Like most of the vineyards in Santa Barbara County , the Tierra Alta Vineyard was planted on land that was once part of a Mexican land-grant rancho. The emblem you see on every bottle of our Tierra Alta Vineyard Syrah is the ranch brand for the Rancho San Carlos de Jonata.
The Rancho Jonata land grant was issued to Jose Covarrubias and Joaquin Carrillo on September 18, 1845 by the last Mexican Governor of California , Governor Pio Pico. Brothers R.T. and Alonzo 
Wilcox Buell, the founders of the town of Buellton , purchased the Rancho in 1865 and ran it with their families well into the early 1900's. Throughout this time, the Rancho covered more than 26,000 acres north-west of the Santa Ynez Mission and included all of what is now known as the Ballard Canyon area.