Our wines naturally reflect their pronounced coastal terroir, as well as the impassioned viticultural handwork that we bring to our vines and soils.
The effect of these elements is highly local and personal—the hallmarks of Sinor-LaVallee.
Our Story
Mike Sinor has always been a grinder, a way of life he learned at a young age while working in his father’s auto wrecking yard. He brought that mentality to his first wine harvest in 1993 and never looked back. Through grit and determination, and without formal training, he ultimately became one of the Central Coast’s most decorated winemakers.
Mike married Cheri LaVallee in 1996 in Burgundy, soon after they started their own label. In 2013, Mike and Cheri put everything on the line to acquire the ocean-view Bassi Vineyard near Avila Beach. It was the destination they’d always been seeking—a singular vineyard that they could steward with holistic and meticulous viticulture.
The estate wines of Sinor-LaVallee are the outcome of this journey, and an emblem of this place.
Bassi Vineyard stands alone just 1.2 miles from the ocean in the San Luis Obispo Coast AVA that Mike helped found.
From the crown of it, you can see the Pacific, a window into everything about this land—its morning fogs, briny air currents and steep oceanic soils.
Here on the coastal extremity, the sense of terroir is vivid and relentless, and we are called to hold nothing back.
Location
Bassi Vineyard unfolds along sloping terrain overlooking Avila Valley in southern San Luis Obispo County, just off San Luis Bay Drive. The vineyard is accessible by appointment only.
Soil Profile
Bassi Vineyard soils are marine in origin:
110-Briones Tierra complex with a 15% to 50% slope. Weathered from soft sandstone, containing Tierra soil and Arnold-Pismo loamy sand.
142-Gaviota fine sandy loam with a 15% to 75% slope. Weathered from hard standstone with limited clay.
These soils are low in organic material. The underlying bedrock is hard marine sandstone through which the vine roots can barely pass. Yields are inherently limited, producing fruit with natural intensity and vivid site expression.
Soil ph runs from 7.1 to 7.6
Viticulture
Bassi Vineyard is farmed organically with biodynamic inputs. These practices are observed, first and foremost, because they help make better wine. No stone is unturned in that pursuit. What is great for the wine is also good for the land and the surrounding environment, so the rewards are ample for keeping everything in balance. No certification has been pursued. All recent plantings have been own rooted.
Varieties
Pinot Noir – 5 blocks-14.1 Acres / Clones 2A, 4, 5, 113, 114, 115, 667 & 777
Syrah – 5 blocks- 7.29 Acres / Noir Clone and Estrella Clone/ two blocks are tarraced
Chardonnay – 1 block- 3.69 Acres / Clones 4, 76 & 96
Albariño – 1 block-Planted on terraces that are contoured planted- 1.00 Acre / Clone Rías Baixas
Pinot Gris – 2 blocks- 2.4 Acres / Clone 152
Grenache- 1 block- 1.05 Acres/ Clone 362
