San Luis Obispo Coast Winery Leads Region’s Sustainable Luxury
San Luis Obispo, CA (April 22, 2022) – Tolosa, a premium producer of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the San Luis Obispo Coast AVA, today released its report on the sustainability initiatives it has undertaken in the past year. Long a pioneer in protection of the environment, Tolosa reiterated its commitment to preservation of natural resources in January 2021 through its pledge to eliminate its direct and indirect use of fossil fuels by 2040.
Since making the pledge, Tolosa has undertaken a number of programs that target all components of sustainability, including the environmental, social, and economic dimensions. Following on the longstanding SIP (Sustainability in Practice) certification of its vineyards, Tolosa also became a signatory to the Letter of Principles of the Porto Protocol, an international organization whose mission is “to drive collaborative action by bringing together a network of change makers and workable climate solutions for and within the wine world.”
Through internal working groups that allow all company employees to participate in the company’s sustainability efforts on company time, Tolosa and its custom crush business Phase 2 Cellars have engineered solutions to reducing energy use through development of a curtailment plan, saving over 380,000 gallons of water through an in-house designed water nozzle, and reduction of materials going to the landfill through the redesign of wine club wine carriers. The Company also embarked upon a 700kW expansion of its solar array originally installed in 2009. Planning is underway for the installation in 2022 of a Miyawaki Forest, an innovative way to increase plant and animal biodiversity to the monocrop environment of a vineyard in a relatively short period of time.
Tolosa has made an equal commitment to the human side of sustainability. The Company has made strides in its diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, including posting all job openings internally to avoid making assumptions about the career aspirations of any employees and instituting standard interview questions to not introduce unintentional bias into the hiring process. Quarterly programs on leadership and management, mental health, and DEI focus on employee development and career advancement. Community-focused initiatives such as a beach clean up and a food drive foster both team building and giving back.
“Tolosa and Phase 2 Cellars take great pride in our commitment to sustainability,” says President & CEO June McIvor. “We have barely scratched the surface in our first year of renewed commitment, but we have laid the groundwork for some exciting projects in the coming years. I know that our energized and talented team will continue to make real headway in the fight against climate change and the protection of our planet.”
About Tolosa Winery
Founded in 1998, Tolosa epitomizes the special terroir that is Edna Valley, nestled amongst the northwest to southeast running volcanic hills of the San Luis Obispo Coast and the frontier for the most complex cool-climate varietals in California. Helmed by vintner Robin Baggett, Tolosa is the expression of his commitment to spare no effort to craft Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines of distinctive character to rival any in the world. The Tolosa winemaking team combines traditional winemaking techniques and cutting-edge technology to achieve the purest translation of place to taste.
