Littorai Winery
Updated: Jan 12
Located off the beaten path in Sebastopol, which is west Sonoma County.
A family-owned winery, founded by Ted Lemon and wife, Heidi, in 1993.
A hidden, simple, no pretension, highly disciplined operation with no signage.
Littorai’s gravity flow/hay-bale walled wine making facility opened in 2009.
Tastings are appointment only for groups of 6 or fewer.
Call way in advance!
Tasting Fee: $40 pp, not waived with purchase.
Appointments: Mon.-Sat. 45 min.
Gate opens with a designated code.
Tastings are either inside, alongside the wine making equipment.
Or outside on a sunny day, sitting on the patio near the grape vines and amazing garden.
Ted Lemon is committed to a fully sustainable winery and biodynamic farming.
Wines:
Anderson Valley Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, Chardonnay
Wine Sold:
Through mailing list and to select restaurants. No retail sales
Wine Prices: average $60
Ted Lemon at 25 years of age (1982) was the first American winemaker in Burgundy, France.
He returned to the US and continued to make Pinot Noir, in keeping with French Pinot Noirs.
Lemon’s complex devotion to feed and maintain the soil is key to his wine success.
He saw first hand in France the vines were 100 years old and the soil depleted.
Lemon says, “Biodynamic farming forces you to think long term”.
Biodynamics 101/tour:
Learn the intricacies of compost layering, beekeeping, garden diversity.
Note: Shoes may get muddy during the fall/winter vineyard tour.
Littorai is Latin for “Coasts”.
Lemon scoured the Sonoma and Mendocino coast region for premium vineyard sites.
He found sites with the greatest potential for amazing Pinot Noir/Chardonnay wines.
Critters you’ll see at Littorai:
Chickens, cows, sheep.
Wine production is 4000 cases annually.
Future plans include more cows and a cave to enhance the wine and your experience.
After leaving Littorai I had such an immense appreciation for the care, attention, and dedication that goes into quality winemaking.
