Gary Franscioni is the low-key half of the pair behind Garys’ Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA. (His business partner, of course, is the flamboyant Gary Pisoni, who also owns the cult-status Pinot Noir vineyard that bears his name.) But a year before the childhood friends teamed up in 1997 to plant Garys’ Vineyard, Franscioni had jumped into the wine business by planting his own 50-acre vineyard in the AVA. The vineyard was named for his wife, Rosella.

Hailing from a family of farmers, Franscioni got interested in wine while he was studying food science at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo. He spent years learning more about viticulture and putting together the money to plant a vineyard. In 1996, Franscioni started planting grapes – Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah -- at Rosella's, which used to be planted with row crops like broccoli and Romaine lettuce.

When Franscioni and Pisoni started the 50-acre Garys’ Vineyard, about a mile south of Rosella’s, they planted it with mostly Pinot Noir – the Pisoni selection, taken from Pisoni Vineyard cuttings – and a little Syrah. Both Garys’ and Rosella’s are meticulously farmed, and prestigious wineries like Siduri, Testarossa, Copain and Tantara buy many of their grapes.

But farming wasn’t enough for Franscioni. In 2001, he started Roar Wines, producing vineyard-designated Pinot Noir and Syrah from Rosella’s, Garys’ and Pisoni Vineyard grapes. Adam and Dianna Lee of Siduri Wines collaborate on the winemaking. Franscioni, who still farms vegetables in the Salinas Valley, talked with me about what he’s learned about growing grapes in the Santa Lucia Highlands.