Aptos Vineyard was established in 1974 by the Marlo family in Aptos, CA. Judge John and Patti Marlo noticed that a portion of their Aptos property looked like it was a vineyard so they thought Why not? And dove into cultivating a vineyard.

Tending to the vineyard and harvesting grapes was a family affair, yielding precious memories for the Marlo family. While a source of joy for the Marlo’s the vineyard was also a lot of work. After a slow start to yield enough grapes to become wine, they enlisted the help of various winemakers to craft the original Aptos Vineyard Pinot Noir and then eventually Chardonnay. They enjoyed decades of bountiful fruit yielded on their property and soon the label became a source of joy and family connection.

Sadly, when John fell sick in the mid 2000s, the vineyard lost its spark and the wine label fell dormant for many years. After John’s passing, close friend James Baker and his family purchased the wine label and sought to revive the family owned wine label. The label is now operated by the Baker Family.

To ensure success, they enlisted the expertise of John Benedetti of Sante Arcangeli Wines. With grapes grown and harvested in the Santa Cruz Mountains, from Old San Jose Road to Corralitos, Aptos Vineyard has reemerged as a family wine label, revitalized.

Aptos Vineyard’s current library of wines can be viewed on our wine page. As a boutique winery with less than 300 cases produced a year, Aptos Vineyard currently only operates online, at community events, and pop-up events. For a list of upcoming events visit our event page.