VINEYARDS:
Located just south of the town of Healdsburg, Foppiano vineyards sits on 160 acres in the acclaimed appellation of the Russian River Valley. Cool morning fog and warm summer days create an ideal microclimate for grape growing. The Foppiano family has been producing world class fruit on this land since its purchase in 1896. Today the vineyard is planted to Petite Sirah, Zinfandel, and Sauvignon Blanc on the warmer bench lands, and Pinot Noir and Chardonnay on the cooler land close to the Russian River.
WINEMAKING:
We don’t want our wines to be over extracted with tannin and unbalanced flavors. Approachable fruit and elegance in texture are our goals. Hand punch downs and light pumpovers are best for gentle extraction during fermentation. A long barrel cellaring period softens the finish and ages the wine so that it is ready to drink when released from the winery.
TASTING NOTES:
Dried blackberry, sweet cinnamon, coco powder and a hint of sage show in the aromas. This wine progresses over the palate with dark espresso, raspberry jam, dark chocolate covered blueberries and finishing with perfectly integrated oak spice. Concentrated fruit, balanced acidity and mature tannins will allow this wine to age for 10+ years.
Paul Foppiano is the fifth generation at his family’s 160-acre vineyard in Healdsburg, and a major proponent of petite sirah. He farms six blocks of petite sirah, the oldest planted in 1970 to the Foppiano clone. Nova Perrill works it as gently as he can in the winery, taming petite’s formidable tannins into a sleek red wine. It’s tightly structured, not at all heavy, with dark red-berry fruit, and tannins that glint with minerality, giving the wine a radish-like bite. Still potent in its extract, this has the stuffing to age for ten years or more, and an openness that makes it approachable now. (1,160 cases) -J.G. - Wine & Spirits Magazine 92 Points
