A winery that started on a basketball court

Dick Dore and Bill Wathen met in the late 1970s while working at Mesa Vineyard and decided it would be fun to make a little wine of their own. In 1985 they did exactly that, founding Foxen on Rancho Tinaquaic, land that had been in Dick’s family since 1837. The first vintage was made on Dick’s basketball court, which is a more literal origin story than most Santa Barbara County wineries can claim.

Four decades on, the two founders still set the direction. Bill came to wine through farming, with a degree in fruit science and vineyard management from Cal Poly and an apprenticeship under Dick Graff at Chalone that taught him French technique and gave him a lasting preference for Old World wine. His philosophy has not moved much since: respect the vine, and let the wines make themselves with little or no intervention.

Today it runs as a two family operation. Bingo Wathen, Bill’s son, returned in 2019 after a stint in Burgundy with Olivier Merlin and several years working as a sommelier, and took over management of the estate vineyard in 2023. Riley Wathen Slack leads operations and finance, and Kaitlin Armstrong runs sales and marketing.

Why the label carries an anchor

The anchor on every Foxen label belongs to William Benjamin Foxen, an ancestor of Dick Dore and a British sea captain who arrived in Santa Barbara County in the early 1800s. He acquired the Rancho Tinaquaic land grant in 1837, in what is now Foxen Canyon, and settled there as a rancher.

In his blacksmith shop he made his own plows, horseshoes and branding irons, and used an anchor as his brand in memory of his years at sea. He later bred horses, some of which pulled the first streetcars in San Francisco carrying that same anchor. His grave is marked by a marble shaft carved to resemble the broken mast of a ship.

Farming Rancho Tinaquaic

The Shack, built in the 1860s as the original blacksmith shop on the ranch, is where the winery got its start and where Dick and Bill spent early years sitting on a cooler waiting for someone to drive up and try the wine. It still pours today.

In 2008 Foxen finished a second facility just down Foxen Canyon Road. It is solar powered, has a temperature controlled barrel room, and gave the winery room to expand production while committing to sustainable growing and winemaking. The range spans cool climate Santa Maria Valley Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc from Ernesto Wickenden Vineyard, estate Cabernet Franc off Tinaquaic, and a set of Rhone varieties. For more on the appellation, see our guide to Santa Maria Valley.

The wines

Every bottle below links straight to the winery’s own store. Prices and vintages come from Foxen and change as releases sell through.

2024 Cabernet FrancCarbonic Fermentation$34.002022 Sparkling Chenin BlancErnesto Wickenden Vineyard$72.002025 Chenin BlancSanta Barbara County$30.002024 Sauvignon BlancVogelzang Vineyard$32.002022 ChardonnayTinaquaic Vineyard$44.002022 ChardonnayTinaquaic Vineyard, 5 Rows$50.002024 Pinot NoirSanta Maria Valley$42.002020 Pinot NoirSolomon Hills Vineyard$65.002021 Pinot NoirBien Nacido Vineyard, Block 8$68.002022 Pinot NoirBien Nacido Vineyard, Block 8View2022 Pinot NoirBien Nacido Vineyard, Block 43$68.002022 Pinot NoirRiverbench Vineyard$64.002022 Pinot NoirJulia’s Vineyard$70.002022 Pinot NoirJohn Sebastiano Vineyard$60.002023 Pinot NoirJohn Sebastiano VineyardView2021 Pinot NoirFe Ciega Vineyard$76.002022 Pinot NoirFe Ciega VineyardView2023 GrenacheLos Olivos DistrictView2021 Cuvée Jeanne MarieSanta Barbara County$52.002022 Cuvée Jeanne MarieWilliamson-Doré VineyardView2022 SyrahToasted RopeView2022 SyrahTinaquaic Vineyard$52.002023 SyrahTinaquaic VineyardView2021 SyrahWilliamson-Doré Vineyard$52.002021 SyrahTinaquaic Vineyard, Old Vines$60.002022 Range 30 WestSanta Barbara County$56.002022 Cabernet FrancTinaquaic VineyardView2023 Cabernet FrancTinaquaic VineyardView2022 PajaritoSanta Barbara County$52.002020 Cabernet SauvignonLos Potreros$68.002022 Cabernet SauvignonStar Lane VineyardViewNon-Vintage MissionSanta Barbara County$30.002019 Chenin BlancErnesto Wickenden Vineyard 1.5L$62.002020 Pinot NoirBien Nacido Vineyard, Block 8 1.5L$146.002019 Pinot NoirBien Nacido Vineyard, Block 43 1.5L$142.002019 Pinot NoirJulia’s Vineyard 1.5L$142.002019 Pinot NoirJohn Sebastiano Vineyard 1.5L$126.002019 Pinot NoirFe Ciega Vineyard 1.5L$160.002018 Cabernet SauvignonLos Potreros 1.5L$166.00

Looking for more producers in the same appellation? Start with our Santa Maria Valley guide, or use the wine pairing tool to match a bottle to dinner.

Visiting Foxen

There are two places to taste, roughly four hundred yards apart on Foxen Canyon Road, and they pour different things.

Common questions about Foxen Vineyard

Explore more Santa Barbara County wine

• Santa Maria Valley wineries and AVA guide
• Santa Barbara County wine guide
• California Pinot Noir explained
• California Chardonnay explained

Wine listings, images and pricing are pulled from the winery and link to its own store. Details change with each release. Confirm hours and reservations with the winery before visiting.