Ken Brown Wines

Ken Brown Wines Welcome to Ken Brown Wines, a small family winery focusing on Pinot Noir from Sta. Rita Hills. Total annual production is only about 2,000 cases.

Our focus at Ken Brown Wines is on very small lots of Pinot Noir from the finest vineyards of Sta. The wines are produced at our winery in Buellton at the gateway to the Sta. Rita Hills appellation, and most lots consist of 250 cases or less. I work with growers, many of whom I’ve known for years, to hand select vineyard blocks for our program. Some of the remarkable vineyards we work with include

Sanford & Benedict, Radian, La Encantada, Rancho La Viña and John Sebastiano Vineyard. We also produce limited bottlings of Chardonnay and Syrah. My wife, Deborah, and I and our small staff enjoy the close relationships we have with our wines and our customers. Most of my career has been spent pursuing the elusive traits that make great Pinot Noir. From my early days at Zaca Mesa Winery to my 20-year tenure at Byron Vineyard to our small family operation at Ken Brown Wines, I have continued to experiment with clones, rootstocks, soils and winemaking techniques, exploring the tremendous potential for Pinot Noir in Santa Barbara County. My first experience with Pinot Noir in what is now known as the Sta. Rita Hills came in 1976 when I met Richard Sanford and Michael Benedict and tasted one of the first Pinot Noirs from the Sanford and Benedict Vineyard. Launching the Ken Brown label in 2003 reinvigorated my excitement about the vineyards and the wines that brought me to Santa Barbara County in the first place 30 years ago. Experience tells me that great achievements still lie ahead, and it is in that spirit that I continue the quest for the next echelon of quality in Pinot Noir.

Members check your email! We have a special event happening in Santa Barbara at the Stow House. We are honoring Ken’s 50...
06/06/2026

Members check your email! We have a special event happening in Santa Barbara at the Stow House. We are honoring Ken’s 50th harvest with some special wines and hors d’oeuvres from 11am-2pm. Please reach out for more information!

06/04/2026

Watching the fog burn off on the Sanford & Benedict vineyard. We are very excited for this years harvest to potentially make something special for the 50th Harvest!

05/20/2026

Checking on the vines for the 2026 vintage. Very impressive year so far!

04/16/2026

Getting out into the Radian Vineyard watching the fog roll away and then to see the vines start to flower 🌼 2026 is a very interesting vintage already!

Mother Nature has given the Sta. Rita Hills an auspiciously warm start to the growing season — and temporarily delayed a...
04/08/2026

Mother Nature has given the Sta. Rita Hills an auspiciously warm start to the growing season — and temporarily delayed a few wine club shipments.

We say, rather casually, that the vines are waking up, which comes short of capturing the amazing physiological processes which reanimate the grapevine.

As the soil temperature climbs, a choreography of plant hormones lifts the lock on dormancy and kickstarts sugar production in the roots. This generates enough osmotic pressure to draw water upward, priming the vascular system, and rehydrating buds which begin to weep sap from pruning cuts — nature’s announcement that spring has arrived.

As buds emerge like popcorn, they respond remarkably to environmental stimuli — light, gravity, even physical touch, each signal helping to orient the shoot. Meanwhile, a fresh suite of hormones carries precise instructions: grow here, not there, and — crucially — what to become. A leaf. A tendril. A flower cluster.

All of this botanical extravagance is paid for by genetic foresight. At the end of autumn, the vine quietly deposits vast reserves of starch into its trunk and roots, knowing it will need energy long before its new leaves become large enough to generate photosynthetic revenue of their own. The new vintage, in a very literal biochemical sense, is paid for by the last.

A great moment, then, to raise a glass to vineyards miraculously coming back to life and the beauty of spring.

We will be pouring at Wine and Fire on the road! Tickets are available for sale now!
03/20/2026

We will be pouring at Wine and Fire on the road! Tickets are available for sale now!

We’re having an industry party next month! April 2nd from 5-7pm. Excited to see you industry friends!!
03/12/2026

We’re having an industry party next month! April 2nd from 5-7pm. Excited to see you industry friends!!

Hey Santa Barbara friends! We’re hosting a wine tasting at The Good Land wine shop on Feb 24th from 5:30-7pm. Swing by a...
02/15/2026

Hey Santa Barbara friends! We’re hosting a wine tasting at The Good Land wine shop on Feb 24th from 5:30-7pm. Swing by and learn about our wines directly from the winemakers.

01/18/2026

Pruning season is here! It’s one of the busiest times of the year and very important for the vines as it sets the growing season up for success. We shall see bud break soon!

01/12/2026

A few highlights of our holiday party on Friday! Thank you for hosting us it was a spectacular evening!

Address

157 W Highway 246
Buellton, CA
93427

Opening Hours

Monday 11am - 4pm
Thursday 11am - 4pm
Friday 11am - 4pm
Saturday 11am - 4pm
Sunday 11am - 4pm

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