Tucked away in the far eastern corner of Santa Barbara’s famed Santa Maria Bench is the Nielson Vineyard. This east-west running “transverse range” provides an unusually cool microclimate, as marine air from the Pacific Ocean, only 14 miles away, is funneled directly into the region. The vines are planted on soils that formed in alluvial material from marine sediments. The combination of these elements delivers a superb locale for the cultivation of Pinot Blanc.