Team
As a small family winery, our team is also small, yet mighty. With many collective years of loyalty, hard work, and fun, we consider them an extension of our family.
Mary Rocca and Dr. Eric Grigsby Proprietors
Raised in the Sonoma countryside, Mary Rocca met Eric Grigsby in medical school at Boston University. A Tennessee native, he also grew up in a rural setting, gardening and tending the land with his father. After marriage and more medical school at the Mayo Clinic, along with a growing family, they decided to move back to Mary’s roots in Northern California, knowing that they ultimately wanted land to farm and cultivate.
Settling in Napa, Mary opened her dental practice and Eric opened the Napa Pain Institute and the family grew to four children. Despite their busy careers and large family, they held onto their vision of grapegrowing, and after a decade in Napa, began the search for the perfect piece of property. That property turned out to be a 21-acre vineyard in the heart of Yountville, and with a handshake agreement in 1999, they became the proud owners of their first piece of land. Mary assumed the day to day operations of the vineyard, and in 2000 hired Sergio Melgoza to oversee the farming. Realizing that owning a vineyard required much time and attention, Mary retired from her practice and dedicated herself full-time to Rocca Family Vineyards, which by then included their second vineyard in Coombsville, and a wine label, while Eric continued to cultivate a career as one of the nation’s most respected pain management physicians. Over two decades later, the four children are grown, and Mary spends her time between Rocca and the Palace Market, a quaint, gourmet grocery store on the Marin coast, founded in 1898 and owned by her family since 1973. While still overseeing Neurovations and Napa Pain Institute, Eric has circled back to the vineyard and winery, happy to spend more time farming.
Tom Sherwood Winemaker
Tom joined our Rocca team as Winemaker in 2021 after a span of seven years working for several iconic wineries in Napa Valley and collaborating with some of Napa’s most respected vineyards. During that time, he nurtured his own personal style and winemaking philosophy - to express the true character of each vineyard’s unique terroir in expressive, elegant wines.
Growing up in Euroa, Victoria, Australia, Tom’s appreciation for food and wine developed at a young age while working at a local restaurant, and he was hooked. Deciding to pursue a career in winemaking, Tom received his Bachelor's of Science in Viticulture and Oenology from the University of Adelaide in Southern Australia and started his first internship in the Barossa Valley. Although he grew up in a farming community, he had now gained a newfound appreciation for the grape farmers who worked tirelessly to deliver premium-quality wine grapes, leading him to his unwavering belief that winemaking starts in the vineyard. Not only did Tom fall in love with farming and winemaking while at this internship, he also met his future wife, with whom he moved to Napa Valley in 2014 to start their winemaking careers.
Now at Rocca, Tom is deeply involved in our organically-farmed estate vineyards, working alongside Sergio to ensure we grow the best quality grapes possible and continue crafting exceptional, terroir-driven wines.
Sergio Melgoza Vineyard Manager
When you meet Sergio, you immediately know that the Rocca vineyards are his pride and joy. Joining the team in 2000, Sergio was instrumental in rehabilitating the Grigsby Vineyard in Yountville and developing the Collinetta Vineyard in Coombsville, from the ground up.
After over two decades as Rocca’s vineyard manager, he has built a strong team, expertly skilled and fully committed to farming organically and sustainably, growing and harvesting the highest quality wine grapes possible. Sergio lives with his wife Arcelia and family on the Coombsville vineyard property, surrounded by the vines he loves.
The Vineyard Team
Led by Sergio Melgoza, our vineyard team is a tight-knit group who have worked side-by-side for years. Their unparalleled skill, attention to detail, and genuine love of the Rocca vineyards make them our "Dream Team". We take enormous pride in the collective efforts of Sergio, Arcelia, Fredy, Francisco, Margarita, Ernesto, Jaime, Maria Elena, Christian, and Juan Carlos - as we always say, great wines start in the vineyard.