Andrew Murray Vineyards

Andrew Murray Vineyards is a family-owned winery located in Los Olivos, California. Nestled in the Santa Ynez Valley AVA of Santa Barbara County, it specializes in Rhône varieties[1] Syrah, Grenache, Roussanne, Marsanne, and Grenache blanc.

    Andrew Murray Vineyards
    LocationLos Olivos, California, USA
    AppellationSanta Ynez Valley AVA
    Other labelsThis is E11even Wines
    Founded1990 (1990)
    First vintage1993
    Key peopleAndrew Murray, Owner & Winemaker
    VarietalsSyrah, Grenache, Viognier, Roussanne, Marsanne, Grenache blanc
    DistributionNational; limited exports
    TastingLos Olivos Wine Tasting Room and Los Olivos Winery
    WebsiteAndrewMurrayVineyards.com

    Andrew Murray Vineyards is one of the wineries along the famous Foxen Canyon Wine Trail.

    History

    Andrew Murray Vineyards was founded in 1990 when entrepreneurs Jim and Fran Murray sold their southern California restaurants and 'retired' to 200 acres of fertile soil in the Santa Ynez Valley. With their son and winemaker Andrew Murray at the helm, the Los Olivos winery is now a well-respected purveyor of Rhône-style wines.

    Andrew (born February 1, 1972) came of age in the wine business. As a teenager, Andrew traveled with his family on lengthy expeditions in France’s Rhône Valley wine region. He acted as translator as his father interviewed some of France’s notable winemakers. Together they planted their vineyard on steep hillside slopes.[2]

    Andrew earned a bachelor of science degree in enology and viticulture from the University of California, Davis, and studied the art of crafting Syrah with an extended internship in Australia.[3] He made his first wine in Australia at the age of 19 and his eponymous winery's first vintage was 1993. When the vineyard was sold in 2006,[4] Andrew obtained leases for blocks of vineyards throughout California’s Central Coast for wine production. He established a new Los Olivos winery in a former brewery on property owned by fellow vintners, the Firestone family.

    Regarded as a maverick[5] in the wine business, Andrew Murray Vineyards took the controversial step of switching to screw-tops to enclose all its wines starting with the 2006 vintage. Among other things, Murray cited considerable industry cork failure rates as one of the chief reasons for his decision.[6]

    References
    1. Saekel, Karola. "Winemakers to Watch: Murray's Passion for Rhones Shows in his Syrahs and his Blends." San Francisco Chronicle. 10 November 1999. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1999/11/10/FD43045.DTL. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
    2. Wu, Olivia. "Man, 35, Seek Grapes for Serious Relationship." San Francisco Chronicle. 20 April 2007. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/20/WIGV6P9PKN1.DTL. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
    3. Wu, Olivia. "Man, 35, Seek Grapes for Serious Relationship." San Francisco Chronicle. 20 April 2007. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/20/WIGV6P9PKN1.DTL. Retrieved 2011-07-09.
    4. Alley, Lynn. "Andrew Murray Winery Sold." Wine Spectator. 1 March 2006. http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/Andrew-Murray-Winery-Sold_2958. Retrieved 2011-07-08.
    5. Tennenbaum, Kiri. "'04 Tastemaker Awards." Food & Wine Magazine. November 2004. http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/04-tastemaker-awards. Retrieved 2011-07-08.
    6. Murray, Andrew. "Corks...Are They Screwing Up Wine?". Andrew Murray Vineyards. Web. 16 March 2011. http://www.andrewmurrayvineyards.com/category/blog/. Retrieved 2011-7-9.
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