100% Sangiovese Napa Valley "Blood of Jupiter" 
18 months in French Oak

The best Sangiovese we ever made, bar none. Here's to you with gusto! 

The 2004 vintage thankfully had more average harvest times compared to the late harvests of 1999 and 2001. Good spring weather led to a timely bloom and healthy fruit set at crop levels that were up from 2002 and 2003. Yields were still below 4 tons per acre. The summer had some typical heat spikes while the fall weather was moderate with a few cool snaps which led to harvest delays in some vineyard blocks. The delay in harvest timing was evident in our Estate Sangiovese block. At times the decision of when to pick to achieve maximum balance in the fruit was difficult. From one day to the next the fruit appeared to be changing back and forth. After determining that a portion of the block was behind the main block in flavor development we held harvesting off for a week. This week paid off in bringing more complete ripeness to the fruit. This 2004 vintage of Sangiovese is the most ripe we have ever made at 14.9% alcohol.
As in previous vintages we crushed our Sangiovese into open-top fermenters. We chose to remove all of the stems before fermentation in this year because the skins were showing more than enough structure and tannin development on their own. During the fermentations we used the old method of manually punching-down the cap of skins to extract greater color and character without drawing out excessively bitter tannins. The period of skin contact in the fermenters was   shorter   than in 2003; the higher level of ripeness of the fruit allowed us to stretch the maceration and see what would be released into the wine. In addition, we chose a relatively short barrel aging period to accent the fruit of the wine. Two vineyards were chosen as the blending components in this vintage as it added greater depth and complexity to the mid-palate. The wine was bottled unfined and unfiltered to preserve maximum character for the bottle.

The color is a deep ruby red with a red rim. Aromas of cherry preserves, cranberry and briar show in the nose along with pepper and cedar notes. These flavors carry on in the mouth followed by a hint of pepper late in the palate. The flavors linger and the smooth finish shows soft tannin. This wine can be enjoyed now or over the next several years. It would pair well with a wide range of foods including lamb and pork as well as pasta dishes. Those with more daring may try it with paella! This wine is the epitome of the great Sangiovese grape of Tuscany. Salute' to its Old World roots!