Drive the Oakville Cross Road to the Silverado Trail, then directly look forward and up. This is Tierra Roja, a four-acre jewel of a hillside vineyard. Great neighbors—Backus, Screaming Eagle, Maya, and Rudd.

Dotted with big rocks, the soil is definitely roja (very red). You might expect the wines to be massive, but they are perfumed, dark, and complex, in the style of Screaming Eagle. In some years we make an “Oakville Hillside” wine from the rocky terraces that climb the Vaca mountain range—a darker fruited, spicier, chewier expression that bears more resemblance to Dalla Valle.

Linda Neal has been tending this jewel of a vineyard since 1987. Today Neal sells her fruit to no other winery but ours. It was a long wait until we finally released our first TOR Tierra Roja Cabernet in 2010. We couldn’t be happier working with this special fruit from a truly talented grower.