Ryan Stirm did not set out to become the world's leading producer of Cabernet Pfeffer. He set out to make honest wine from the right soil, and the rest followed naturally. Stirm Wine Co., launched in 2015 from a hillside in the Pajaro Valley near Watsonville, is now one of California's most compelling small producers: a winery that treats white wine with the seriousness it deserves and finds its inspiration in varieties that most of the industry has long since forgotten.
California Roots, Restless Curiosity
Ryan grew up in Contra Costa County and enrolled at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, where he paired a Wine and Viticulture degree with minors in soil science, sustainable agriculture, and plant protection. He came to winemaking through wrestling teammates who worked in the industry, and his education extended far beyond the classroom. He worked at Tyler Winery in Santa Barbara, staged in Australia and Austria, and spent time at Thomas Fogarty in the Santa Cruz Mountains before returning to the coast and founding his own operation from scratch.
Dry Farming and Organic Viticulture
Stirm's vineyards are dry-farmed and organically managed, with a no-till philosophy and the use of organic compost and oils for pest management rather than synthetic inputs. The Pajaro Valley sits in southern Santa Cruz County, a zone characterized by cold Pacific influences, marine fog, and soils that favor precision over power. Ryan is committed to farming practices that build soil health over time, treating viticulture as the foundation on which everything else rests.
White Wine as the Main Event
Approximately two-thirds of Stirm's production is white wine, with Riesling as the unambiguous flagship variety. Ryan has championed Riesling as a drought-tolerant, climate-resilient grape with real futures in coastal California, and his versions are vibrant and mineral, a long way from the sweet versions that gave the variety a complicated reputation. Chardonnay and Albarino round out the white program.
Historic Varieties and Cabernet Pfeffer
Stirm Wine Co. is the world's largest producer of Cabernet Pfeffer, a historic Bordeaux-derived variety of which only approximately 17 acres exist globally, almost all in San Benito County. Three of those vineyards have vines over 120 years old. Ryan also works with Mission, Negrette, and Zinfandel from nineteenth-century plantings, treating these forgotten varieties as living archives of California wine history. The winery produces around 8,000 cases annually and sells primarily to fine dining restaurants across the country.
