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Descending the crest of a knoll on Ross Station Road, the three hundred acres of land comprising Iron Horse Ranch and Vineyards opens to rolling hills covered with grape vines. Passing across a bridge, up a winding oak lined drive, between a row of alternating palm and olive trees brings you to the charming Iron Horse Winery. In spite of first viewing Iron Horse in a driving rainstorm and the partially developed condition of the property, Audrey and Barry Sterling quickly recognized it was precisely what they had sought for so long. The former Vineyard Manager, Forrest Tancer, took them around the property. They instantly appreciated his viticultural knowledge, his dedication to the land and his desire to see Iron Horse developed into a premier California vineyard. Within a few weeks in early 1976, the purchase of Iron Horse was made and Forrest Tancer agreed to continue as Vineyard Manager, eventually becoming a partner in the winery and then a son-in-law.
Iron Horse uses grapes exclusively from the Iron Horse Vineyards and from
Forrest's family estate, the T-Bar-T Ranch in the Alexander Valley, just
30 miles away. Two hundred forty-four acres of producing vines constitute
the Iron Horse Estates, the Thomas Road Vineyard and T-Bar-T Ranch. Ninety-nine
acres of Chardonnay and eighty-five acres of Pinot Noir are in Sonoma
County's Green Valley. Sixty acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc,
Sangiovese, Merlot, Viognier and Sauvignon Blanc are in Sonoma's Alexander
Valley.
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