Last year’s inaugural Natural Coast Wine Festival couldn’t have come at a more enlightening time for the “natural wine” movement, which adheres to the laudable tenets of eco-minded farming and low-intervention winemaking. After a decade or so of experimentation and hands-on education, the natty scene — which had been frequently knocked for making overly sour, funky, or otherwise flawed wines — is today crafting mostly clean and refreshing bottles that appeal to the palates of both Baby Boomers and Gen Z.
At least that’s the case on the Central Coast, the primary geographic range showcased by Natural Coast. The fest was created by Satellite S.B. founder Drew Cuddy and his longtime associate Lindsey Reed, who now works for Bell’s in Los Alamos and teaches the intro to wine class at UCSB. Last year’s other headline was that the festival was happening on the grounds of Satellite S.B.’s brand-new event space, the large indoor-mostly outdoor space on East Haley Street that Cuddy has christened The Factory.
The second Natural Coast Wine Festival returns to The Factory on April 20. I checked in with Cuddy to see what to expect in 2024, both from the fest and the venue.
Remind us of the Natural Coast origin story.
At a wine-soaked Satellite employee party, we were dreaming of all the things we could do post-COVID to really expand our promotion of our favorite Central Coast producers and showcase our region. When The Factory event space fell into our lap, the path was clear, and the fest just came together organically.
How did it go last year?
Last year was so far beyond our expectations. A sold-out crowd, terrific response from producers, a perfect weather day. We were blown away and so energized by it. A special thanks to all of our volunteers from L.A. to S.L.O.! We’re hoping to grow on the success and showcase ever-more producers.
Any changes this year?
We’ve made big strides improving The Factory, and our kitchen will finally be under construction for the festival. This year, we’re working with Feed the Valley to support their mission providing food security to the families throughout the Santa Ynez Valley. We’ll be announcing new food providers for the fest shortly as well
Which new producers are in the mix?
This year, we’ll feature a lot of the same crowd as last year, as well as a few young guns doing exciting stuff in the region! Folks like Farm Cottage, Eislynn, Wildflower, and Lili Hayes are all new additions this year, and we’ll be thrilled to announce more as we confirm registration over the coming weeks.
Have there been any developments in the natural wine scene we should know about?
We just continue to see forward motion with better results every year. The diversity of wine styles we showcased last year and have registered for this year makes it so clear that natural wine, by our definition, is not a fad but the best way to make and share unique wine.
Tell us more about what we can expect to come from your event space. The Factory is open for business! All of the event spaces are ready and have been hosting smaller events this year. We’ll be thrilled to announce the completion of our commercial kitchen later this spring and will follow that up with a whole series of public events as we move forward. We’re booking private events like weddings and birthdays at factorysb.com.
The Natural Coast Wine Festival is on Saturday, April 20, noon-5 p.m. at The Factory (616 E. Haley St.). Buy tickets at naturalcoastwinefest.com.
