Wine Maker

Richard Longoria has always strived to make wines from the best vineyards in the central coast. Richard’s Label, Longoria Wines was established in 1982 by he and his wife Diana. In 1997, after 12 years of also making wines for Gainey Vineyards, Richard Longoria decided to devout his time solely to his Longoria Label. In that year he was the first winemaker to start a winemaking facility in the city of Lompoc, he also opened a tasting room in Los Olivos that year.

Their annual production is in the range of 3,500 cases per year, making Longoria a boutique producer of handcrafted Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, and Syrah. Longoria also makes a red blend called Blues Cuvee which is a Bordeaux and Rhone blend that has a blues enthused label. The Cuvee has been in production for almost 20 years and is described by Longoria to be rich and round with intense flavors.

The Longoria Pinot Noirs are usually rich and thick with great texture and flavors. The 2006 pinot from his Fe Ciega Vineyard has a rich dark cherry flavor with hints of coastal sage. The tannins are velvety smooth. Longoria also sources Pinot Noir fruit from vineyards such as Bien Nacido, Sanford, and Rancho Santa Rosa.

Longoria chooses to source Chardonnay only from Sta. Rita Hills appellation vineyards because he feels that the cool climate region is the best for Chardonnay. Using French oak for both the Sta. Rita Hills label and the Cuvee Diana, Longoria ages their Chardonnay’s for over a year before bottling to promote complexity and minerality.