Balletto Vineyards
John Balletto was seventeen when he took over the family farm in 1977. He built the largest vegetable operation in Northern California, then pulled it all out and planted Pinot Noir.1
Why go
By 1994 the Ballettos were growing more than seventy vegetables across 700-plus acres and moving over two million cases a year.1 Warren Dutton of Dutton Ranch, a neighbor, told John and Terri to look at wine grapes because they drink less water.1 Three El Nino storms in spring 1998 wiped out much of the vegetable planting and cost them nearly $2 million, and NAFTA had already made the rest hard.1 They converted every acre to vineyard over three years and sold the fruit to other producers.1 Then they kept the best tenth of it and made 391 cases of Chardonnay and 689 of Pinot Noir in 2001.1 That ten percent rule still holds, at 20,000 to 25,000 cases.1
Order this / avoid
- Order: the RRV Flagship Flight, three estate wines for $15 at the bar, thirty minutes.2
- Order: the Chardonnay Experience, five estate Chardonnays for $25, if you want the variety the ranch was replanted for.2
- Avoid: treating this as a boutique. Over 250 acres wrap the winery and the family still farms all of it.2
Good to know
- The Estate Tasting is $30 for five wines over 45 minutes, seated.2
- Bob's Sustainability Tram Tour is $50 for 90 minutes and five wines, on a ranch farmed to 100 percent certified sustainable standards.2
- Hotel partners get the Chardonnay Experience at $12.50.2
Verdict
could-visit — John Balletto was seventeen when his father died in 1977, and he turned down athletic scholarships to keep the family's five-acre farm going. By 1994 it was the largest vegetable farm in Northern California, over seventy crops on 700-plus acres. Three El Nino storms in 1998 and NAFTA ended that, so they planted every acre to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and made their first wine in 2001, 391 cases of Chardonnay and 689 of Pinot. They still sell most of the fruit and keep the top ten percent. Three estate wines at the bar is $15, which is the cheapest honest tasting in this slice.