Sangiovese 2023

Stolpman’s Cal-Ital Local’s Favorite
Our long-time “locals’ favorite”.  The vast majority of Estate Sangiovese production is hoarded by our club members and tasting room guests. The mature Sangiovese vines grown in Ballard Canyon’s sunny, arid, and wind-swept conditions provide a concentrated, ripe crop of tiny Sangiovese grapes. In turn, the winemaking team’s evolution in gentle extraction plays a deft hand in coaxing the grapes’ raw, undiluted power into a singularly luxurious Sangiovese.  Each vintage, we adapt the duration of oak aging in order to optimize the balance between integration of the varietal’s robust character and retaining freshness.
Healthy late season rains pushed back bud-break and the growing season by 3-4 weeks. We escaped the summer without any extreme heat events that would have accelerated ripening. This moderate weather led to even, slow sugar accumulation. October weather warmed up and pushed the vines through the finish line for a smooth, seamless, and plush vintage that still carries plenty of bright energy. With one of the longest hang-times in our 30 years of growing Sangiovese, we picked for the Estate cuvee in early November. The result is an amazingly deep, aromatic bottling.
An airy, room filling perfume of high-toned red candy with a flare of peppermint and cinnamon stick. Juice bursting out of taut cherry skins splash over a toasted oak framework.  Eventually the surging, red-fruited river calms and widens, meandering through the candy-cane forest into woody, dry fine tannin. The finish leaves a joyful tap-dancing, light-footed prettiness while still retaining the thick, chewy trademark Sangiovese texture.