Terra Firma Wine Company is an independent importer and distributor of wines from family-run farms.
The wineries we represent – imported and domestic – all strive to capture a sense of place, or terroir.
We focus on wines fermented with native yeasts, made with minimal intervention and low (sometimes zero) sulfur additions. We carry many wines made from rare, indigenous grape varieties, several of which had nearly vanished before being revived by their grower.
Each one of our suppliers is committed to healthy farming practices. Some of the growers have been farming without pesticides or herbicides for several years; many incorporate biodynamic methods. Each grower’s profile provides specifics on farming, including certification status.
Our customers are restaurants and wine retailers throughout the state of California who are dedicated to providing an outstanding and eclectic selection of wines to their clientele.
Meet Our Team
Ted Talley
CEO, Founder, Sales
Ted graduated from San Francisco State with a BA in the Humanities (“all of them”, as he likes to joke). He went on to study oenology and viticulture in Burgundy at the Lycée Viticole in Beaune and the Université de Bourgogne in Dijon. He spent many years working in the vines of Meursault, picking, pruning, and drinking. He has been selling wine in the Bay Area since 1996, and founded Terra Firma in 2003. Taking the company in its new direction in 2019, he’s been traveling through the wine regions of France and Italy seeking out wines of character to introduce to the California market. Driving the back roads, tromping through vineyards and cellars, making connections with the growers; these are a welcome return to the roots of his career in wine.
Kristen Talley
CFO, COO
Kristen earned a BA in French from UC Santa Barbara and spent two years living in France – one as a university student in the southwest city of Pau, the other living and working on the island of Corsica. She then spent fifteen years in the world of corporate insurance doing sales, account management and project management. She joined Ted to run Terra Firma’s operations in 2006. Outside of work and family, Kristen loves to walk the Bay Area hills and beaches with friends and with her wee dog Gus.
Kate Schott
general manager
Falling in love with wine over a single trip to Napa was all it took for Kate to leave her native Ohio and move to the Bay Area. She has been involved with the wine industry in various roles for over ten years (including owning and running a wine bar!). She joined Terra Firma in early 2023 to run the order desk. When she’s not drinking wine, Kate can be found reading, running, cooking, or walking along one of the great beaches in Pacifica, where she lives.
Ted and Kristen married in 1999 and began working together in 2006.
Still friends, still in love, and still in business after all these years, they are also proud parents to two lovely young adults, Kevin and Olivia.
