In 1962 Pierre Lafond opened the first winery in Santa Barbara County since prohibition. At that time there were no vineyards in Santa Barbara County. Grapes needed to be shipped from a county to the north, over 100 miles away. Two Bakersfield expa-triates planted the first new vineyard in the county in 1965. Experienced growers, they benefi ted handsomely from the wine boom of the late 60s, and the rest is history. There are now over 100 wineries and 20,000 acres of grapes in the county.
In 1964 Santa Barbara Winery moved to its present location in Santa Barbara's Funk Zone at Yanonali and Anacapa streets two blocks from the beach.
Lafond Winery and Vineyards has become a visible and successful winery, winning many medals for an array of wines. Lafond continues to add vineyards and production facility in the Santa Ynez Valley close to the original winery.
Lafond, an Architect by training, evolved into a Winemaker. He went into wine production in in the early 1960s because, evidence from commercial and private growers, indicated that Santa Barbara County had an ideal climate for grapes. That sentiment has been justified by the over hundreds of wineries and tasting rooms that are now in Santa Barbara County.
