 |
|
|
|
|
| CWA Poll |
|
Food & Wine
|
|
Wine Events & News
|
|
Wine Shop
|
|
Wine Stuff
|
|
Advisor Favorite Videos
|
|
Wine Links
|
| More Stuff |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Riverbench Vineyards & Winery
6020 Foxen Canyon Road
Santa Maria, CA 93454
805.937.8340
info@riverbench.com
| Tasting: |
|
Open 10 to 4 pm daily
Tasting fee $10
|
Tours:
| |
Tours by Appointment
|
|
Price Range:
| |
$24 to $48 per bottle
|
|
Established:
| |
1973
|
|
Vineyards:
| |
300 acres
|
Production:
| |
3000 cases
|
|
VIP Tasting:
| |
Yes
|
|
Winery Dog:
| |
Roy
|
Riverbench Vineyards & Winery Description
A beautiful new tasting room is in a restored 1920’s craftsman style house on the historic Foxen Canyon Wine Trail. The beautiful outdoor patio area is ideal for a wine country picnic, and vineyard and winery tours are offered by appointment.
Riverbench Vineyard was established in 1973, when its first Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes were planted on the property. For years
|
Food & Wine - Wine not only serves as a fantastic way to unwind and relax, but it also plays a key role in creating and stimulating good memories.
This can be enhanced with the perfect food pairings; those that elevate the flavors and textures of both the food item and the wine. Singly, both components can be enjoyed easily, but together, the taster enjoys inspiring combinations. See Riverbed Recipes & food pairings
|
since then, some of the most renowned wineries in Santa Barbara County have purchased the fruit for their own wines. Over time Riverbench has become a prominent name for high quality Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in the Santa Maria Valley.
In 2004, a group of local families purchased the property. Wine drinkers themselves, the owners quickly became enamored with the wine industry and decided to start producing their own wine label using small quantities of their exceptional fruit.
New from Riverbench: "We have welcomed the New Year with a new winemaker, Clarissa Nagy. Having worked in the wine industry for the past 17 years, Nagy has become known for her elegant and sophisticated winemaking style, and has an appreciation for fruit that comes out of the Santa Maria Valley.
Nagy follows in the footsteps of Chuck Ortman, a pioneer in the wine industry who announced his retirement at the end of the 2011 vintage. For the past six vintages, Ortman crafted stunning Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs for Riverbench. The very pleasant and comfortable winery tasting room is located 10 minutes from Santa Maria and is open daily from 10 to 4 pm."
|
|
|
|
Riverbench Vineyards & Winery Features |
| Ambiance |
Types of Wine |
Amenities |
Kid Friendly
Off the Beaten Path
Family Run
Historic Features
Country Charm
Casual & Relaxed
Dog Friendly
|
Pinot Noir
Syrah
Estate Grown Wines
Chardonnay
|
Tours Available
Private Tasting
Food Available
Picnic Sites
Art Gallery
Gift Shop
|
|
|
Write Your Own Winery Review
|
|
| Staff Knowledge & Friendliness |
|
|
| Amenities, Comfort & Cleanliness |
|
| Value |
|
| Wine Quality |
|
| Overall Impressions |
|
 Nice place but a bit corporateDigitalEye, Santa Barbara Pros:The Pinot's shine here, very nice with several different clones and styles. Prices are typical for Pinot in the region, though you can do better value wise in the Ghetto. The restored farmhouse is wonderful and well done and the staff seemed knowledgeable and friendly. They also have a great outdoor area for picnics.
Cons: They seem to court limo's and busses, we visited on a Friday and two limos wee pulling out when we got there and three vans pulled is as we tasted, it can get hectic. Also, tastings waived only after a 3 bottle purchase:-(
| Staff Knowledge & Friendliness |
|
|
| Amenities, Comfort & Cleanliness |
|
| Value |
|
| Wine Quality |
|
| Overall Impressions |
|
Good People Good WineEagle12, Chicago Our third day of harvest weekend brings us to Riverbench. It's Sunday and the place is jammed, but when our party of six enters the tasting room, two of the servers split off from the front tasting bar and open a rear bar quickly and effortlessly. Our group and another group sthat enter after us are escorted to the rear tasting bar. Our server is friendly and knowledgeable and all we are tasting is the red wines by choice. There are snacks out in the tasting room and the wines are very well made. We leave with multiple bottles of the 06 Santa Maria Valley Pinot. Although this winery was crowded I believe the staff really shined. We were not rushed and they handled the crowds well.
| Staff Knowledge & Friendliness |
|
|
| Amenities, Comfort & Cleanliness |
|
| Value |
|
| Wine Quality |
|
| Overall Impressions |
|
 Great lush ChardHenry, We love this place, and the wine they make! The Chardonnay is really some of the best of SB county. Bright fruit, well balanced and reasonable cost. Pinot does well here also. Great people at the bar and very comfortable.
| Staff Knowledge & Friendliness |
|
|
| Amenities, Comfort & Cleanliness |
|
| Value |
|
| Wine Quality |
|
| Overall Impressions |
|
 Great find along Foxen RoadWino, We stopped by over the weekend and discovered a gem of a winery making my favorite Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The wines are a hit with a great winemaker using mature Santa Maria vineyards. We sat outside on the lawn area. They have croquet to play. We will be back.
| Staff Knowledge & Friendliness |
|
|
| Amenities, Comfort & Cleanliness |
|
| Value |
|
| Wine Quality |
|
| Overall Impressions |
|
 Don't pass this one up!Winequest, Monterey One of the newer tasting rooms in the Foxen Canyon Road area, it is easy to drive past this one on the way to the big names. The tasting room is actually quite historic and the wines very good. They are all estate and boast Chuck Ortman as the winemaker!
| Staff Knowledge & Friendliness |
|
|
| Amenities, Comfort & Cleanliness |
|
| Value |
|
| Wine Quality |
|
| Overall Impressions |
|
Chardonnayjoeguy3, Santa Rosa I was in the Santa Barbara region visiting some friends at the JC campus and on the Saturday I was there we decided to do some wine tasting. The River Bench Winery really stuck in my mind after the tasting because I really liked the taste of their Chardonnay. Rich, woody and full of fruit.
Review Disclaimer
The above reviews are the subjective opinion of Winery Advisor members and not of Winery Advisor LLC.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| CWA Members |
| Wine Country |
|
|
| Vacation Rentals |
|
|
|
| Sponsors |
|
|
|
|
|
|
