Los Olivos District AVA
| Wine region | |
| Type | American Viticultural Area |
|---|---|
| Year established | 2016 |
| Years of wine industry | 57 |
| Country | United States |
| Part of | California, Central Coast AVA, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley AVA |
| Other regions in California, Central Coast AVA, Santa Barbara County, Santa Ynez Valley AVA | Ballard Canyon AVA, Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara AVA, Sta. Rita Hills AVA |
| Growing season | 194 days |
| Climate region | Region Ia |
| Heat units | 1,563 GDD units |
| Precipitation (annual average) | above 16.5 in (419.1 mm) |
| Soil conditions | Gravelly fine sandy and clay loams derived from alluvium, including Orcutt sand and terrace deposits |
| Total area | 22,820 acres (36 sq mi) |
| Size of planted vineyards | 1,121 acres (454 ha) |
| No. of vineyards | 47 |
| Grapes produced | Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon |
| No. of wineries | 48 |
Los Olivos District is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Santa Barbara County, California.
It straddles the Santa Ynez Valley, formed by the Santa Ynez River, between the Purisima Hills above Solvang. The area encompasses the townships of Los Olivos, Ballard, Santa Ynez and Solvang. State Route 154, known locally as the San Marcos Pass Road or "Chumash Highway," bisects the region accessing many of the wineries and vineyards as it traverses toward its destination in Santa Barbara.
It was established as the nation's 232nd, the state's 137th and the county's sixth appellation on January 21, 2016 by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB), Treasury after reviewing the petition submitted by C. Frederic Brander, owner and winemaker of the Brander Vineyard, on behalf of local vintners and growers, proposing a viticultural area in Santa Barbara County named "Los Olivos District."
The district shares its western boundary with the eastern border of the Ballard Canyon and its eastern boundary flanks the western perimeter of Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara while not overlapping either appellation. It is the fourth sub-appellation designated within the Santa Ynez Valley viticultural area while also located within the vast, multi-county Central Coast viticultural area.
Los Olivos District stretches over 22,820 acres (36 sq mi) where, at the outset, approximately twelve bonded wineries and forty-seven commercially-producing vineyards cultivate 1,120 acres (453 ha) making it the largest concentration of the valley's heritage vineyards. The grapes are principally Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Rhône varietals take prominence, although the AVA also includes Spanish and Italian varietals. The USDA plant hardiness zone range is 9a to 10a.