American Viticultural Areas
The AVAs of Santa Barbara County
An American Viticultural Area is a grape-growing region defined in federal regulations. Santa Barbara County has seven. Four of them sit inside the Santa Ynez Valley.
AVA boundaries: UC Davis Library AVA Project.
Santa Maria Valley
Established 1981
33 listings
Alisos Canyon
Established 2020
9 listings
Santa Ynez Valley
Established 1983
64 listings
Sta. Rita Hills
Established 2001
Inside Santa Ynez Valley
84 listings
Ballard Canyon
Established 2013
Inside Santa Ynez Valley
17 listings
Los Olivos District
Established 2016
Inside Santa Ynez Valley
80 listings
Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara
Established 2009
Inside Santa Ynez Valley
23 listings
Outside the seven AVAs
71 places that take visitors sit outside all seven, most of them tasting rooms in town. An AVA is where the grapes grow; a tasting room can pour that wine anywhere.