Mikael Sigouin

Coming Up

Assistant winemaker at Fess Parker Winery until 2006 gave Mikael Sigouin the kind of repetition that shapes a cellar hand into a disciplined winemaker: patience, precision, and stamina. The move to head winemaker at Beckmen Vineyards from 2006–2014 brought that discipline into a larger remit, where structure and palate had to hold under more visible responsibility. The sequence is steady, built by accumulation rather than by sudden change. Since 2014, the work has combined cellar practice and ownership at Kaena Wine Company. That pairing places the making and the business in the same daily frame, with Sigouin carrying both the authority of a winemaker and the obligations of the person whose name is on the operation.

Where They Are Now

In Santa Ynez, the current role keeps the earlier roles in one continuous line. Winemaker and owner are separate functions in many wineries; here they sit together, so the decisions in the cellar and the realities of ownership are part of the same practice. The Kaena thread that began in 2001 is carried forward in that same frame, without breaking from what came before. Grenache is the stated specialty, alongside Grenache and Rhône blends. That focus makes the grape less a single line item than a way of working: a place where style, attention, and restraint can be judged. The material itself points to why it stays central in Sigouin’s hands. The career progression is measured: cellar work first, then larger responsibility, then ownership. The pattern is one of repetition, refinement, and responsibility over time.

Signature

Mikael's signature wines include Grenache, 2004 Grenache Santa Ynez Valley Tierra Alta Vineyard, 2004 Grenache Santa Ynez Valley Larner Vineyard, 2004 Syrah Santa Ynez Valley, and 2004 Hapa Santa Ynez Valley.

In Their Words “Grenache is a varietal that is intensely aromatic, sexy, feminine, bold and always full of surprise.” “Winemaking is deeply personal to me. It is my artistry, my meditation, my profession, my life.”

Honors

The dated markers are clear: assistant winemaker at Fess Parker Winery until 2006, head winemaker at Beckmen Vineyards from 2006 to 2014, and winemaker-owner of the Santa Ynez company beginning in 2014.