What Ampelos Cellars does

Ampelos Cellars is a privately held, family-owned boutique winery founded in 1999 by Rebecca and Peter Work in Lompoc, California, situated in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA of Santa Barbara County. The company operates from an 82-acre property (first plantings in 2001) and runs an urban winery and tasting room in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto, supported by a separate cold-storage and barrel-aging facility and a mailing address in Los Alamos. Its portfolio comprises roughly a dozen estate wines — Pinot Noir (including single-clone bottlings labeled lambda, rho, and nu), Syrah, Grenache, a Syrah/Grenache blend called Syrache, Viognier, Riesling, Rose of Syrah, Blanc de Noir sparkling, plus an experimental Funky Town line (Piquette, Orange Albarino, Clairette Blanche) — alongside a recurring wine club (Filos) and custom crush services for third-party labels including Kurt Russell's GoGi wines and Danish company blending projects.

The winemaking is anchored in SOBR (Sustainable/Organic/Biodynamic/Regenerative) viticulture, with native yeast fermentation, wild malolactic fermentation, extended maceration for reds, and biodynamic preparations such as ground-quartz BD501. Ampelos was the first US vineyard certified organic, biodynamic, and sustainable simultaneously in 2009; it dropped biodynamic certification in 2021 and is pursuing Regenerative Organic certification as of 2024. The operating structure is founder-led and lean (1–10 employees) with international distribution to Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Singapore, Japan, and South Korea via local distributors. Direct-to-consumer sales flow through the tasting room, an orderport.net online storefront, and the Filos wine club, with flat-rate $10 FedEx Ground shipping to most US states. In November 2024 the underlying vineyard property was sold to Chiara Shannon and Joseph Brent while Ampelos Cellars continues to operate as a separate business.

Name

Ampelos Cellars

Legal name

Ampelos Cellars

Website

https://ampeloscellars.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ampelos Cellars is a family-owned boutique winery in Lompoc, California, producing organically and sustainably farmed Sta. Rita Hills wines (Pinot Noir, Syrah, Grenache, Viognier, and more) for direct-to-consumer sales via a tasting room, wine club, online store, and limited international distribution.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Winery / Wine Production

NAICS

Wineries (312130), Beer, Wine, and Liquor Retailers (445320), Wine and Distilled Alcoholic Beverage Merchant Wholesalers (424820)

akta.pro primary industry

Wine & Sparkling Wine Wineries & Brands (CRADAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wineries & Vineyards (Tasting Rooms) (THAFALAE), Wine Tastings & Vineyard/Winery Tours (THAJAGAD)

Keywords

• Estate winery
• Wine club
• Biodynamic viticulture
• Custom crush winemaking
• Tasting room

Headquarters

HQ city

Lompoc

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Direct Wine Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of wines through tasting room, online store, and wine club. Includes Pinot Noir, Syrah, Grenache, Viognier, Riesling, Rose, and specialty wines like Funky Town line
2. Wine Club Membership: Recurring subscription-style wine club providing regular releases to members, generating predictable recurring revenue
3. Custom Crush/Private Label: Custom winemaking projects for clients including Kurt Russell's GoGi wines and Danish company custom blends. Peter Work serves as consulting winemaker for Bodega BiniVista in Mallorca

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Ampelos Cellars is a family-owned estate winery that produces sustainably-farmed Pinot Noir, Syrah, Grenache, Viognier, Riesling, Rosé, and sparkling wines from its 82-acre Sta. Rita Hills vineyard. The company sells direct to consumers through a tasting room in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto, a wine club, and online ordering, and also offers custom crush and private-label winemaking services.

Product overview

Ampelos Cellars is a family-owned winery in Sta. Rita Hills, Santa Barbara County, founded in 1999 by Rebecca and Peter Work. The winery produces a portfolio of estate wines including Pinot Noir (multiple single-clone designations named with Greek letters: lambda, rho, nu), Syrah, Grenache (delta), the Syrah/Grenache blend Syrache, Viognier (phi), Riesling (epsilon), Rose of Syrah (upsilon), and Blanc de Noir sparkling wines. Additionally, the Funky Town experimental line features alternative styles including Piquette, Orange Albarino, and Clairette. The winery offers wine club subscriptions, custom crush/private label services, and operates a tasting room in the Lompoc Wine Ghetto. The company is certified organic, sustainable (SIP/CSWA), and was previously biodynamic. Their wines are distributed internationally to Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Singapore, Japan, and South Korea.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Funky Town: A sub-brand/product line featuring wines like Funky Town Clairette Blanche and Funky Town Piquette.

Products and services

• Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir

Quantifiable outcome

• Wines have been aged and enjoyed 13+ years after vintage, with members reporting 2007 Nu still 'amazing' at 2010
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Bodega BiniVistacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 September 2023Peter Work serves as consulting winemaker for BiniVista Winery on Mallorca, Spain. Peter traveled to Mallorca to make a Syrah/Grenache/Cabernet Sauvignon X (Marselan) co-fermented wine. The project involves native yeast fermentation and custom blending with the BiniVista team.
• Kurt Russell (GoGi wines)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNearly 15-year custom crush partnership producing Kurt Russell's GoGi wines using Ampelos Vineyard grapes. Peter Work manages winemaking, barrel selection, and blending. Wines are named after family members' nicknames.
• Danish Custom Blending ProjectsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCustom blending projects for different Danish companies where barrel samples are shipped to Copenhagen and clients create personalized Pinot Noir and Syrah/Grenache blends during winemaker-for-a-day events.
• California Sustainable Winegrowing AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeter Work serves on the Board of Directors of CSWA and is Chairman for multiple years. The organization focuses on knowledge sharing, best practices, and raising the bar on conscious grape growing and winemaking.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Jaffurs Wine Cellars: Santa Barbara County boutique winery specializing in Rhône varietals and Pinot Noir. Comparable as a similarly-sized, owner-operated urban winery with DTC tasting room and small production.
• Babcock Winery: Family-owned Santa Barbara County boutique winery producing small-lot Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. Comparable as a similarly-scaled, owner-operated estate with DTC tasting room.
• Paul Lato Wines: Boutique Santa Barbara County winery producing small-lot, terroir-driven Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Chardonnay. Comparable in ultra-small production scale, owner-winemaker model, and pursuit of single-vineyard expressions.
• Brewer-Clifton: Sta. Rita Hills winery specializing in single-vineyard, single-clone Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from cool-climate sites. Comparable in production scale, Pinot Noir focus, and pursuit of distinctive appellation-driven wines.
• Benziger Family Winery: Sonoma County winery recognized as a pioneer of biodynamic and sustainable viticulture in California. Comparable as a family-owned, certified-organic/biodynamic winery leveraging sustainability certifications as a key brand pillar.
• Frey Vineyards: Mendocino County winery producing certified organic and biodynamic wines since the 1980s. Comparable as a family-owned, sustainability-pioneering winery with similar farming philosophy and natural-winemaking approach.
• Fess Parker Winery: Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Ynez Valley winery with estate vineyard and tasting room. Comparable in appellation footprint, hospitality-led DTC model, and Pinot Noir/Rhône varietal portfolio.
• Alma Rosa Winery: Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir-focused winery with strong organic and sustainable viticulture credentials. Highly comparable as a same-AVA boutique producer emphasizing terroir-driven, minimally interventionist winemaking.
• Tyler Winery: Sta. Rita Hills boutique winery focused on cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from single vineyards. Comparable in appellation focus, small-lot production model, and DTC channel strategy.
• Foxen Vineyard: Family-owned Santa Barbara County boutique winery producing small-lot Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Rhône varietals. Comparable as a similarly-sized, owner-operated winery with DTC tasting room and estate focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ampeloscellars
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ampelos Cellars