COVER THE PURSUIT RANCH LAND LAND MAGAZINE // LEGENDARY // LIVING LIVING BY CHRIS HAMMELL, AFM 34
At the base of the San Rafael Mountains in the heart of the Santa Maria Valley Wine Country and on the northernmost edge of Santa Barbara County, California lies the famous Bien Nacido Vineyards. Planted by the Miller family in 1969, Bien Nacido has become one of America’s most well-known sources of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah thanks to the Miller family’s unwavering commitment to provide world-class fruit to some of the West Coast’s most celebrated wineries. I started managing the Bien Nacido Vineyards fifteen years ago. Since then I have worked with more than 40 wineries throughout the season in a joint effort to continue to produce the finest examples of wines this great valley is capable of. Managing one of America’s most well-known vineyards has been hugely rewarding but farming, of course, is not without its challenges and Coastal California wine grapes are no exception. From irregular weather events to regulatory restrictions, and the ever-present threat of diseases and pests, growing world-class grapes has never been a walk in the park. While these issues have been always been a part of the grape grower’s dialogue, growers in California face two new looming challenges: labor and water. LAND MAGAZINE // LEGENDARY LIVING COVER RANCH LABOR Traditionally Bien Nacido has enjoyed a stable, highlyskilled, year-round worker base but in recent years we have seen increased scarcity, especially in the late spring and early summer. Skilled agricultural talent is in strong demand not only by vineyards, but increasingly in our flourishing local berry industry. Steady strawberry production, longestablished in this temperate, coastal valley, has been joined by increased raspberry, blueberry and, to a lesser extent, blackberry acreage. Raspberries and Blueberries especially thrive in our cool weather and light alluvial and marine soils, and expert growers from the Oxnard and Watsonville areas have established a strong foothold here in Santa Maria. Increased competition for a slowly shrinking labor pool has seen peak wages increase by as much as 25 percent in the last four years. Unofficial reports on early H2A (temporary agricultural workers program) efforts have been less than encouraging, but still hold interest for some as a possible solution to this multi-faceted challenge. Although we have taken strides to increase efficiency through carefully chosen mechanization practices, labor continues to play a major role in our operation. WATER Compared to many crops, grapes are not a major user of water. However, to achieve sufficient yield and quality, supplemental irrigation is generally thought to be necessary in most years (although there is increased discussion about the practicality of “dry-farming” coastal vineyards, a common practice in most of Europe. The biggest difference between the two areas is that California summers are typically dry and European vineyards rely on this in-season moisture to ripen their crops). We supplement our annual average 12” of rainfall (8” this year and 4” in 2014) with between 4”-6” during the growing season, depending on soil texture, rootstock and timing/quantity of rain. Growers in Santa Maria area have traditionally relied on abundant aquifer-based well water. However, static and pumping water levels have dropped for us over the last two years by between 5-15% on our deeper wells, with production quantity seeing a similar decrease. Shallower wells that rely primarily on seasonal precipitation have been affected even more in both quantity and quality. Although all would love to simply see more rain, pre-plant soil amendments, irrigation conservation based on sap flow sensors, as well as introducing more drought-tolerant varieties and/or rootstock are some of the topics being discussed as potential responses to this pressing dilemma. Challenges aside, California’s coastal wine grape industry is in a solid place. The demand for premium Central Coast wines and the grapes that produce them is strong. More long-term efforts are being made to establish our area as a significant player on the world stage and, thanks to the efforts of established veterans and ambitious upstarts, wine quality is unquestionably at an all-time high. LANDSOFAMERICAMAGAZINES.COM 35
- Page 1 and 2: SUMMER 2015
- Page 3 and 4: www.antiquebarns.net See our invent
- Page 5 and 6: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX PG 36 DEPAR
- Page 7 and 8: Real Estate Keller Williams Realty
- Page 9 and 10: Every Month 3.6 million people sear
- Page 11 and 12: A World of Opportunities. At CoStar
- Page 13 and 14: COVER RANCH At Charlotte Valley Far
- Page 15 and 16: The breathtaking retreat nestled in
- Page 18 and 19: His Dream Job Todd Renfrew, Califor
- Page 20 and 21: THE DEALMAKERS LAND MAGAZINE // LEG
- Page 22 and 23: FACTS & FIGURES LAND MAGAZINE // LE
- Page 24 and 25: The REALTORS® Land Institute recog
- Page 26 and 27: 24
- Page 28 and 29: THE PASSION LAND MAGAZINE // LEGEND
- Page 30 and 31: Warren Wright, Sr., son of Calumet
- Page 32 and 33: COVER FACTS & RANCH FIGURES LAND LA
- Page 34 and 35: THE LIFESTYLE LAND MAGAZINE // LEGE
- Page 38 and 39: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 40 and 41: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 42 and 43: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 44 and 45: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 46 and 47: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 48 and 49: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 50 and 51: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 52 and 53: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 54 and 55: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 56 and 57: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 58 and 59: NATIONAL PROPERTY INDEX LAND MAGAZI
- Page 60 and 61: THE BAILEY RANCH GUNNISON, COLORADO
- Page 62 and 63: THE WEST IS OUR HERITAGE. MAKE IT Y
- Page 64 and 65: THE WEST IS OUR HERITAGE. MAKE IT Y
- Page 66 and 67: THE WEST IS OUR HERITAGE. MAKE IT Y
- Page 68 and 69: MARKETING OUR MEMBERS’ EXCLUSIVE
- Page 70 and 71: MARKETING OUR MEMBERS’ EXCLUSIVE
- Page 72 and 73: Shilling Yosemite Ranch 3,680± ACR
- Page 74 and 75: Brandy Hill Ranch 300± ACRES | EL
- Page 76 and 77: JUST ABOVE THE CONFLUENCE 34± ACRE
- Page 78 and 79: Big Land Nashville 88± ACRES | ILL
- Page 80 and 81: Mill Creek Ranch Forked Lightning R
- Page 82 and 83: B rookeson Properties 2,100± ACRES
- Page 84 and 85: BLACK HILLS OF SOUTH DAKOTA LAND AU
- Page 86 and 87:
Kaua’i Island Hoea Oceanfront 416
- Page 88 and 89:
Gem County Ranch 55± ACRES | GEM C
- Page 90 and 91:
REAL PROPERTIES 13764 S. US HWY 83
- Page 92 and 93:
Muddy Creek Ranch 4,227± ACRES | P
- Page 94 and 95:
www.BrownRealtyCo.com Red River Far
- Page 96 and 97:
Eagle Point Ranch 24± ACRES | ACKS
- Page 98 and 99:
Hunters Paradise Ranch Durango Moun
- Page 100 and 101:
ROB PFISTER INFO@PFISTERLANDCO.COM
- Page 102 and 103:
www.LegacyPropertiesWestSIR.com Ran
- Page 104 and 105:
Tom Brady | TBrady@Acres4SaleUSA.co
- Page 106 and 107:
BROKER OWNER LICENSED IN COLORADO A
- Page 108 and 109:
Joesph C. Burns | Bryan W. Walchle
- Page 110 and 111:
WWW.CYPRESSVALLEYRANCHFORSALE.COM B
- Page 112 and 113:
Pettyjohn Ranch 16,000± ACRES | TE
- Page 114 and 115:
VIEW ALL PROPERTIES: LANDSOFAMERICA
- Page 116 and 117:
Tyler Wright, Broker findaranch@gma
- Page 118 and 119:
WWW.OAKWOODREALTYGROUP.COM GLENCOE
- Page 120 and 121:
John Pearson, Broker 58 East Bentee
- Page 122 and 123:
www.ClarkLandBrokers.com Marton Ran
- Page 124 and 125:
NEW MOSSY OAK PROPERTIES OFFICE OPE
- Page 126 and 127:
Craig Huitfeldt craigsantafe@gmail.
- Page 128 and 129:
Zack McCoy Licensed in Virginia RE/
- Page 130 and 131:
www.AdamsAuctions.com Adam Jokisch,
- Page 132:
It’s more than just dirt — it