50th Anniversary of Our Vineyard

Rancho Tierra Rejada, Spanish for “land of worked earth,” is the original name of the 2,500 acre Paso Robles ranch now home to the vineyards that produce Broken Earth Wines. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, grain and cattle were the primary commodities here. It was a land of pioneer families, vaqueros, banditos, and cattle barons such as the Miller & Lux Cattle Company. Paso Robles defined the real and true west before 1900. That pioneer spirit lives on today at Broken Earth Winery. Watch our video below to learn more about our story.

In 1973, Wayne Rodgers (Mash), James Caan (Godfather), Peter Faulk (Columbo), Jack Webb (Dragnet) and local visionary Herman Schwartz established our vineyard to be the first large scale vineyard on the Central Coast, planting 520 acres. They anticipated the growth of Paso Robles to be another 2,000 acres with 10-15 wineries over the long-term. Paso Robles now stands around 70,000 acres under vine, and over 300 wineries.

Farmers for generations have cultivated or “broken” soil in the region with care and respect. Vineyard pioneer Herman Schwartz embraced sustainable farming techniques as they were first coming on to the scene in the early 1980s. Our goal is to continue that tradition by respecting the land and its treasures.

• California Certified Sustainable Vineyard and Winery (100% Solar Powered)
• Advanced Green Technologies used within the production facility.
• Total tons of CO2 emissions reduced.
• Over 25 years: 21,042 tons

Continental Vineyard was a grower for many Napa wineries in the early 70’s and 80’s. Winemakers from all over the world would travel to this vineyard to see what Paso Robles was capable of growing. We continue in this tradition today, establishing many new varieties that have never been planted in the US, and have 34 of the 72 varieties grown in the Region.