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California Wine Atlas

Ballard Canyon

Sub-AVA · Santa Barbara County · District 8

27 CFR 9.230 · established 2013-10-02

Heat class III · 1991-2020 normals

Climate normals in three numbers

3,311°F-days

, Apr 1 – Oct 31

6 GridMET cells cover this region

III

69mm

season rain, Apr 1 – Oct 31

24 mm of it in the , Sep 1 – Oct 31

Warm and cool vintages since 1980

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Rain across the season, and at harvest

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The boundary

This boundaryClick to open

Hovering a shaded region names it; a click opens its page.

Measured vineyard area

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Drought categories, year by year

Santa Barbara County — not Ballard Canyon

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What's in the ground

6.3

pH, 1:1 water

13.3cm

, whole profile

102cm

to

Well drained

, dominant condition

Distribution across 51 · mean ◆, median │, p10–p90 bar

6.3
2.6%
17.9%
available water
13.3cm
depth to restriction
102cm

Dominant

  • 27.2%
  • 18.7%
  • 18.3%
  • 10.3%
  • 6.6%

51 map units · soil described over 92.3% of the region’s area · 7.1% is water, rock outcrop or other non-soil · 88% of the described area has a restrictive layer within the profile.

Sand, silt and clay, against every other appellation

CLAYSANDSILT

Sandy loam

61% sand · 21% silt · 18% clay

Sandier than 90% of California appellations and clayier than 21%. Each grey point is one appellation’s topsoil; appellations nest, so this is a distribution of places rather than of land.

Plus 12% rock fragments by volume, which the triangle does not describe — the three fractions are of the fine-earth material only.

Elevation, slope and aspect

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Bearing acreage by variety

Santa Barbara County · District 8

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Price per ton

Santa Barbara County · District 8

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The appellation in federal law

The boundary, in the government’s own words (497 words)

(c) Boundary. The Ballard Canyon viticultural area is located in Santa Barbara County, California. The boundary of the Ballard Canyon viticultural area is as described below: (1) The beginning point is on the Los Olivos map at the intersection of State Route 154 and Foxen Canyon Road, section 23, T7N/R31W. (2) From the beginning point, proceed southwesterly in a straight line approximately 0.3 mile, crossing onto the Zaca Creek map, to the intersection of Ballard Canyon Road and an unnamed, unimproved road known locally as Los Olivos Meadows Drive, T7N/R31W; then (3) Proceed south-southeasterly in a straight line approximately 1 mile, crossing onto the Los Olivos map, to a marked, unnamed large structure located within a circular-shaped 920-foot contour line in the southwest corner of section 26, T7N/R31W; then (4) Proceed south-southwesterly in a straight line approximately 1.25 miles, crossing onto the Zaca Creek map, to the marked “Ball” 801-foot elevation control point, T6N/R31W; then (5) Proceed south-southwesterly in a straight line approximately 1.45 miles, crossing onto the Solvang map, to a marked, unnamed 775-foot peak, T6N/R31W; then (6) Proceed south-southwesterly in a straight line approximately 0.55 mile to a marked communication tower located within the 760-foot contour line, T6N/R31W; then (7) Proceed west-southwesterly in a straight line approximately 0.25 mile to the intersection of Chalk Hill Road and an unnamed, light-duty road known locally as Mesa Vista Lane, T6N/R31W; then (8) Proceed west-southwesterly in a straight line approximately 0.6 mile to the southern-most terminus of a marked, unnamed stream known locally as Ballard Creek, T6N/R31W; then (9) Proceed northerly (upstream) along Ballard Creek approximately 0.35 mile to the creek's intersection with the 400-foot contour line, T6N/R31W; then (10) Proceed southerly and then northwesterly along the 400-foot contour line approximately 1.5 miles, to the contour line's first intersection with Ballard Canyon Road, T6N/R31W; then (11) Proceed north-northeasterly in a straight line approximately 1.7 miles, crossing onto the Zaca Creek map, to the western-most intersection of the 800-foot contour line and the T6N/T7N boundary line (approximately 0.9 mile east of U.S Highway 101); then (12) Proceed west along the T6N/T7N boundary line approximately 0.4 mile to the boundary line's third intersection with the 600-foot contour line (approximately 0.5 mile east of U.S. Highway 101); then (13) Proceed northerly along the meandering 600-foot elevation contour line to the contour line's intersection with Zaca Creek, T7N/R31W; then (14) Proceed northeasterly in a straight line for approximately 1.2 miles to the western-most intersection of the southern boundary of the Corral de Quati Land Grant and the 1,000-foot contour line (approximately 0.4 mile east of U.S. Highway 101), T7N/R31W; then (15) Proceed easterly along the meandering 1,000-foot contour line approximately 1.5 miles to the contour line's third intersection with the southern boundary of the Corral de Quati Land Grant (approximately 0.1 mile west of State Route 154), section 22, T7N/R31W; then (16) Proceed southeasterly in a straight line approximately 0.8 mile, crossing onto the Los Olivos map, returning to the beginning point.