The Lompoc Wine Ghetto: who pours, which days, and when to book

The Lompoc Wine Ghetto is a cluster of small wineries, tasting rooms and production spaces in an industrial park complex inside Lompoc's city limits, off Highway 1 and 12th Street. That is how Explore Lompoc, the city's visitor guide, describes it, and its page names 20 producers as part of it.

Our Lompoc Wine Ghetto page holds 17 of them, each matched to a listing we have checked. Explore Lompoc also notes that most of the Ghetto is open Friday to Sunday, with some rooms open Thursday and Monday too. Our listings agree: this is a weekend neighbourhood first.

This guide is built from the facts we keep on each listing: address, posted hours and whether a room takes walk-ins or asks you to book. Hours change, so check the listing (and the tasting room) on the day.

Who is in it

Around East Chestnut Court and East Chestnut Avenue:

• Flying Goat Cellars, 1520 E. Chestnut Ct., Suite A: Thursday to Monday from 11am, closing at about 4pm. Walk-ins welcome.
• Camins 2 Dreams, 1520 E. Chestnut Ct., Units C and D: Friday 1pm–6pm, Saturday 12pm–6pm, Sunday 12pm–5pm, other days by appointment. A reservation is recommended.
• Montemar Winery, 1501 E. Chestnut Ct.: Friday 12pm–7pm, Saturday 11am–6pm, Sunday 11am–5pm.
• Sandhi, 1503 E. Chestnut Ave.: Monday and Tuesday 10am–4:30pm, Wednesday to Saturday 10am–6pm. Closed Sunday.
• Domaine de la Côte, 1503 E. Chestnut Ave.: by appointment only.
• Longoria Wines, 415 E. Chestnut Ave.: Thursday 12pm–5pm, Friday 12pm–7pm, Saturday 12pm–6pm, Sunday and Monday 12pm–5pm. Closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Walk-ins welcome.

On North 9th Street:

• Ampelos Cellars, 312 N. 9th St., Suite A: Thursday to Sunday 11am–5pm, Monday 11am–4pm. Closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• Sweetzer Cellars, 308 N. 9th St., Unit C: Friday to Sunday 11am–5pm, other days by appointment with 48 hours' notice. Walk-ins welcome.
• Loring Wine Company, 308 N. 9th St., Unit B: Friday and Saturday 11am–4:30pm. Walk-ins welcome.

On North 12th Street:

• Zotovich Vineyards, 300 N. 12th St., Suite 1D: Wednesday to Saturday 12pm–5pm, Sunday to Tuesday by appointment only. Walk-ins welcome on open days.
• Chanin Wine Co., 300 N. 12th St.: a reservation is required. We do not hold set hours for it.

At 321 North D Street, three producers share an address:

• Civilization Wine Company: Friday to Sunday 11am–5pm, by appointment.
• Turiya Wines: by appointment.
• Lompoc Wine Factory: we do not yet hold its hours or booking policy, and its listing says so rather than guessing.

Nearby:

• Temperance Cellars, 1637 E. Laurel Ave.: Friday to Sunday 10:30am–4pm, by appointment. Closed Monday to Thursday.
• Transcendence Wines: Wednesday and Thursday 4pm–7pm, Friday 2pm–7pm, Saturday 12pm–5pm, also by appointment. It describes its closing times as approximate. Walk-ins welcome.
• Pali Wine Co.: a reservation is required. We do not hold set hours for it.

Which day to go

Counting from the posted hours above:

• Friday and Saturday: 12 places post hours (Ampelos, Camins 2 Dreams, Civilization, Flying Goat, Longoria, Loring, Montemar, Sandhi, Sweetzer, Temperance, Transcendence and Zotovich).
• Sunday: eight (Ampelos, Camins 2 Dreams, Civilization, Flying Goat, Longoria, Montemar, Sweetzer and Temperance). Sandhi is closed and Zotovich is by appointment.
• Thursday: six (Ampelos, Flying Goat, Longoria, Sandhi, Transcendence and Zotovich).
• Monday: four (Ampelos, Flying Goat, Longoria and Sandhi).
• Wednesday: three (Sandhi, Transcendence and Zotovich).
• Tuesday: one (Sandhi).

Five places open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday only: Camins 2 Dreams, Civilization, Montemar, Sweetzer and Temperance. Loring opens on Friday and Saturday only. Domaine de la Côte and Turiya post no set days and taste by appointment. If your visit falls early in the week, the Ghetto shrinks to a few stops, and appointments become the way in. For the rest of Lompoc on a given day, see the Lompoc Monday list or the Lompoc page.

Walk in, or book

Six places tell us walk-ins are welcome: Flying Goat, Longoria, Loring, Sweetzer, Transcendence and Zotovich. Six require a reservation: Chanin, Civilization, Domaine de la Côte, Pali, Temperance and Turiya. Camins 2 Dreams recommends one. For Ampelos, Lompoc Wine Factory, Montemar and Sandhi we do not yet have a stated policy.

On a Friday or Saturday, all six walk-in places are open by their posted hours, so a no-booking afternoon is possible. For anything else, book ahead.

Closing times are mostly 4pm to 6pm. Montemar and Longoria are open until 7pm on Fridays, and Transcendence posts 7pm closings from Wednesday to Friday that it calls approximate. Flying Goat posts its closing time as "about 4pm", so arrive with time to spare.

Pair it with the Sta. Rita Hills

The Sta. Rita Hills wine region lies between Lompoc and Buellton, and our piece on where to taste Pinot Noir in the Sta. Rita Hills lists the places inside it with hours and booking rules. Several of them post seven-day hours, including Babcock, Dierberg, Melville and Sanford, which makes them a fit for the days the Ghetto is quiet.

Before you go

• Camins 2 Dreams, Montemar and Zotovich say dogs are welcome, by their own listings. Montemar also says kids are welcome. For the rest of town, see dog-friendly wineries in Lompoc.
• Add the rooms you want to My day and set the date. The planner checks each stop against its posted hours for that day.
• Plan for a designated driver or a booked ride for the trip home.

Which producers belong to the Wine Ghetto comes from Explore Lompoc. Every address, hour and policy above comes from the source linked on each listing.