Tierra Divina REDS 2011

Tierra Divina is owned by Patrick Campbell, the founder and former owner of Laurel Glen. Known for its elegance and age-worthiness, Laurel Glen is a Sonoma Mountain cabernet that has been acclaimed as far back as the early 1980s. In the mid 90s, decided to Patrick to purchase grapes from the North Coast and make Terra Rosa, designed to be a reasonably-priced alternative to costly cabernets in the market. REDS, an old-vine blend followed suit. With its catch-phrase "A Wine for the People," REDS developed a cult following for its creative marketing which positioned it as an everyday, easy-drinking wine. In the later 90s, Patrick discovered vineyards in Chile that were not being utilized to their full potential; and by 1997 he had moved the entire Terra Rosa line to Mendoza where hebecame the first North American producer to make wine in Argentina.

Patrick majored in English, got a masters degree in Theology at Harvard then played viola in several orchestras in Sonoma County (more recently, he has seen the light and now performs bluegrass on the fidlde). While studying Buddhism and living at the Sonoma Mountain Zen Center, he found his calling in viticulture. A self-proclaimed "vineyard guy," Patrick oversees the farming of every Tierra Divina vineyard in Lodi and Argentina. He believes that great wines start in heritage (aka old-vine) vineyards. Heritage vines' complex root structures spread broadly to collect all the micro-elements the soil can provide and they naturally produce lower yields, lending higher-concentrations of flavor in the wines. Starting with a great vineyard then focusing on proper management minimizes the need for "fixing" or manipulating in the winery. Tierra Divina wines are honest and vineyard-specific wines that exhibit integrity and depth.

These days, Tierra Divina vineyards are found exclusively in Lodi, the "Zinfandel Capital of the World," and Mendoza, Argentina where malbecs are the acclaimed varietal. REDS, an old-vine zinfandel blend and ZaZin, are known for being balanced, elegant wines in contrast to many highly-extracted, over-the-top Lodi zins. Terra Rosa, Tierra Divina and Vale la Pena are vineyard-specific, varietally-correct, 100% malbecs. They tend to be less oaky and more balanced than their Mendoza counterparts. Patrick flies to Argentina 5 to 6 times per year to sustainably farm the heritage vineyards in the foothills of the Andes mountains. He makes the wine in Argentina, then ships it up in containers where he barrel-ages and bottles it in Sonoma County.