Background
The black grape sangiovese, while historic and noble in Tuscany, where it is largely responsible for the breezy wines of Chianti Classico, flounders in California. Only rarely have wines made from sangiovese grown here shown the bright fruit, wiry structure and refreshing acidity that make Chianti Classico such an accessible and accommodating wine, especially when pizza and pasta are on the menu. In California, sangiovese-based wines have tended to be either shallow and thin, or the opposite: too heavily extracted and overoaked.

CA's Sangiovese Pioneers
In the Shenandoah Valley of Amador County, however, two of the state's early pioneers with sangiovese, Jim and Suzy Gullett of the winery Vino Noceto, are showing that when the grape is handled patiently and astutely, it has potential in California. They shot out of the block with a delightfully zesty take a decade ago and haven't looked back. Where other vintners have gotten discouraged, they've stuck by sangiovese, expanding and refining their winemaking.

While their sangioveses are more delicate than muscular, you don't have to lean forward to hear what they have to say. They're all about clarity and spirit, generally tending toward a cranberry, strawberry, cherry kind of fruitiness, with a lean build and refreshing finish.

-David Rosengarten