2023 Tierra Alta Grenache

Tierra Alta Vineyard is a dramatically steep site full of chalky white limestone. It’s because of this soil profile that these wines always carry a strong streak of minerality. The wide variation between the tops and bottoms of the slopes contributes to the energy in the wine — richness and power from lean soils at the top of the hill; juiciness and freshness from the heavier soils at the bottom.

Tierra Alta is perched at the northern end of Ballard Canyon. The fog pushes and pulls against it almost every day during the growing season, filling up the canyon in the morning and emptying out in the evening — keeping the wine fresh even as it ripens.

To make this wine, we hand harvested the fruit and left about 25% of the whole clusters in the fermentation. After crushing and foot stomping, the wine began fermentation naturally with ambient yeast. We pumped over the must once a day and pressed after an extended maceration of about 30 days on skins. The wine aged in neutral French oak puncheon and wasn’t racked until bottling.

The result is a cranberry-garnet wine that shows the fresh berry side of Grenache. Red cherries, cranberries, plums, spices, and new leather explode from the glass in a wine built on brightness. The 25% whole clusters give a savory edge that keeps all that fruit in check. Drink it in the next two to four years — it’s showing well now and the brightness won’t wait forever. Pairs naturally with lamb, roast chicken, or anything herb-forward off the grill. Charcuterie if you’re keeping it simple.