About Presqu'ile Winery
Presqu'île Winery is named for the French geographical concept of a presqu'île, almost an island, a peninsula surrounded by water on three sides. The Murphy family's Santa Maria Valley estate carries this name because the Santa Maria Valley itself is something like a presqu'île: a transverse valley opening directly to the Pacific Ocean, nearly encircled by the Santa Lucia and San Rafael mountain ranges, and filled with cool ocean air that makes it feel climatically isolated from the warm California interior. Presqu'ile's hilltop tasting room, with modern architecture blended into the landscape, offers sweeping views of the vineyards and Santa Maria Valley.
The estate, which shares its drive name with the winery, produces Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Syrah from Santa Maria Valley estate vineyards with the organic farming philosophy that the Murphy family's commitment to their land demands. The French naming reflects the estate's philosophical connection to Burgundy, the same varieties, the same cool-climate commitment, named in French for the geographic isolation that makes the Santa Maria Valley so distinctively cool.
