Larry Schaffer

The Climb

The early cellar work at Fess Parker Winery in Santa Ynez Valley gave Larry Schaffer a practical foundation in enology: disciplined, technical, and close to the fruit. As an enologist, he learned the routines that shape a wine before it ever reaches bottle, and that hands-on pace still reads in the way his work is described. Today, that same focus carries through two roles: owner and winemaker of Tercero Wines since 2007, and instructor of Wine Production at UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education since 2022.

Today

Small-lot production and hand-crafted wines define Tercero Wines, with vineyards throughout Santa Barbara County as the source material. The work is framed by site rather than volume, and by the kind of restraint that lets vineyard character stay visible in the glass. Larry Schaffer has described the county as a place that is serious about winegrowing and winemaking while still offering room to grow, which is the logic that shaped the project from the start. That emphasis on Santa Barbara County is not decorative; it is part of the structure of the wines. The region supplies both context and direction, and Tercero’s identity is built around that relationship between place, intention, and measured execution.

Signature

Trilogia Blend and Curiosity are named as Larry Schaffer’s signature wines, and both point to a maker working between balance and exploration. The names suggest wines meant to be read carefully rather than quickly, with enough structure to hold attention and enough variation to keep it there.

In Their Words “I really dig the vibe of Santa Barbara County – a bit more laid back than other wine regions – and the fact that our area is more about the product than it is about the “pomp and circumstance”, as it is in other winegrowing regions.” “I am enthralled with Roussanne and Marsanne – they are “magical” white varieties that do not act like any other varieties I have ever worked with.”

Recognition

Recognition here sits in the consistency of the work: place-specific, technically grounded, and built around small-lot wines that favor clarity over noise. Larry Schaffer’s profile in the trade comes from that steadiness, and from a stated preference for varieties and regions that reward close attention rather than performance.