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LIOCO sources fruit from some of California’s most acclaimed cool-climate regions, including the Sonoma Coast, Mendocino County, and the Santa Cruz Mountains. Our wines highlight the unique soils and coastal influence of these vineyards, producing Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Carignan that reflect the true character of each site.

Chardonnay

2023 Sonoma County

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Chardonnay

2023 Sonoma County

$25

AROMA: lemon blossom, orchard fruits, crushed stone

FLAVOR: mineral, pomelo, white tea

FOOD PAIRINGS: fish & chips, fresh oysters, shrimp Scampi

VINIFICATION: The fruit was hand-harvested in early October, destemmed, and foot tread before being pressed. The majority of the juice was fermented in stainless steel tanks, the balance in neutral oak puncheons where they remained (no battonage) for 6 mos before racking. A gentle cross-flow filtration was performed prior to bottling.

SITE: This wine is composed of several vineyards, all in the cooler, western regions of Sonoma County. While each site is distinct, they share a common commitment to sustainable horticulture and strident farming. Our intention for this wine is to express the unique character of this region. Warm days and cool nights, tempered by consistent oceanic fog, yield nuanced Chardonnays balanced by brisk acidity.

NOTES: You've heard about 2023, right? The return to a classic California vintage. Wet spring. Good size crop. October harvest dates. Low blood pressure. ;) The 2023 wines are super fresh, fruit dense, and because of the extended hang times—very aromatic. For this year's installment, we went back to the original SoCo "recipe." All the fruit came from ranches in the Russian River Valley / Sonoma Coast corridor. All of it was hand picked in early to mid-October (in itself, a news story). The fruit was crushed—in this case, foot tread, back at the winery, and pressed out into stainless steel tanks. For the first time in many years, we elected not to blend down any barrel-fermented lots into SoCo—it's 100% tank fermented and aged, and it shows the Chablis-like tension and minerality we find only in the coldest growing years. This wine is mouthwatering and buttressed with a low 3.4 pH. Opened bottles should hold up for several days in the bar fridge…if they last that long.

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Chardonnay

2023 Estero

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Chardonnay

2023 Estero

$48

AROMA: yellow apple, pie crust, quartz

FLAVOR: nectarine, white miso, ginger tea

FOOD PAIRINGS: French omelette, scallop roll, cauliflower gratin

VINIFICATION: 9 tons hand-harvested between Aug 31` and Sept 14. Berries were destemmed and gently crushed before going to press. All lots fermented on wild yeasts and aged seperately for 10 months in 600L neutral oak puncheons, before being racked off the lees to steel for an additional 6 months. A slow malolactic fermentation completed. Cross-flow filtered prior to bottling.

SITE: This wine is made from a selection of our favorite Russian River vineyards. All sites are situated 10-15 miles from the coast, with gravelly loam + sandstone soils planted to Clone 4, Dijon 95 + 96, and Curtis clone . This growing region is distinguished by its complex relationship with the cold Pacific Ocean, omnipresent fog, ancient redwoods, + the Russian River itself.

NOTES: The 2022 Estero is the best version of this wine we have ever bottled. And I hope we never bottle another one like it. You know those difficult years in Burgundy when all the 1er Cru fruit get's declassified into the Bourgogne Blanc, and the Bourgogne Blanc punches way above its weight class? During the extreme 2022 harvest, a heat dome was bearing down on the state. And we were encouraged to declassify most of our Vineyard Designate fruit into Estero. Cost of Goods be damned. So our little AVA bottling of Chardonnay was the recipient of not only our best, stalwart holdings in the RRV from Burnside Road and Piner, but also barrels of prized Tidal Break and Casa Seca. The resulting wine just has a couple of extra gears in the gearbox. It is opulent to be sure, but it's still on brand—which is to say still fresh, mineral, and complicated in the best way possible. We love this wine and drink bottles of it at home

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Chardonnay

2024 Skycrest Vineyard

Fall Release 2026

Chardonnay

2024 Skycrest Vineyard

$70

AROMA: loquat, pomelo, geranium

FLAVOR: lemon curd, sesame, rosemary

FOOD PAIRINGS: fried clams, saffron risotto, rockfish sandwich

VINIFICATION: 2.3 tons hand-harvested on Oct 5th. Chardonnay clones 4 + 72 (Wente) fermented separately on native yeasts in neutral barriques & 600L puncheons. The wine completed a spontaneous malolactic fermentation, and was aged in barrel for 10 mos Racked to steel for an additional 6 mos of anaerobic aging. Bottled unfined/unfiltered.

SITE: This elusive vineyard is pitched along a series of ridge lines at 2500' in the bucolic Anderson Valley, 20mi from the coast. Its tough mountainous soils range from grey shale to decomposed sandstone with veins of quartz crystal. The clonal material differs by block—this wine is a blend of clone 72, planted in 2011, and clone 4, planted in 2006. This eastern edge of the valley is subject to extreme temperature swings, late flowering, and naturally low yields.

NOTES: From the western end of this craggy ridge, we bottled 10-vintages of Demuth Vineyard Chardonnay...until those old vines were torn out. From the eastern end of it, we discovered another kingdom of Chardonnay by the name of Skycrest. At 2500’, it's the Anderson Valley's highest elevation vineyard. Pushing out of fractured grey shale and decomposed sandstone with veins of quartz crystal, it’s constantly in the wind, making the berries small and the yields low. With some airing this 2022 Skycrest starts to hum—loquat, pomelo, geranium, lemon curd, sesame, and rosemary. Enjoy with some fried clams, or a rockfish sandwich.

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Chardonnay

2024 Tidal Break Vineyard

Spring Release 2026

Chardonnay

2024 Tidal Break Vineyard

$70

AROMA: sea spray, green pear, orange blossom

FLAVOR: creamsicle, parmigiano rind, crushed seashell

FOOD PAIRINGS: miso cod, chicken pot pie, stuffed squash blossoms

VINIFICATION: 4.03 tons hand harvested on Sep10th. Chardonnay clones 4 + 76 fermented on native yeasts in neutral 600L puncheons. The wine completed a spontaneous malolactic fermentation, and was aged in barrel for 10 mos. Racked to steel for an additional 6 mos of anaerobic aging. Bottled unfined/unfiltered.

SITE: A deep coastal site in the lee of a forbidden Buddhist monastery. Sits at 700-800ft between the first and second ridge, three miles from the Pacific on an active seismic fault. Soil is strewn with luminescent blue volcanic rock and sandstone. Steep and angular with multiple aspects —all of them lashed by fog and ocean-born wind. Clones 76 and 4 planted in 1999 and farmed Certified Sustainable.

NOTES: Tidal Break sits in the lee of a forbidden Buddhist monastery on the far Sonoma Coast. There are several energy vortexes nearby running along what the locals call "...the tail of the serpent" (aka the spine of the San Andreas Fault). This site has presence. Our rows of Clone 4 are planted on luminescent blue volcanic rock and sandstone. Given the proximity to a cold sea, this wine is generally as-chiseled and mineral a chardonnay as they come. From the extreme 2022 vintage, we experienced a heat dome bearing down on the state. The fruit came in looking pretty impacted by the sun, and we elected to triage it mercilessly. Most of it was declassified into our Estero Chardonnay. The scarce clusters that did make the grade for our Tidal Break designate were painstaking hand-selected. This wine is exotic in a pleasing way, with an aromatic opulence we've never seen from this site, but the characteristic acidic structure—still very present despite the warm harvest temps—keeps things fresh and mouthwatering.

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Chardonnay

2024 Casa Seca Vineyard

Fall Release 2026

Chardonnay

2024 Casa Seca Vineyard

$70

AROMA: bruised apple, bayleaf, honeysuckle

FLAVOR: brioche, orange marmalade, cardamom

FOOD PAIRINGS: acio e Pepe, Croque Monsieur, Shrimp & Grits

VINIFICATION: 3.8 tons hand-harvested on Sep 5th. Fruit was crushed, pressed, and fermented on native yeasts in neutral oak barriques + puncheons. The wine completed a spontaneous malolactic fermentation, and aged in barrel for 10 mos Racked to steel for an additional 6 mos of anaerobic aging. Bottled unfined/unfiltered.

SITE: A former apple packing ranch situated in the heart of the Russian River Valley, about 13 mi from the coast at just under 200 ft elevation. Casa Seca refers to the turn-of-the-century apple kiln (or dry house) still standing on the property. Planted in 1988 with 3 unique Wente clones on AXR-1 rootstock; our block features the rare Curtis clone which ripens slowly, produces smaller clusters, and holds its acid. Soil is a sandy/clay/loam mixture known as Goldridge. Dry-farmed by the ever-thoughtful Eva Dehlinger.

NOTES: We’ll never forget the day we got a hand-written postcard from Eva Dehlinger. She inquired if we’d be interested in a new project she and her family were managing. The Vineyard was sandwiched between Kistler and Dehlinger on Vine Hill Rd, and was planted in the 1980s on rare 8X8' spacing on AXR-1 rootstock. It featured an old Wente clone called "Curtiss Clone" which was known for maintaining higher acidity. They were dry-farming it. Yep, interested! We named our block Casa Seca, or "dry house" after the 1880's brick apple kiln still looming over the vines. From the extreme 2022 vintage, with a heat dome bearing down on the state during harvest, we were encouraged to triage this fruit mercilessly and declassify most of it into our Estero Chardonnay. The fruit that made the Casa Seca designate was hand-selected on a sorting table. What little wine we bottled is opulent in a pleasing way. Still balanced with ripe acidity—there is an August orchard fruit quality to the wine that makes our mouths water. A sneaky cinnamon note too that reminds us of Meursault.

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Chardonnay

2023 Skycrest Vineyard Chardonnay, Anderson Valley

James Suckling - 96 pts.

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Chardonnay

2023 Skycrest Vineyard Chardonnay, Anderson Valley

$70.00

AROMA: lemon drops, juniper, pulverized rock

FLAVOR: pomelo, nectarine pit, salted almond

FOOD PAIRINGS: clams casino, pork schnitzel, chicken pot pie

VINIFICATION: 3.4 tons hand-harvested on Oct 7th & 9th: Chardonnay clones 4 + 72 (Wente) cofermented on native yeasts in neutral barriques & 600L puncheons. The wine completed a spontaneous malolactic fermentation, and was aged in barrel for 10-months. Racked to steel for an additional 6-months of anaerobic aging. Bottled unfined/unfiltered.

SITE: This elusive vineyard is pitched along a series of ridge lines at 2500' in the bucolic Anderson Valley, 20 miles from the coast. Its tough mountainous soils range from grey shale to decomposed sandstone with veins of quartz crystal. The clonal material differs by block—this wine is a blend of clone 72, planted in 2011, and clone 4, planted in 2006. This eastern edge of the valley is subject to extreme temperature swings, late flowering, and naturally low yields.

NOTES: We've seen some pretty extreme vintages up here at Skycrest. Vintages 2020 and 2021 were record-drought years with very small if concentrated crops. Vintage 2022 was another drought year punctuated by a nasty heat dome event during harvest. We were surprised by how much we liked all three of those vintages. This mountain fruit is just built different. Literally and figuratively has thicker skins. The ocean born wind always cools it down up at this elevation (2500'), so acid retention is not really an issue. But all three of those vintages were put into perspective once we tasted the 2023. Vintage 2023 was a large crop with perfect growing conditions throughout the summer...and perhaps more importantly, into the Fall. We found ourselves picking ultra-mature grapes at low sugars and with high acidity. The term that comes up for us again and again while tasting these magic ‘23s is "ripe acidity." The kind of acidity you achieve only in cold years with longer hang times. It goes without saying this is our favorite-ever bottling of Skycrest, and it may just be the white wine of the vintage for us. Pure white fruited mineral energy in the glass.

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Pinot Noir

2023 Mendocino County

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Pinot Noir

2023 Mendocino County

$28

AROMA: Bing cherry, rose petal, iron

FLAVOR: black raspberry, dried tobacco, lilac

FOOD PAIRINGS: chicken liver mousse, wild mushroom tartine, venison burger

VINIFICATION: Fruit was hand-harvested in early-Sept. and vigorously sorted. All lots were fermented in open top tanks with 10% whole clusters. Regular cap management was performed over a two-week primary fermentation. Aged for 8-months in a mix of neutral French oak and stainless steel barrels.

SITE: A selection of premier Mendocino County vineyards from Potter Valley, sweeping west through the Yorkville Highlands, Anderson Valley, and out to Comptche on the far coastal Mendocino coast. These sites were selected with an emphasis on dry-farming, older vines, and sustainable viticulture. Pinot Noir clones 115, 667, 777, 2A, Pommard clone, and Martini play a part in the blend. The goal was to capture the unique character of this region defined by the proximate Pacific Ocean, coastal redwoods, and river valleys.

NOTES: Vintage 2022 gave us another extreme drought year with a warm, dry winter producing early budbreak. The vines responded to the stress by putting out a tiny fruit set. Vintners who love small yields and the concentrated wines that follow, rejoiced. Growers who get paid on tonnage, groaned. And so it went. The growing conditions were perfect until the Labor Day Weekend "Heat Dome" which brought Phoenix-like temps to all of California. We started picking as early as we could to get the fruit out of the sun. The growers that had some water to combat the heat, faired best. Those who didn't ended up dropping a lot of sun burned fruit onto the ground. More triage was done in the winery to ensure that only healthy clusters were used. Once again, we were surprised by the pure flavors draining out of the fermenters a few weeks later. Seems these California vines are inoculated against extreme weather events--especially the more mature vineyards in the Potter Valley. The 2022 Mendo Pinot is a wide aperture view of the county-- with fruit from four disparate AVAs: Potter Valley, Yorkville Highlands, Anderson Valley, and Comptche. It shows the typicity of this diverse region which reads like a love letter to Mendocino County stained with brambly coastal berries, pine resin, and blue florals.

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Pinot Noir

2023 Lejano

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Pinot Noir

2023 Lejano

$53

AROMA: kirsch, Earl Grey, cranberry

FLAVOR: cola berry, cocoa nibs, Morello cherry

FOOD PAIRINGS: turkey burgers, roasted steelhead, 5-spice chicken wings

VINIFICATION: 1.2 T of Swan Clone + 1.3 T of Pommard hand harvested & sorted on Sept 30th & Oct 4th. Fermented on wild yeasts in small open-top tanks with 25% whole clusters. A 4-day cold soak preceded a gentle infusion during a 14-day fermentation. Aged for 10 mos in 16% new French oak barrels. Bottled unfined/unfiltered.

SITE: Lejano is Spanish for "distant" or "far away," which aptly characterizes the remote Sonoma Coast vineyards we source from. These fringy sites are situated 5-14 miles from the Pacific Ocean on a series of ridgelines and/or valleys at 400-700ft—placing them at the edge of the fog line. Clones Pommard & Swan planted in the late 1990s on diverse soils of sandy clay loam strewn with fossilized seashells. The extreme microclimate and meagre soils require a steady temperament and a willingness to work with low yields.

NOTES: With three years of extreme drought severely diminishing grape yields, we had to find an additional source for Lejano. We found two—a pair of wild, organically farmed sites west of Forestville ringed by redwood trees. These two sites and our stalwart Sealift Vineyard on the far Sonoma Coast are defined by their relationship with the nearby Pacific Ocean. They all cling to a series of hills at the fog line. The San Andreas Fault runs through this zone, lifting up complex soils full of mixed rock and fossilized scallop shells. The small clusters and hot weather at harvest in 2022 inspired us to employ delicate winemaking protocols to hedge against any excessive color or weight. We did predominantly pump-overs and bottled only the free run juice. The result? A still dark, brooding Pinot Noir with medium to high grip, that needs some air to reveal its core of characteristic sour red fruit.

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Pinot Noir

2024 Comptche

Fall Release 2026

Pinot Noir

2024 Comptche

$50

AROMA: sour plum, red rose, baking spice

FLAVOR: wild blackberry, red & black cherries, hibiscus

FOOD PAIRINGS: tuna poke, 5-spice duck breast, roasted gamehens

VINIFICATION: 8 tons of pristine Pinot Noir hand harvested and table sorted on Oct 4-15. All clones fermented on wild yeasts with 25% whole clusters in a mix of 2 and 5 ton open-top fermenters. A 4-day cold soak preceded one daily punch down and pump-over during a 15-day fermentation. Aged for 10-mos in 28% new French oak. Bottled unfined/unfiltered.

SITE: This wine is composed of two neighboring vineyards in the newly minted Comptche AVA on the Mendocino coast. Sitting in a prime spot 14 miles from the ocean in the Albion Wind Gap, this foggy, forested zone sees 40° diurnal shifts. Pinot clones 667, 777, 115, & Pommard planted in 2000 on Franciscan soils. Chimera refers to a rare albino redwood tree towering over the property.

NOTES: We've been waiting to share this wine with the world—the first rendering from the newly minted Comptche AVA on the far Mendocino coast. After years of petitioning, growers John Peterson and Saul Ramirez were awarded appellation status for their vineyards Peterson and Costa—two of just three vineyards that qualify for the AVA (the third is Oppenlander). The AVA is defined by its low lying elevation (300-400 feet) and proximity to the nearby Pacific Ocean (14 miles) with it's reliable fog and cool air. The proximate Albion Wind Gap plays an important role channeling the ocean influence into the coastal valleys. Densely forested, extremely remote, and alive with exotic wildlife such as black bears, bald eagles and steelhead—this may be the most 'wilderness wine' LIOCO has bottled since our days at old Chalone. The wines remind us of the best deep-end sites in the nearby Anderson Valley like Kiser, Wendling, and Bear Wallow—but for half the price. New frontiers often bring value. Grower John Peterson, whose family were homesteaders on this land in the 1800s, tells the story of an extremely rare albino redwood tree that looms over the property—a pale white tree that botanists from around the world come to study. The locals call that tree Chimera.

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Pinot Noir

2024 Sealift Vineyard

Fall Release 2026

Pinot Noir

2024 Sealift Vineyard

$70

AROMA: Black cherry, rosemary flower, orange Pekoe tea

FLAVOR: Italian plum, violet pastille, star anise

FOOD PAIRINGS: wild salmon burgers, BBQ pork fried rice, soy glazed pork chops

VINIFICATION: 4.07 tons hand-harvested and sorted on September 9th. Drought concentrated berries (Clone 115) fermented on wild yeasts in small open-top tanks with 33% whole clusters. A 4-day cold soak preceded regular cap management (mostly pumpovers) during a 14-day fermentation. Aged undisturbed, for 10 mos. in 33% new French oak. Bottled without fining or filtration.

SITE: This spectacular "true coast" vineyard with unobstructed views of the Paciﬁc was a former apple farm. In a prime spot at 700ft. between the ﬁrst and second ridge, 5mi. from the sea. Clones 115 and 777 planted in 1999 on well-draining sandy-loam soils full of fossilized scallop shells. This area is heavily forested, reliably cool and foggy, and ideally suited for high energy Pinot Noir.

NOTES: Tucked in between the ﬁrst and second ridge, this neighborhood has established itself as the premier locale for high intensity Pinot Noir. The Sealift Vineyard was formerly an apple ranch and the old brick kiln still stands tall on the site. There are a number of aspects to this ranch but the dominant force is exposure to the Paciﬁc ocean. To the south you can spot the northern most blocks of the Hirsch vineyard and to the north, down in the valley below, the iconic redwoods towering over the Peay Vineyard. The soils are sandy with fractured veins of shale resulting from all the seismic drama that is still unfolding in this young geologic zone. Just 5-miles from the Paciﬁc at mid-level elevations most of the ranch is right at or just above the fogline, meaning the fruit gets slowly ripened under cool sunlight. Ideal for our kind of Pinot Noir.

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Pinot Noir

2024 Edmeades Vineyard

Fall Release 2026

Pinot Noir

2024 Edmeades Vineyard

$70

AROMA: fresh cranberry, red currant, pipe tobacco

FLAVOR: berry bramble, crushed clove, red plum

FOOD PAIRINGS: osso bucco, herb-rubbed lamb, shepherd's pie

VINIFICATION: 4.06 tons hand harvested on Sept 12th. Clones Swan, 115, and 777 co-fermented in open-top tanks on native yeasts. A 4-day cold soak preceded one daily punch down and pump-over during a 15-day fermentation. Fermented on 25% whole clusters and aged for 17-mos in 33% new French oak. Bottled unﬁned/unﬁltered.

SITE: This historic vineyard sits on the south side of route 128, 11 miles from the coast at elevations of 250-500 ft. Soils comprised of mainly decomposed sandstone result in a struggle for nutrients and water, keeping the resulting fruit load of the vineyard in natural balance. The ﬁrst blocks were planted in 1963; ours in 2000 to clones 115, 777, and Swan. Edmeades is quintessential Anderson Valley with densely forested rolling hills, frequent fog, and the Navarro River running through it.

NOTES: The 2022 Edmeades is our 4th bottling from this historic vineyard—Anderson Valley’s oldest. Situated in the deep end of the Anderson Valley on the south side of Hwy-128, the vineyard faces SxSW and tumbles down into the Navarro River. Redwoods abound. A reliable breeze blows off the ocean, funnels through the vineyard, and down valley towards Boonville. We selected the three choice blocks—including some magic Swan Clone we ﬁrst tasted in Copain's cellar back in 2019. From the droughty 2022 vintage, we used 33% whole clusters and rendered a wine with fresh cranberry, red currant, pipe tobacco, berry bramble, crushed clove, & red plum. When we’re feeling fancy, we pair it with osso bucco.

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Pinot Noir

2024 Saveria Vineyard

Spring Release 2026

Pinot Noir

2024 Saveria Vineyard

$68

AROMA: lilac, black plum, orange pekoe tea

FLAVOR: Maraschino cherry, red licorice, 5-spice

FOOD PAIRINGS: tempura mushrooms, duck conﬁt, carnitas

VINIFICATION: 5.15 tons hand-harvested and sorted on September 13th. Fermented on 33% whole clusters using wild yeasts. A 5-day cold soak preceded a 14-day fermentation. Cap management entailed one pump-over and one punch down daily. Pressed at dryness and aged 10-mos. in 30% new French oak. Bottled unﬁned and unﬁltered.

SITE: A hidden vineyard near the town of Aptos, 600ft above sea level and a mere 4 miles from the Paciﬁc. Pinot Noir clones 115 and 777 planted in the late 1990s. Soil is a deep colluvial fan of sand and calcareous marine deposits with excellent drainage. Exchange of fog/sun ensures proper vine respiration and very even ripening. Maritime climate necessitates extended hang times. Farmed by Prudy Foxx, aka "The Vine Whisperer."

NOTES: It’s not difﬁcult to make good wine in California. It’s very difﬁcult to make great wine here. Saveria Vineyard, in the Santa Cruz Mountains, is ﬁring on all cylinders. It's likely a combination of maturing vines (25+ years) and the vineyard work of Prudy Foxx and her crew. But there is something else. We believe that site reigns supreme. Even the most skilled winemakers / farmers can take an average site—especially Pinot Noir—only so far. The greatest wines in the world come from the greatest vineyard sites. This is absolute. Saveria is just such a site in our view. We now have 11 vintages to reﬂect back on and one thing is certain: the site shines through every year. There's a tonal radiance to the wine—a briny, coniferous quality bespoke of the coastal redwoods enclosing the vineyard. We gave the 2022 six additional months in barrel to reﬁne the tannins characteristic of the vintage. As such you'll have to be patient with this wine. Should be good to go by Turkey Day (and until Turkey Day 2034 and beyond).

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Pinot Noir

2023 Edmeades Vineyard

James Suckling - 96 points

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Pinot Noir

2023 Edmeades Vineyard

$70.00

AROMA: pink peppercorn, violet liqueur, black raspberry

FLAVOR: brandy soaked cherry, starburst, rose hips

FOOD PAIRINGS: Duck confit, oil poached tuna, Cuban sandwich

VINIFICATION: 2 T of Swan clone harvested on 10/7 and 4 tons of 115 and 777 harvested on 10/9. All three clones were fermented on 25% whole clusters in open-top tanks with native yeasts. A 4-day cold soak preceded one daily punch down and pump-over during a 15-day fermentation. Aged for 10-mos in 28% new French oak. Bottled unfined/unfiltered.

SITE: This historic vineyard sits on the south side of route 128, 11 miles from the coast at elevations of 250-500 ft. Soils comprised of mainly decomposed sandstone result in a struggle for nutrients and water, keeping the resulting fruit load of the vineyard in natural balance. The first blocks were planted in 1963; ours in 2000 to clones 115, 777, and Swan. Edmeades is quintessential Anderson Valley with densely forested rolling hills, frequent fog, and the Navarro River running through it.

NOTES: Edmeades is ideally situated in the deep end of the Anderson Valley on the south side of Hwy-128. The vineyard faces SxSW and tumbles down a sandstone slope into the Navarro River. Redwoods abound. A reliable breeze blows off the ocean surface and gets funneled through the vineyard and down valley towards Boonville. When you get a few local winemakers talking privately about the best terroirs in the Anderson Valley, the former Londer property in Philo often gets mentioned. The new owners bought the historic Edmeades property next door too, adjoined the two sites, and elected to carry forward the family name credited with planting the first-ever vineyard in the Anderson Valley AVA (c)1963. EDMEADES. We were graciously offered our pick of the litter and selected three blocks on the old Londer side which includes some heritage Swan clone. The droughty 2021 vintage gave us tiny clusters packed with flavor intensity and showcases the signatures of the Anderson Valley's prestigious deep end—freshly picked purple berries and red florals.

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LIOCO Bottle Gruner Veltiliner kick-on Ranch 2024

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2024 Kick On Ranch Vineyard Gruner Veltliner, Santa Barbara County

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2024 Kick On Ranch Vineyard Gruner Veltliner, Santa Barbara County

$46.00

AROMA: finger lime, tangerine oil, honeysuckle

FLAVOR: green apple, fresh oregano, wet stone

FOOD PAIRINGS: potato leek chowder, bratwurst & kraut, tempura'd vegetables

VINIFICATION: 1.77 T of pristine Grüner Veltliner was hand-picked on Sept 17th. The fruit was crushed and sent directly-to-press. The juice was intentionally oxidized and cold fermented on wild yeasts in stainless steel barrels + one neutral puncheon. Aged sur-lees for 5-months. Bottled without fining or filtration.

SITE: Kick-on Ranch is 14-miles from the Pacific Ocean in the East/West running Los Alamos Valley. Cold ocean breezes ensure slow and even ripening. Soils are grey sandy loam, low in nutrients, and produce lower yielding vines. Gruner material is Davis Clone 1 and was grafted in 2012 onto some Pinot Gris vines (planted in 2000 on 101-14 rootstock). Our section of the vineyard is farmed organically by Graham Tatomer.

NOTES: Kick On Ranch! This place has really challenged us. First off, it's far from our base of operations in Sonoma County. About a 6-hour drive from the winery. Second, there hasn't been a full time dedicated crew out there so getting timely reports and samples can be difficult. We have been relying on our friend Graham Tatomer's good will to peel off a few bins when possible. He was the visionary who selected this cold, windy site just north of Vanderberg Air Force Base and we always respect the chain of command! A couple of challenging vintages saw us skipping vintages outright (once due to extremely low yields, and again due to an early rain / botrytis bloom). In vintage 2024, all the stars aligned and we brought home some remarkably clean fruit with ideal chemistry. We liked the wine so much in fact that we asked Graham to faciliate a meeting with the property owners and a path to our own grape contract at Kick On. In the spring 2025, the grafts went in. LIOCO now has 1-acre of Gruner that is ours. The future (and this wine) are bright!

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2025 Rose of Carignan

Spring Release 2026

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2025 Rose of Carignan

$28

AROMA: white guava, chrysanthemum, pennyroyal

FLAVOR: rose water, white raspberry, peach pit

FOOD PAIRINGS: crispy ﬁsh tacos, moules frites, BLT

VINIFICATION: 10.3 tons harvested on 9/20 and 10/10. The fruit was hand-harvested and the berries whole-cluster pressed to a stainless steel tank. The wine was fermented cool and ﬁnished dry. It underwent a long, slow malolactic fermentation which balanced the naturally high acidity. A gentle ﬁltration was done prior to bottling.

SITE: From a mid-century planting of dry-farmed, head-trained Carignan in the township of Talmage. A severe diurnal shift supports gradual and often late ripening. The soil is red clay strewn with ﬁst sized rocks. The combination of vine age, extended growing season, and tougher soil conspire to produce a rosé with great freshness and complexity.

NOTES: You’ve heard about 2023, right? The return to a classic California vintage. Wet spring. Good size crop. Perfect summer weather. October harvest dates. Low blood pressure. ;) The 2023 wines are super fresh, fruit dense, and because of the longer hang times and fully ripened skins—they are wildly aromatic. Like last year, this Rosè of Carignan comes exclusively from Rory & Vince Bartolomei’s vineyard in Talmage, Mendocino. You have turn your clock back 100 years when you visit Talmage, a special place where locals still ride into town on horseback. These two brothers look like they walked off the set of a Quentin Tarantino movie—such distinctive characters, so tied to a speciﬁc time and place. Their ranch was planted more than 80 years ago and the soldiering old vines have have been dry-farmed there for generations. Some healthy looking clusters came in on the morning of October 9th—a month later than in 2022—with textbook chemistry. To manage color uptake we elected not to crush the fruit before pressing it. This direct-to-press method reduced our juice yield but gave us the pale salmon colored wine we were seeking.

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2023 Indica Red Table Wine

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2023 Indica Red Table Wine

$25

AROMA: violet, blackberry, rosemary

FLAVOR: Italian plum, dried ﬁg, iron

FOOD PAIRINGS: stuffed Cubanelles, pizza funghi, shepherd's pie

VINIFICATION: All fruit was hand-harvested in early Oct. Fermented in a mix of open-top tanks (both whole cluster + destemmed) and closed tanks (true carbonic). Once pressed, all lots aged separately in neutral oak barrels and stainless steel for 10-mos. Bottled unﬁned/unﬁltered.

SITE: Composed from three historic Mendocino County ranches—two on the valley ﬂoor, one at high elevation—all with heritage dry-farmed, head-trained Carignan + Valdiguie vines. Soils range from red clay (valley) to hard scrabble rocky (mountain). These rapidly vanishing California grapes harken back to the Golden State's earliest winemaking efforts.

NOTES: The wildﬁres in 2020 necessitated a shift in fruit sourcing, and the extreme drought / massive winter frost of 2021 left us with too little fruit to bottle an Indica. The 2022 was a return to form as we tapped all three original fruit sources, ramped the carbonic maceration, and bottled a wine that everyone agreed was ﬂat out delicious. It sold out before we could get the 2023 to bottle. Fear not! The 2023 is now bottled and it, like so many of our 2023s shows the once-in-ten-years fruit quality that this vintage will soon be known for. It is a blend of three historic Mendocino ranches—some dry-farmed, 1940s Carignan from Bartolomei (Talmage) and 1960s McCutchen (Pine Mountain), plus a healthy dollop of rare 1940s Valdiguie from Lolonis (Redwood Valley). We rocked 50% whole cluster, with two tanks going through carbonic maceration. Further, we pressed the juice off the skins early and "went to barrel sweet" to highlight the crunchy freshness of this wine. The result is chillable, medium weight red—with some grip—that reminds of us Cote de Brouilly but is unabashedly Californian.

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2025 Lolonis Vineyard Valdiguie

Summer Release 2026

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2025 Lolonis Vineyard Valdiguie

$44

AROMA: graphite, baked blueberries, bay laurel

FLAVOR: raspberry liqueur, hibiscus, sarsparilla

FOOD PAIRINGS: barbacoa tacos, peking duck, mixed grill

VINIFICATION: 4.1 tons were meticulously ﬁeld-sorted and hand-picked on October 12. Half of the fruit was destemmed and crushed under foot, the other 50% fermented whole-cluster. Spontaneous fermentation followed, with regular pumpovers for 18 days. Lightly pressed into neutral oak barrels for a quiet nine month slumber, and went to bottle unﬁned/unﬁltered.

SITE: Some of the oldest known Vitis vinifera plantings in California live on this ranch. Our block of Valdiguie, selected for improved vigor, is considered "young vine" at 30+ years old. The vines are head-trained and dry-farmed organically on red clay soils strewn with ﬁst-sized rocks. At 900ft elevation, an extreme diurnal shift necessitates longer hang times (and a steady temperament). The vineyard is overseeen by Athan and Denise Poulos, cousins to the Lolonis family.

NOTES: It took us several vintages to ﬁgure out the mysterious grape that is Valdiguie. With no varietal Valdiguie benchmarks from which to draw inspiration, we were left to ﬁgure it out via trial and error. In 2018 (our sixth humble attempt!) we ﬁnally cracked the code and made a wine that elicited an "ah-ha!" moment in the cellar. Not like Gamay, not like Syrah, but kind of like a mashup of the two, we offer up the very ﬁne 2019 installment which saw 50% fermented on whole clusters with lots of carbonic energy, the other half destemmed and treated like Pinot Noir. The result is a ﬂoral, black-fruited, medium weight red that likes a slight chill and pairs with just about anything. Incredibly rare, you'll be the ﬁrst one on your block to uncork a bottle. Val-dee-gay!

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LIOCO Bottle Cabernet Sauvignon Fondo 2021

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2022 Fondo Cabernet Sauvignon

Fall Release 2026

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2022 Fondo Cabernet Sauvignon

$70

AROMA: wild blackberry, preserved cherries, gravel

FLAVOR: Santa Rosa plum, black currant, bay leaf

FOOD PAIRINGS: braised short ribs, Korean BBQ, bistro burgers

VINIFICATION: 1.8 tons of Clone 8 + 2.4 tons of Clone 337 were hand picked on Sep 3rd. Fruit was hand sorted and destemmed. Both lots underwent 4-day cold soak before fermentation on native yeasts. Daily cap management during 21-day fermentation. Wine was aged in new & used French oak barrels for 18 mos. Bottled unﬁned/unﬁltered.

SITE: Fondo means 'lowest part, or bottom' in Spanish and refers to the aspect seen in the Sonoma Valley. Two parcels compose this wine. Clone 337 from the historic Bedrock Vineyard (38%), planted 2004 with 'old-school' California sprawl on alluvial soils of loam, clay, & volcanic ash. Clone 8 is dry-farmed on the proximate Monte Rosso Vineyard (62%), planted 2004 on red, iron-rich clay soils. This blend from two legendary growers showcases the reﬁned Cabernet this AVA is known for.

NOTES: The opportunity to access some legitimate Grand Cru quality Cabernet Sauvignon grapes at Monte Rosso Vineyard is what pushed us, at long last, into the world of red Bordeaux varieties. That coupled with an open door at the historic Bedrock Vineyard on the valley ﬂoor below–where our friends Morgan and Chris had just wrapped the ﬁnal year on a 30 year grape contract with Mondavi (long a source for that legendary estate's Reserve Cabernet). The stars had ﬁnally aligned for LIOCO to attempt a CS inspired by those from another era—the 1970's California Cabs with low ABV, little to no new oak, and plenty of savory Bordeaux-like complexity. Our ﬁrst ever CS, which we named Fondo meaning "from the lowest part of the valley," was a barrel selection we blended from both vineyards. The micro, drought concentrated 2021 vintage gave us a wine of great force and power, that once opened gulps down air, drinks well on Day 2, and should provide for decades of cellaring potential.

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