Margins Wine Nebbiolo San Benito 2022
Producer: Margins Wine
Region: California, United States
Grapes: Nebbiolo
Tasting Notes: Floral, Dusty Rose, Tomato Jam.
Farming: Organic
Vinification: 100% destemmed. Fermented on skins for three days. Aged in neutral oak for 4.5 months. Native fermentation, no fining, no filtration, no other modifications or additions except 20 ppm of sulfur dioxide the week before bottling.
Bio: Tres Pinos Creek Vineyard is farmed by John Siletto, whose late father Ron Siletto was an integral figure in the history of San Benito County viticulture. The Silettos have been farming in the region for the past 30 years and now manage a total of 125 acres with over 30 planted varieties, most of them Italian and French varietals rarely seen in this country. All their acreage is currently in its second year of organic conversion with a goal of certification.
After making Négrette with grapes farmed by John Siletto for the first time in 2020, I had some experience to help me determine the direction I would like to take more tannic red varietals from San Benito in the future. Being extremely sensitive to tannic bitterness myself, I am striving to make more gentle versions of these types of red wines. This Nebbiolo explores the opposite end of the spectrum than the wines of Barolo and Barbaresco in Piedmont, Italy to which the grape is native. This is a light and fruity wine with subtle hints of varietal character, rather than being a tannin bomb which requires years of cellaring before the optimal drinking period.
What if Nebbiolo were fun?