About
Popelouchum Estate is a 415-acre property in San Benito County, CA, purchased by Randall Grahm in 2012, dedicated to creating vins de terroir through propagating 10,000 new grape varieties from disease-resistant progenitors and self-crossing techniques. They focus on dry-farmed, minimally irrigated, regeneratively farmed uncommon varietals like Grenache Blanc, Grenache Gris, Pinot Noir, Ruché, and Sérine variants, using biochar to enhance terroir expression. The estate aims to be a sustainable viticulture model, a destination for wine enthusiasts, and petition for a monopole AVA.
vins de terroir
grape breeding (10,000 new varieties from Ciliegiolo x Picolit)
self-crossed field blends (Sérine, Tibouren)
dry-farmed regenerative viticulture
biochar use
extreme site conditions for high acidity wines
Photos
What They Make
Grenache Blanc
minimally irrigated, organically farmed
Grenache Gris
minimally irrigated, organically farmed
Pinot Noir
ownrooted varietal
Grenache Noir
proprietary clones, dry-farmed
Cinsault
dry-farmed
Tibouren
dry-farmed, varietal auto-tuning
Ruchè
ownrooted varietal
Furmint
recent plantings
Sérine (self-crossed variants)
genetically diverse field blend whites and reds, planted 2023/2024
Awards
Silver Medal, Monterey Wine Competition 2022
2022
Latest News
Self-crossed Sérine white variants planted in 2023 (two acres mixed whites); red variants and proper Sérine planted Winter 2024; coming into production 2025.