Tierra Alta Vineyard
Tierra Alta lies on a steep south-west facing hillside at the top of Ballard Canyon at over 1200 feet elevation. The site is only 15 miles or so from the coast and was planted on the thin limestone infused soil unique to this small canyon. Planted almost exclusively to Syrah, Tierra Alta is home to a complex mix of new and old world clones. Our contiguous sections of ENTAV Clone 877 and UC Davis’ Clone 1 are at the very top of the vineyard and are painstakingly farmed by one of the most respected vineyard managers in California - John Belfry. John tends to a number of precious vineyards on the central coast, including Rio Vista, Mt. Carmel, Ashley’s, Great Oaks, Rodney’s, and Tierra Alta.
We think Tierra Alta’s unique terroir and John Belfry’s relentless attention to the vineyard allow us to create exceptional wines – and we are not alone. Our friend and mentor Joey Tensley of Tensley Wines crafts his acclaimed Tierra Vineyard Syrah from a block directly behind ours. Kris Curran of Curran Wines and Sea Smoke Vineyards also believes in this special site as she has committed to a large block at Tierra Alta for her sought-after Grenache Blanc program. Mikael Sigouin of Kaena Wines, whose first few vintages have received high marks all around, also sources Syrah and Grenache from Tierra Alta.