Does Au Bon Climat have a tasting room?

Au Bon Climat is a winery in Santa Maria Valley, Santa Barbara. Check Wino Notion for current tasting room hours, fees, and reservation requirements.

What wines does Au Bon Climat make?

Au Bon Climat produces wines in Santa Maria Valley, Santa Barbara, California. Visit Wino Notion for the complete varietal list, tasting notes, and visitor information.

Do I need a reservation at Au Bon Climat?

Reservation policies vary by winery. Wino Notion lists whether Au Bon Climat accepts walk-in visitors or requires advance reservations for tasting appointments.

What are the tasting room hours at Au Bon Climat?

Au Bon Climat's tasting room hours are By appointment only. Hours can change seasonally, so confirm with the winery before visiting.

Is Au Bon Climat dog-friendly?

Yes - Au Bon Climat is dog-friendly. Call ahead to confirm current pet policies before you visit.

Is Au Bon Climat wheelchair accessible?

Yes - Au Bon Climat offers wheelchair accessible facilities.

How much do tastings cost at Au Bon Climat?

Tastings at Au Bon Climat generally fall in the $$ price range. Check with the winery for current tasting options.

Au Bon Climat | Santa Barbara

About Au Bon Climat

Au Bon Climat is one of the most important names in Santa Barbara County wine, a Burgundian-minded house built on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. It was founded in 1982 by the late Jim Clendenen, the larger-than-life Mind Behind the Wine, who championed the county's cool, foggy Santa Maria Valley long before the region was taken seriously. The name is French for a well-sited place, and the wines, elegant, age-worthy, and food-friendly, remain a benchmark decades on.

You can taste that history at the Au Bon Climat tasting room in the heart of walkable Los Olivos, a short stroll from the town's other tasting rooms and restaurants. Tastings are best booked ahead, and the lineup spans the winery's Pinots and Chardonnays along with its Italian-inspired and other bottlings.

Au Bon Climat’s tasting room holds the prominent corner of El Paseo in Santa Barbara’s Presidio Neighborhood, and it doubles as a living archive: widely regarded as the deepest library-wine collection in Santa Barbara County, spanning founder Jim Clendenen’s four decades of work across ABC, Clendenen Family Wines, and his many side projects. Clendenen died in 2021; drinking through the library here is a history lesson in Santa Barbara wine.

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What Wino Notion Loved

Visit pending, based on winery profile & reputation

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Au Bon ClimatAu Bon Climat is the most personally Burgundy-philosophy-intellectually-committed and historically Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir and Chardonnay founding-significance wine program in California.

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Jim Clendenen,Jim Clendenen, the self-styled 'Mind Behind the Wine' who studied Burgundy winemaking traditions in France before establishing Au Bon Climat in 1982 in the shared Bien Nacido Vineyard facility, was the most intellectually forceful and most personally Burgundy-conviction-driven advocate for Santa Barbara County's potential to produce Pinot Noir and Chardonnay of world-class quality at a time when the California wine establishment barely acknowledged Santa Barbara County as a serious wine region.

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The French nameThe French name, Au Bon Climat, meaning 'a well-sited place,' the most precise translation of the Burgundian 'bon climat' concept of an ideally situated vineyard site, declared Clendenen's founding intellectual conviction: Santa Barbara County's cool-maritime climate and diurnally-temperature-swinging growing environments represented the most ideally situated Pinot Noir and Chardonnay growing conditions available in California, and deserved the most Burgundy-philosophy-intellectually-rigorous winemaking attention available.

"Jim Clendenen's 1982 Santa Maria Valley 'well-sited' Burgundy-philosophy Pinot Noir and Chardonnay program, the late 'M"

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Featured Wines

Pinot Noir

La Bauge Au-Dessus Pinot Noir

Santa Maria Valley · Au Bon Climat Estate

Pinot Noir from Au Bon Climat (Santa Maria Valley, Au Bon Climat Estate).

Estate

★★★★☆

Pinot Noir

Isabelle Pinot Noir

Santa Maria Valley · Au Bon Climat Estate

Pinot Noir from Au Bon Climat (Santa Maria Valley, Au Bon Climat Estate).

Estate

★★★★☆

Chardonnay

Nuits-Blanches au Bouge Chardonnay

Santa Maria Valley · Au Bon Climat Estate

Chardonnay from Au Bon Climat (Santa Maria Valley, Au Bon Climat Estate).

Estate

★★★★☆

Tasting Experiences

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Mind Behind the Wine Legacy Appointment

Taste the wines at Au Bon Climat in the Santa Maria Valley. By appointment only, reservations required.

From $35

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★★★★★