Tolosa Winery
Edna Valley AVA
Edna Valley is renowned for world-class, cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
One of Edna Valley's premier family wineries, Tolosa Winery is nestled amongst the northwest-southwest running volcanic hills of San Luis Obispo County, a frontier for growing cool-climate varietals - especially Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. It is vintner Robin Baggett's mission to discover Edna Valley's best pockets and to create exceptional wines that are the purest expression of this distinctive appellation.
Much as the soil and the climate come together, the passions of vintner Robin Baggett have converged in this special valley. Having graduated from Cal Poly in 1973, Robin knew the area well, and came back to it in the 1980's with cowboy dreams of owning a cattle ranch like his grandfather. After purchasing a historic ranch, he began running cattle, but the cold Pacific wind and limestone soils made him realize he was meant for a different journey - one that involved crafting world-class, cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Being in a region with a grape growing history that stretches back to the 18th century, planting wine grapes was a natural choice for Robin. He teamed up with Bob Schiebelhut and began planting in 1988, adding several other historic family ranches in the valley over time. Together with Jim Efird (who is now retired), the trio founded Tolosa Winery in 1998. Robin's passion for winemaking was born and his wine journey was just beginning.
They named the winery 'Tolosa' after the Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, where Franciscans planted the first wine grapes in San Luis Obispo County. Original documents show the quality of the wine was very highly valued and it was often traded to other missions. Robin honors this history with his premier San Luis Obispo winery.
At Tolosa Winery, terroir is of the utmost importance. It is Robin's mission to create exceptional Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays that are the purest expressions of Edna Valley. By uniting the right sites, clones, rootstocks and farming practices, he crafts a number of distinctive wines that beautifully capture the essence of this region.
Tolosa sources much of its fruit from its estate vineyard, Edna Ranch, which consists of six different sections, with 60 soil types and a myriad of micro-climates to create a remarkable range of terroirs. Edna Ranch is also sustainably farmed and Sustainability in Practice (SIP) Certified, showing Tolosa's undeniable commitment to the environment.
Winemaker for Tolosa Winery is Frederic Delivert, who hails from Toulouse, France and grew up in the countryside. Coincidentally, Tolosa Winery is named after the Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, the mission dedicated to Saint Louis, Bishop of Toulouse. Perhaps it was destiny that Frederic found a home at Tolosa Winery.
Frederic fell in love with agriculture from a young age and earned his Master's Degree in Agricultural Sciences from the Ecole Superieure d'Agriculture de Purpan (ESAP) in Toulouse. He discovered California while getting his degree, during an internship in Alexander Valley in Sonoma County, and he promptly returned after graduating. His career path has allowed him to make wines for a number of distinguished wineries in Napa Valley, Sonoma Coast, Red Hills, Lake County, and now, Edna Valley. Frederic enjoys exploring Tolosa's estate vineyard, Edna Ranch, and crafting balanced, complex, and nuanced Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays that express its unique terroir.
We hope our Pinot Noir Wine Club members enjoy this award-winning Tolosa Pinot Noir, a beautiful expression of California's Edna Valley.
