Generally, when we think of a winery, the image that comes to mind is a tasting room that is elegantly furnished with views of endless vistas of grapevines. Or urban tasing rooms that are clubby and well-decorated. There are two wineries in Santa Barbara that break that mold: Jaffurs and Carr. These two are unmistakably operated in a factory-like setting. They are in a light industrial section of Santa Barbara; there are no vistas at all, grapes or otherwise; and one of these is minimally furnished, if at all.
The entrance to Jaffurs Wine Cellars.
Jaffurs Wine Cellars makes Rhône-style wines in a facility that was purpose-built for winemaking by Craig Jaffurs in 2001. It has a garage door opening, with an iron table just inside where they serve tastings. The trend towards seated tastings by appointment only has not yet reached Jaffurs. Visitors enter, wait for some employee to notice them and then are served a selection of Jaffurs’ rather extensive list of wines.
Just beyond the, er, tasting room, visitors will see the crush pad and beyond that fork lifts tending to the barrels of wine waiting to age and be bottled. Unsurprisingly, Jaffurs does not get many visitors and so the vibe when people do come is real pleasure to show off their wines. And we did find Jaffurs’ wines quite enjoyable. Jaffurs sources all of their grapes from vineyards from the Sants Rita Hills to as far north as Santa Maria County. Many of them have significant reputations, most notably the Bien Nacido in Santa Maria.
Jaffurs doesn’t make very much wine – only 5,000 cases annually – and so is not widely distributed. Although the specialty of the house is Rhône grapes, which we liked, we found that we most enjoyed their Pinot Noir. They don’t make a big deal of it, so you have to ask to try some
As for Carr Winery, we are being a bit unfair when we say that it is a factory, although wine is made and aged there. Their facility was originally a Quonset Hut in the same industrial area as Jaffurs, and was used to repair World War II aircraft. There is a terrace outside but it is often used by a mah-jongg club, so we found it better to taste inside. This is nicely furnished to look something like a trendy cocktail lounge. There are artworks scattered about as well. Visitors can easily forget that they are in a working winery in a factory district.
The Carr Winery tasting room.
Almost all of Carr’s wines are 100% single varietals. There’s a little secret there: Ryan Carr, the owner and winemaker, also has a vineyard management business. With the insight gained from that enterprise, he buys grapes – ostensibly the best ones – from his customers. Accordingly, Carr makes wine from a wide variety of grapes, including the usual (Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah) and some that are less likely to be found elsewhere (Sangiovese, Cabernet Franc). Winemaker Carr has a definite style; there is a clear consistency in all his wines, regardless of the grapes used.
So if anyone would ever get tired of beautiful scenery and surroundings, we recommend a trip to the East Side of Santa Barbara, where Jaffurs and Carr will show you wines with an industrial ambiance but countryside quality.