Los Olivos District
Sub-AVA · Santa Barbara County · District 8
27 CFR 9.253 · established 2016-01-21
Heat class III · 1991-2020 normals
Climate normals in three numbers
, Apr 1 – Oct 31
14 GridMET cells cover this region
season rain, Apr 1 – Oct 31
25 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
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 Los Olivos District
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What's in the ground
6.1
pH, 1:1 water
16.4cm
, whole profile
90cm
to
Well drained
, dominant condition
Distribution across 72 · mean ◆, median │, p10–p90 bar
Dominant
- 23.6%
- 20.7%
- 18.8%
- 18.1%
- 4.6%
72 map units · soil described over 90.9% of the region’s area · 7.8% is water, rock outcrop or other non-soil · 83% of the described area has a restrictive layer within the profile.
Sand, silt and clay, against every other appellation
Sandy loam
59% sand · 24% silt · 16% clay
Sandier than 87% of California appellations and clayier than 12%. Each grey point is one appellation’s topsoil; appellations nest, so this is a distribution of places rather than of land.
Plus 17% 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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Producers
A curated roster, not a census — only source-verified entries appear, 2772 published across the atlas.
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 (504 words)
(c) Boundary. The Los Olivos District viticultural area is located in Santa Barbara County, California. The boundary of the Los Olivos District viticultural area is as described below: (1) The beginning point is on the Los Olivos map at the intersection of Foxen Canyon Road with California State Road 154 (known locally as San Marcos Pass Road/Chumash Highway), 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 structure 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 point marked by the “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 south-southeasterly in a straight line approximately 0.6 mile to the intersection of Chalk Hill Road with an unnamed creek descending from Adobe Canyon, northwest of the unnamed road known locally as Fredensborg Canyon Road, T6N/R31W; then (8) Proceed southwesterly (downstream) along the creek approximately 1 mile to the creek's intersection with the Santa Ynez River, T6N/R31W; then (9) Proceed easterly (upstream) along the Santa Ynez River approximately 8 miles, crossing onto the Santa Ynez map, to the river's intersection with State Highway 154, T6N/R30W; then (10) Proceed north-northwest in a straight line approximately 1.2 miles to the marked 924-foot elevation point, T6R/R30W; then (11) Proceed north-northwest in a straight line 1.2 miles to the “Y” in an unimproved road 0.1 mile south of the 800-foot contour line, west of Happy Canyon Road, T6R/R30W; then (12) Proceed north-northwest in a straight line for 0.5 mile, crossing onto the Los Olivos map, and continuing approximately 2.3 miles to the third intersection of the line with the 1,000-foot contour line northwest of BM 812, T7N/R30W; then (13) Proceed westerly along the meandering 1,000-foot contour line to the contour line's intersection with an unnamed, unimproved road, an unnamed light-duty road, and the northern boundary line of section 23, T7N/R31W; then (14) Proceed northerly, then westerly, along the unnamed, unimproved road to Figueroa Mountain Road, near the marked 895-foot elevation, T7N/R31W; then (15) Proceed north on Figueroa Mountain Road approximately 400 feet to the 920-foot contour line, T7N/R31W; then (16) Proceed initially south, then northwesterly along the meandering 920-foot contour line, crossing onto the Zaca Creek map, to Foxen Canyon Road, T7N/R31W; then (17) Proceed southeasterly on Foxen Canyon Road approximately 1.7 miles, crossing onto the Los Olivos map, returning to the beginning point.