leach into the groundwater. Additionally, powdery mildew the fungus that can destroy grape bunches is controlled with organic sprays. No poisons are used to contain gophers or other harmful animals. And when counts of harmful insects such as leafhoppers and spider mites reach a level where it is certain that significant economic damage will occur without the use of spray, only organic materials are used. For Dan Gainey, sustainable farming extends beyond his property line. Not long ago, a 65- acre property close to Gainey Vineyard s Home Ranch was targeted for development, which would have drastically altered and disrupted the placid, pastoral character of Santa Ynez Valley. To prevent this from happening, Dan Gainey led a group of valley residents and farmers in purchasing the property, which were donated to the Santa Ynez Valley Preserve, a conservation land trust that will maintain it in perpetuity as agricultural land. Today, 45 acres of the preserved land are planted with alfalfa and three hundred different types of fruits and vegetables, including many heirloom tomato varieties, while 20 acres are maintained as riparian habitat.
Winemaking The goal of Gainey Vineyard s winemaking program is to create wines of uncompromising quality with optimum flavor and aromatic components that reflect the unique characteristics of the vineyards from which they come. Toward that end, the Gaineys have recently constructed a new gravity-flow winemaking facility. Grapes processed here are handled in the most gentle manner possible and then fermented and aged in one of five temperature- and humiditycontrolled rooms. Gainey Vineyard makes wine from grapes grown in vineyards located in two distinct appellations. The Home Ranch Vineyard on the eastern edge of the valley is, on average, twenty degrees warmer during the growing season than the cooler climate Evan s Ranch and Rancho Esperanza vineyards on the western end. Two contrasting world-class wine regions require a winemaking team with diverse winemaking experience. Dan Gainey Vintner, Proprietor Dan has a connection to the land that few vintners share. The Gainey family has been farming in the Santa Ynez Valley of Santa Barbara County since 1962. Since the original vineyard planting in 1983, the Gaineys have continued to add to their Home Ranch and Evan s Ranch vineyards, most recently with Rancho Esperanza in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. Dan is committed to making world-class wines while preserving the environment of the Santa Ynez Valley through sustainable farming and viticulture and agricultural land preservation. John Falcone General Manager, Director of Winemaking John Falcone began making wine in Santa Barbara County nearly a decade ago, following a 13-year winemaking stint in Napa Valley. Having garnered consistent critical acclaim for his wines over the years, John remains focused on making wine in the vineyard, and spends most of his time away from the cellar in the vineyards, where, he says, the core of winemaking actually takes place. John oversees all operations at the winery as well as directs the winemaking programs. Jeff LeBard Winemaker Anchoring day-to-day activities in the Gainey cellar is winemaker Jeff LeBard. A Central Coast native, Jeff has been on the cutting-edge of winemaking for years. He began his career at Fess Parker Winery. Since then, Jeff has been a production manager at Central Coast Wine Services, assistant winemaker at Rancho Sisquoc Winery, associate winemaker for Napa Valley s Cosentino Winery and associate winemaker at Gainey for two years before his promotion to winemaker.