Winegrowing at Samsara starts with selecting special sections within each vineyard - typically 3/4 acre. Chad and Mary are looking for soils, altitudes, slopes and elevations that will bring the best out of the vine. With each Samsara vineyard section, it is critical that they "have a voice" in how the vines are managed.

As there is a direct, inverse relationship between the quantity of grapes a vine produces and their quality, all of the Samsara sections are purchased by the acre - Samsara pays the same price no matter how little fruit is produced.

The aim is to have "healthy vines in extreme conditions" which begins with soil management to ensure the vine has the nutrients and minerals it needs so that, combined with the correct irrigation in springtime, there is vigorous, healthy growth of the vine, producing full canopies.

Once the vine flowers in mid-summer, irrigation is stopped, forcing the vine to stop growing and focus on ripening its fruit. Leaves are removed by hand from the fruit zone, exposing the grapes and their stems to sunlight and moving air through the canopy. Grape clusters are thinned by hand, further increasing the intensity of the remaining fruit.

Melville Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills - Pinot Noir and Syrah

In the mid-1990's, Chad jettisoned his career in the stock market and moved into a double-wide trailer to plant a vineyard in California's Central Coast, driving 6 hours each way to take 'ampelography' courses on the weekends. The Pinot and Syrah Chad and Mary vinify from this site, which they know like the back of their hands, are and always will be close to their heart.

The Samsara sections are just behind the winery; the vineyard is planted at an 8' x 3' spacing or 1,815 vines/acre. The Samsara Syrah section, 8 rows of vines in the only remaining Syrah block on the estate, has deep, light-textured sandy loam soil. The vines, planted 1998, are 100% Estrella clone on two different low-vigor rootstocks and produce 2.5 to 2.75lbs per vine.

The 6-row Samsara Pinot Noir section is nearby, although the soil is a darker textured clay-based soil with slightly more vigor and more minerals, producing more complex fruit. There are 4 rows of Pinot Noir clone 667 and 2 of the Pommard clone, producing 2.25 to 2.5lbs per vine.

Turner Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills - Pinot Noir

The Turner Vineyard is next door to Melville and the Samsara Pinot Noir section is adjacent to Carrie's Block and has the same darker texture, clay-based soil with calcareous chunks. It has a high elevation and is very exposed to the Sta. Rita Hills wind. The 4 rows of vines are clones 777 and Pommard and produce 2.25 to 2.5lbs per vine.

Las Hermanas Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills - Pinot Noir

Las Hermanas is to the west of the Melville estate; the Samsara Pinot Noir section comprises 4 rows of clone 115 towards the top of the vineyard, where it is well-drained and aggressively sloped.

Ampelos Vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills - Pinot Noir and Syrah

One of Central Coast's great sites is the tiny Ampelos Vineyard - biodynamically owned and farmed by a Danish cowboy and his wife,. The vineyard is at the east end of the appellation. The Ampelos name comes from the Greek word for vine. This property is near and dear to Chad's heart as, 9 years ago, he informally helped his friend Peter Work with ideas and clones to plant. As a thanks, they let Samsara source some exquisite fruit from a few favorite rows.

The Samsara sections have a darker textured, clay-based soil, a gradual slope to the west and have vines planted at 8' x 4' spacing or 1,120 vines per acre. The Samsara Pinot Noir section has 7 rows of clones 115 and Pommard that produce 3.25 pounds per vine. The Samsara Syrah section features 4 rows of Estrella clone and produces 2.6 to 2.8 pounds per vine.

Verna's Vineyard, Santa Barbara County - Syrah

Owned by Melville, and farmed by Chad's brother, Brent, Verna's Vineyard is on Cat Canyon, to the north-east of Sta. Rita Hills. The vineyard was planted in 1999 on 10' x 5' spacing. There are two Samsara Syrah sections - 2 rows of Estrella clone in heavy clay soil on the valley floor and 4 rows of clones 470 and 174 on the sandy, well-drained hillside.

Alder Springs Vineyard, Mendocino County - Syrah

Alder Springs has long been one of California's most critically acclaimed Syrah sites and - more importantly - one that wine fans just love! Alder Springs captures cool breezes off the Pacific Ocean, which is less than 10 miles away and which makes the site ideal for cool climate Syrah fanatics, which Chad and Mary are. It isn't easy to get an allocation of fruit from this site, but Stuart Bewley and Chad met a few years back and hit it off.

Alder Springs Vineyard is in far northern Mendocino County. The soils in the hillside vineyard are largely decomposing sandstone with a gravelly loam texture. The Samsara sections are at three sites within the vineyard.