Alta Colina
Get the Dirt from owner Bob Tillman
“Alta Colina means “high hill” in Spanish. Since we’re all estate we wanted the label to be about our hilltop property. The steep hillsides and altitude are major factors that set Alta Colina Vineyard apart.”
The Tillman family started Alta Colina in 2003. They grow 8 Rhone varietals on their estate vineyard on the westside of Paso Robles. A small portion of the Alta Colina fruit goes into their own wines while the rest is sold to other wineries in Paso Robles.
If not you, who is your winemaker
I'm the winemaker and we have Jeff Cohn from JC Cellars on hand as our consulting winemaker.
How did you get your start in the winemaking business?
It has been a goal since the early 70’s and after 30 years of avid wine consumption and home-winemaking we moved to the Central Coast and got to know Paso. This is perfect place to make the kinds of wines I like to drink and want to make.
What's your favorite varietal/wine to make? Why?
Tough to pick a favorite but, if I have to, Syrah! It makes big wines…big flavor, big color, it can carry oak beautifully. When done right, I could drink Syrah at all times!
What vineyards do you source from? Why? If estate, why do you choose the spot you're in?
Alta Colina is 100% estate. Our 130 acre property has the ideal combination of soil, climate, and aspect ratio for Rhone varieties. There’s no better place to make these wines!
What do you love about your winemaking region? What makes it different special?
On top of the perfect grape growing conditions, the pioneering spirit of winemakers in Paso and that we’re emerging as a wine region—we haven’t been pigeonholed by others’ expectations, which frees us up to grow what we want and make it into the best wine possible.
What's the story behind your name/label?
Alta Colina means “high hill” in Spanish. Since we’re all estate we wanted the label to be about our hilltop property. The steep hillsides and altitude are major factors that set Alta Colina Vineyard apart.
If you had unlimited funds, what would you do differently, if anything, in the production of your wine?
A bottomless checkbook? We’d definitely get a kegarator and have weekly in-house massages! But before that, we’d build our own facility on our property and buy another sorting table so we could sort before and after destemming.
What's the biggest misconception about making wine in California?
Mostly it’s just cleaning stuff!
What's the one thing you wish someone had told you about the wine business before you started your own winery?
Everything takes a looooooong time! And don’t be afraid of less well-known varieties—plant what works.
We're curious…do you even get tired of drinking your own wine?
Not yet!
Is it considered bad form to constantly dip into your inventory?
Naaaah!
If working in the wine industry wasn't an option, what's your other dream job?
I already had my other dream job!
What piece of winemaking equipment is the most fun to use? The hardest? Most necessary?
Most fun—destemmer/sorting tableHardest—punch down toolNecessary—bottling line
You can taste Alta Colina's wine at 2725 Adelaida Rd., Paso Robles, CA 93446. Open Thursday - Sunday, 11am - 5pm. If you'd like more information about their wines, please visit their website or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.