Full Belly Files | Goodbye to Bubble Master Christian Roguenant

Christian Roguenant with his wife, Lois

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Though once an anomaly, Central Coast sparkling wines are popping more than ever before. The scene — which is best tracked in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties by calicoastwinecountry.com — exploded so much over the past decade that it feels like more wineries offer sparkling wine than those that don’t.

It might not be that way if it weren’t for Christian Roguenant, a French-born winemaker who trained in Champagne and landed in Arroyo Grande Valley at Maison Deutz — now Laetitia Vineyards & Winery — in 1986. Roguenant revealed that the region’s cool climate could indeed make bubblies to battle the world’s best, providing the proof eventually embraced by wineries from the Sta. Rita Hills to the Carmel Coast.

Christian Roguenant, a pioneer of Central Coast sparkling wine.

I got to know Roguenant a little bit over the years — most acutely during his time working for the Niven family at Baileyana, Tangent, and the associated brands — and was saddened to hear that he died suddenly at just 66 years of age on November 2. He leaves behind his wife, Lois, 26-year-old son, Blake, and a countless number of winemakers and wine lovers who are benefitting from his contributions.

“I did not realize it at the time, but I became Christian’s apprentice by osmosis,” said Eric Hickey, who started working for Maison Deutz under Roguenant in 1994 and is now the co-owner/GM/winemaker of Laetitia. “He loved to teach and challenge you to try new things in winemaking and grape growing. I think this is the biggest part of his legacy.”

Christian may have been the first actual French winemaker I ever met — it was probably 20 years ago, so that’s hard to remember for sure, as there’ve been so many since. He had a caring while sure-headed way about him, surviving in my mind as an elegant soul who was confident in his approach.

My most recent interactions with Christian were for his work with Lightpost Winery up on Morgan Hill, although I know he was also helping Jeff LeBard at Gainey Vineyards on their forthcoming bubbles program. He’d also made wine for Rosenthal Estate Wines in Malibu, and consulted on numerous bubbly projects across the state.Though once an anomaly, Central Coast sparkling wines are popping more than ever before. The scene — which is best tracked in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties by calicoastwinecountry.com — exploded so much over the past decade that it feels like more wineries offer sparkling wine than those that don’t.

The lessons never ceased for Hickey, even 25 years after he stopped being Christian’s apprentice. “We stopped working together in 2000, but I think in his mind he never stopped training me,” said Hickey, recalling a lunch together at the start of the 2025 harvest when his former mentor was still trying to get him to try new varieties from new sites. “Of course, most of the time I was rolling my proverbial eyes, but that is what I loved about him.”

You can read more about his life in this obituary, and you can donate to his family to help cover end-of-life expenses here. You can also support the Cuesta Community College Music Program in Christian’s name.

There will be a celebration of life on Friday, January 9, 1-4 p.m. at The Anderson Paso, 3090 Anderson Road, Paso Robles. It will be an open house-style event, so bring a bottle to share.

The Factory’s Fresh Tasting Format

Inundated by the excellent and innovative wines of Santa Barbara County and the greater Central Coast, it’s easy even for wine professionals to forget how much excitement is going on across the globe, where boundaries continue to get blown away even in the most ancient regions.

By far the best way to get a taste of the never-ending revolution of modern winemaking is during one of “portfolio tastings” hosted on East Haley Street at The Factory, the event space operated by Satellite S.B. proprietor Drew Cuddy.

Since 2024, Cuddy has invited distributors to pour wines for both wine industry professionals (free, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) and then the general public from 4 to 7 p.m., where the $10 fee includes a snack and the chance to taste dozens of wines at your own, self-poured pace. (Satellite wine club members are free.)

To be very clear, this is not a normal opportunity, as distributors typically pour directly for one restaurant owner at a time in a private setting, and then dump the leftovers down the drain. Instead, The Factory’s portfolio tastings benefit all involved.

Distributors can meet with reps from multiple restaurants, bars, hotels, and retailers in one spot rather than having to visit each location. Those commercial wine buyers, meanwhile, get to see a wider range of wines and not have to schedule multiple tastings at their establishments.

Best of all, the rest of the wine-loving world can come in after the workday and experience bottles that are otherwise nearly impossible to find. If you like something, you’re allowed to buy bottles at presale discounts that can later be picked up at Satellite S.B.

The last one of 2025 is next Wed., Dec. 17, with Martine’s Wines.

Read my full interview with Drew about the series here.

Wine for Wilderness Passport

At least along California’s Central Coast, few pursuits show as much overlap as an appreciation for artisanal wine and a love of the great outdoors. That goes for people I know both in the wine industry — winemakers are often some of the most adventurous explorers in any given room — as well as everyday enthusiasts who appreciate how wine can directly reflect the place where it’s grown, providing a unique connection to all the nature around it.

It’s curious, then, that it took so long to make a direct connection between supporting our wineries and wilderness at once, but that time has finally come. For 2026, Los Padres ForestWatch is partnering with 24 sustainably linded wineries from Ventura to Paso Robles on the Wine for Wilderness Passport.

For $75, pass holders will enjoy complimentary tastings at each establishment until the end of 2026, which represents a $650 combined value. They can also use the program’s map — located in the sleekly designed passport itself or on the website — to find nearby hikes in the Los Padres National Forest and the Carrizo Plain National Monument, the two landscapes where ForestWatch advocates for wilderness conservation and more.

It makes a great holiday gift, so get yours now at forestwatch.org/passport. If you want to know more, read my full interview with ForestWatch’s communications director Keri Setnicka here.