Golfing for Wine & Community Clinics

The worlds of golf and wine cross over in countless ways, from the luxury lifestyles that both often represent to the direct connection that they provide for appreciating the unique landscapes of our planet.

But it wasn’t until three years ago that these two cultures were officially united in Santa Barbara, when the first-ever Vintners Golf Classic teed off at Sandpiper Golf Club in 2022. Hosted by the Santa Barbara Vintners Foundation, the annual event — which happened for the third time this past Monday, June 10, at the Ranch Course at Alisal — draws winemakers, winery owners, bankers, and other industry friends like myself to the links to raise money for Community Health Centers of the Central Coast.

CHC, as it’s better known, provides health care through 31 clinics across northern Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, clocking more than 450,000 visits each year. Given that many of those people served by the clinics work in the region’s vineyards, CHC is a natural partner for the Vintners Foundation. It is now the main beneficiary of both the golf tourney — which raised more than $20,000 for the organization this week — and the biannual Santa Barbara Wine Auction, which returns to the Ritz-Carlton Bacara this November.

The tournament was the brainchild of wine broker Daniel Berman, who owns Rincon Wine Group and is a member of the Vintners Foundation board. The cousin (once removed, if my generational charts are accurate) of the Santa Barbara Independent’s Editor-in-Chief Marianne Partridge, Daniel came to town from New York in 2010, ready to give California life a try.

I like to tell people that I helped him find work in the wine business. I didn’t line him up with a job or anything directly impactful like that, but I do recall having a conversation with him way back when about the various positions that exist in the wine world, from cellar jobs to all of the auxiliary jobs that exist around marketing, sales, publicity, and distribution.

Daniel eventually found work in wine sales before catching enough momentum and building enough connections to launch Rincon Wine Group, which now represents many of the best brands in Santa Barbara County. That was in May 2022, and he hosted the first-ever Vintners Golf Classic less than a month later.

I’ve golfed in the tourney each year, thanks to the Indy’s promotional support of the event. This week, my foursome was rounded out by Jerry Lee, co-owner of Empty Bowl Gourmet Noodle Bar; Mike Trupiano, owner of Industry Wine Merchant; and Matt Brady, the winemaker at SAMsARA Wine Co. Three of us had never played the private Ranch Course before — which is only open to members and Alisal Ranch guests — but Trupiano had, so he provided the intel we needed for some of the sneakier holes.

By the end, the tournament’s scramble format allowed us to tally a score of five-under-par, which we felt pretty solid about, as it was somewhere in the middle of the 21 total foursomes. But we were far off from the winners: the Presqu’ile Winery team, who also won last year. They were a whopping 16-under-par!

Along the way, there were breakfast burritos by El Tequilero Tacobar, smashburgers from Priedite BBQ, pizzas from Full of Life Flatbread, and ceviche from The Victor, plus pours from M. Special, Sanguis, SAMsARA, Stolpman, and sparkling from Fess Parker Winery’s mobile Bubble Shack. As awards were bestowed, dinner was served by the Alisal Ranch Grill, which I learned was actually open to the public on a regular basis. (I thought only the River Grill was open to all.)

What was best about the tournament was the flow of play. Unlike many other scramble formats, there were no delays at all and no waiting around, as we had plenty of space both in front and behind us. We even had time to play a few extra holes before heading in for dinner. Of course, that means there could have probably been a few more golfers out there, but the tournament is steadily growing each year. If you like golf, wine, great food, or good company, make sure to sign up for next year.

In the meantime, check out what’s happening for the Santa Barbara Wine Auction in November. It’s expanded the programming a bit, offering more opportunities to toast the region’s wine industry while also supporting CHC. See the full schedule here.

Remembering Dad on Father’s Day

My dad died in 2013 at the young age of 63, and I still think about and miss him every day.

When my editors at Wine Enthusiast put out a call for Father’s Day stories, I took my chance to finally write about how the first wine I ever made in 2012 was during what we later came to know as the last year of his life. He helped out one day, as did my son, so the finished wine — a peppery, gamy, savory, and still-delicious syrah from Ampelos Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills — declares that it was “Touched by Three Generations of Kettmanns.”

Check out my full story here. And Happy Father’s Day. I’ll hopefully get some time to sit on the couch.

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Tastings to Note

Since my travel schedule is thankfully a little lighter right now, I’ve been able to host and attend a few wine tastings in recent weeks.

• The team from Gainey Vineyard, including owner Dan Gainey, winemaker Jeff LeBard, and GM Stephen Janes, came to my backyard a couple weeks back to share their latest lineup of wines. This historic brand often gets overlooked in our what’s-new world, but LeBard is making the best wines of his career, stretching across multiple sub-appellations and price points. I enjoyed talking about their growing use of sauvignon gris in their sauv blancs, and was excited to hear that they feel their 2021 Patrick’s Vineyard Selection is their best cab-based bottling to date. Then we scarfed down piles of Sushi Teri.
• A more common visitor to my backyard is Fred Delivert, the French-born winemaker from Tolosa Winery in the Edna Valley. He brought over Nikka Ramen and a few bottles a couple of days after the Gainey crew, and we talked about the latest San Luis Obispo County wine industry gossip. He also gave some advice on where to stay this summer when my family drives from Barcelona to Bordeaux, so we booked a room in the seaside village of Port-Vendres.
• San Ysidro Ranch is constantly stacking their cellar with historic and expensive wines. Their latest acquisition is a 138-vintage collection of Château d’Yquem, considered the best dessert wine in the world. They hosted me and some other media for a dinner earlier this month, which was rather fantastic, as you might guess. Read all about it here.
• The next evening, I was invited by Greg Brewer of Brewer-Clifton to attend a very special tasting of chardonnays grown at Mt. Carmel, a critical vineyard in the history and terroir of the Sta. Rita Hills. I wrote this 2012 cover story about the failed dreams of building a monastery. I’ve done many vertical tastings from all around California, but this one — which also included more recent vintages from Mail Road Wines — was for the record books, wrapped in insight, emotion, and genuine appreciation for the land and the pioneers like Bryan Babcock, who was also in attendance. Read my report here.  

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From Our Table

Here are some stories you may have missed:

• Riley Burke heads to Isla Vista to learn how New York–style bagels are being made by Yetz’s.
• I got an update on the purple urchin project from The Cultured Abalone’s Doug Bush, whose project with Sea Stephanie Fish is getting national PBS treatment early next month. Read all about it here.
• Impressed by a series of nonvintage wines being submitted for review for my job at Wine Enthusiast, particularly the Annaté by John and Helen Falcone, I spoke to vintners across the state to produce this report.