Babcock Winery & Vineyards — Attraction in California

Negative stars for this place! I have been a wine club member at Babcock for 4+ years and have belonged to many wine clubs over the years and I can say that I have never experienced anything like the fiasco with Babcock (Briana, specifically, but Jamie got involved as well) regarding my fall wine club shipment. About 3 weeks out from my fall wine club shipment, I emailed the wine club asking if they could postpone my shipment by a couple of days because I would be out of town on that Monday-Tuesday (Oct 2-3, 2023) when it was scheduled to be delivered. Briana wrote me back and acknowledged they would ship it out on Wednesday for a Thursday (Oct 5) delivery. On Sunday night (Oct 1), I received an email from UPS about an upcoming Babcock wine delivery set for Monday (Oct 2), which needs a signature. I write Briana/wine club and she assures me that it is "just the new system" and that it would not be shipping until Wednesday for a Thursday delivery. Okay, fine. On Monday (while on vacation), I got a Ring notification...yep...you guessed it, it was UPS trying to deliver my wine. Unfortunately, I was out hiking because I was on vacation (trying to relax), so missed the Ring call. Later that day, I tried to call Briana...listened to the whole message so I could leave a vm...mailbox full, could not leave message. Next, I sent Briana an email saying that there was an attempt to deliver the wine. Never heard anything back that day. UPS tried to deliver the wine the following day as well, but, of course, I was not home. Finally, late Wednesday, someone named Jamie calls me and wants the UPS routing number so they can tell UPS to bring the wine back and tells me they will reship a "fresh" order to me the following Monday (Oct 9). So, while on vacation, trying to relax, I search my emails to find the UPS routing number for her (shouldn't they have this information?? They are the shippers!). Never hear another thing from them. Monday (Oct 9) goes by, Tuesday (Oct 10) goes by....no wine...no email...no phone call. Tuesday evening, I tried to call again, but, of course, no one answered and the mailbox was full. I send an email confirming that my wine has actually been reshipped...I hear nothing until Wednesday evening when Briana leaves me a voicemail saying sorry (again) that they dropped the ball and to call her. I try to call, but, of course, no one answers and the vm box is full. I send another email Wednesday (Oct 11)...no response. I send another email Thursday (Oct 12)...no response. I send another email Friday (Oct 13)...no response. So, here I am on Saturday, feeling completely frustrated, again, with the complete lack of customer service and any sort of acknowledgement that this has now gone on for over two weeks and I have spent so much time on emails and trying to get through by phone just trying to get my wine club shipment that I PAID FOR IN FULL on September 26th. They had no problem with the charging...just the shipping, apparently. Just unreal. The most horrendous customer service I have ever experienced. I will definitely be telling everyone I know to stay away...

I am not the pretentious type when it comes to wine, but…okay okay I’m writing a google review about a winery so yes I am just a little bit vain. So i’ll make this as little about me as I can.

Joey was working the tasting room counter at Babcock winery when my friends and I came to do a wine tasting. We were stunned by his enthusiasm and passion for the “transverse mountain ranges that funneled microfog in from the sea to create a porous rock in the soil of the…” okay, see? Wine tasting is like that. There’s a lot you take others’ words for, because it’s kind of hard to understand, and some of it starts to make sense after a few tastes. But one is thing for certain: we were excited to go back into the tasting room every time our glasses ran empty so that our palates could get a joyful introduction of the next vintage from Joey—and then we found out IT WAS JOEY’S FIRST DAY.

I wish I could say this marvelous customer experience was only isolated to our interactions with Joey so that I could maintain credibility and not seem over-complimentary, but in fact we had a similar amazement at the knowledge of the other tenders working the counter. Needless to say, I cannot speak more highly of the staff at Babcock Winery! By all means, go for some great wines (sourced locally from Santa Barbara County), but don’t forget to ask for the grapes’ stories too—the staff is excited to...

Unforgettable Experience at Babcock Winery!

I just went for my 40th birthday and had the pleasure of having Bryan Babcock take us into the Barrel Room for a tasting. It was SUCH a treat. Bryan is just out of this world knowledgeable, with so much experience making wine in the Valley - and a cool guy all around. It gave us all a deeper appreciation for the winemaking process and all of the hard work and detail that goes into it.

We then went into the tasting room and picked out one of the couch areas to sit and enjoy another tasting. Their staff is all exceptional, with not only sharing detail with each pour, but just made us feel like we were right at home.

Their tasting room is a VIBE!! I have never been there without buying some sort of cool jewelry or funky vintage item.

Whether you're a wine connoisseur or just looking to enjoy family/friend time and check out their rad spot, Babcock really does have it all.

Thank you Bryan, Lisa & Christina and all of the staff there for the years and years of great service & exceptional wine. You really have something VERY special there.

Till next time...