Humboldt County is one of California's last great unexplored terroirs. This rural, mountainous, densely forested region contains everything necessary to make wine of absolutely spectacular quality, yet its sheer isolation has kept it largely undiscovered to the vast majority of the wine industry. Although wine grapes have been farmed here for many decades expansion has been extremely slow, and the total planted acreage of vines in the entire county remains merely in the hundreds. Seemingly endless challenges have slowed the growth of the diamond in the rough that is Humboldt County, but a few brave producers are working hard to champion its cause and their wines are rapidly increasing in quality and sheer momentum.
Quietly perched at the top of an idyllic mountain crest in Myers Flat sits one of Humboldt's smallest and most exciting producers. Led by adventurous winemaker and proprietor Chris Buchanan, Terragena Vineyard operates out of a tiny completely off-the-grid winery facility carved carefully into a secluded mountainside. The Terragena winery and homestead are surrounded by 2 acres of vines, a majority of which are Pinot Noir, that have been carefully planted in only the property's most favorable aspects and exposures. Although vines are concentrated solely in the best corners of the estate the Terragena property itself is quite sprawling, and totals 170 acres of mostly forested land. It rises up to 2000 feet of elevation at its peak and sits on the second mountain ridge from the sea, which allows it just enough distance and protection from the ocean's relentless fog to make it viable for viticulture. When standing at the summit of the property and staring down at towering old-growth redwood forests below it can be viscerally felt that Terragena Vineyard is pushing boundaries and redefining where world-class wine is able to be produced in California.
Our interest in Humboldt County was first sparked after we inadvertently stumbled upon a few absolutely delicious wines from the region a few years back, and recently we were finally able to indulge our curiosities with a visit to Terragena Vineyard. This beautiful rural estate happens to be almost half way between Los Angeles and Oregon's Willamette Valley, and we determined it would be a perfect place to stop and catch our breath during a wine-focused road trip up the coast. Thankfully for us the Terragena homestead functions as a vacation rental for most of the year and we were able to book our stay right in the middle of the very property we were coming up to explore.
As we drove up the 101 and neared Terragena it became obvious for the first time just how remote its location really is. Dense forests lined the highway on both sides, and aside from the occasional flowing river or jagged cliff trees completely dominated the landscape. We made it to our exit in Myers Flat and found ourselves in the middle of the famed Avenue of Giants, an Instagram-worthy drive cutting through some of the tallest and most amazing redwood trees on earth, before splitting off onto a long and winding road deep into the mountains. Some time later on this same narrow curvy road - after pavement turned to dirt and all signs of civilization were lost - we pulled up to a small sign indicating we had arrived at our destination.
A picturesque and almost dreamlike sunset was the first thing to greet us as we rolled our car into Terragena's small but unbelievably beautiful vineyard. The untamed allure of the property was immediately palpable, and while the golden evening light was fleeting we quickly became enamored by the raw natural wonders that surrounded us. It wasn't until the next day however, when owner and winemaker Chris Buchanan arrived to guide us through a tour and tasting, that we were able to truly grasp how spectacular this rural estate actually is.
Chris graciously took the time to walk us around the property while he explained the origins of Terragena and how he ended up farming in such an idyllic yet out of the way location. As Tennessee native who majored in mathematics and economics Chris' path to making wine off-the-grid in Humboldt was hardly conventional, yet life serendipitously led him to this unique and magnificent place. Chris explained that he found himself in the wine the industry by working for a time in at a winery in Mendocino County, and during his time there he eventually starting making a small amount of wine on his own. He later stumbled upon a property for sale in Humboldt County that was exactly what he was looking for and he jumped at the chance to start his very own winery from scratch there. It was exceptionally difficult to turn a mostly forested piece of mountainous land into a functioning homestead and vineyard, and Chris admits he was fueled by naivety as much as pure passion, but after years of backbreaking work the first vines at Terragena were finally put into the ground in 2013.
While getting vines planted was a major step forward for the growth of Terragena Vineyard things didn't get easier for quite some time. Chris quickly discovered that the soils on his property were extremely hard-packed and nutrient deficient, causing a disturbing number of the first batch of vines to die off. He persevered and replanted as needed and thankfully after a few years his vineyard began to thrive. Interestingly through his trials Chris discovered that there there are multiple different kinds of soil spattered throughout the tightly-knit 2 acres of vines at Terragena - all of which are marine sedimentary in origin. There are sections of the vineyard that contain remarkably sandy top soils, others that are quite loamy in nature, and still others that are heavier in clay content. All of these top soils sit atop sandstone bedrock that can be difficult to penetrate, but once the vine roots make their way into the sandstone they almost immediately become much stronger and heartier.
In addition to its distinct soils the unique climate is a major factor that makes growing grapes at Terragena Vineyard both challenging and rewarding. The property experiences a cool Mediterranean climate with an average annual rainfall of about 80 inches, which is exceptionally high for California, but thankfully very little rain falls during the growing season. At 2000 feet of elevation the estate often gets snow in the winter and sees moderate summer temperatures that rarely exceed 75 degrees. Terragena experiences bud break between March and April - around the same time as most California Pinot Noir vineyards - yet sugar accumulation in the grapes moves slowly here, and harvest typically takes place in mid to late October with sugar levels of as low as 21-22 brix. This longer growing season and extra hang time on the vine allows for intricate development of flavor complexity while ripeness is held squarely in check. The property also facilitates incredible natural acidity, and its wines typically contain tremendous pent-up energy while remaining classic, elegant, and almost Burgundian in profile.
After spending a great deal of time with Chris exploring his estate vineyard we moved our way down to the cellar to taste through a lineup of Terragena's delicious micro-production wine. He poured us an eclectic selection of bottlings crafted not only from Terragena's estate fruit, but also from other cool climate sites in Humboldt, Mendocino, and Sonoma Counties. We worked our way through a vast array of whites, rosés, and reds, and we were extraordinarily impressed with absolutely everything that was poured. We were thrilled to get to sample some incredible wine made from Carneros fruit, which were the ripest and most fruit forward of the bunch, along with an amazing selection of Anderson Valley wines, but for us it was the Humboldt County offerings that were the most striking and unique. Perhaps our favorite bottle of the afternoon besides Terragena's estate wines was the Elk Prairie Pinot Noir that is sourced from an older dry farmed vineyard located just a few miles away. This wine possessed everything about Humboldt County Pinot we had fallen in love with: it was fresh, acid-driven, and incredibly lean, yet possessed haunting aromatics led by delicate, nuanced fruit and high-definition earth and soil tones. This highly educational tasting made it clear to us that Humboldt County is the real deal, and it is currently shaping wines that match the greatest current examples California has to offer.
To put it simply our visit to Terragena Vineyard was eye opening. Coming in we knew there was something special about Humboldt County viticulture, but we had no idea how insane, extreme, and revolutionary this sprawling yet sequestered landscape actually was. Humboldt County wines have proven themselves to be absolutely worth seeking out, and although they can be rare and hard to find the chase is absolutely worth the reward. Terragena Vineyard may be a small and largely unknown producer, but we have no doubt their popularity will erupt once more people have the chance to experience the magic they have created deep behind the redwood curtain. Seek out these wines or better yet, make the trip up to Humboldt to check out some really big trees and taste some really extraordinary wine. You'll thank us you did!