The Goal: America’s Foremost Brunello
For
decades, the dream of San Francisco restaurateur Lorenzo Petroni of the
North Beach Restaurant was to produce his favorite red wine from his native
Italy, a Brunello Made in America. Our flagship wine is made from 100%
Sangiovese Grosso, which is widely considered the Sangiovese clone par
excellence. Our cuttings were secured from top California wineries and
certified nurseries specializing in this clone. Our wine is produced
completely from our low-yielding, organic, estate vineyard "Poggio alla
Pietra" in the west Mayacamas mountains overlooking the Sonoma Valley.
Excellent exposure and optimum climate ensure the slow ripening of the
grapes which in turn makes wine of great depth and complexity with a
consistent concentration of fruit that can only be achieved in the best
vintages in other growing areas. Our dedication to sustainable farming in
combination with the finest clonal selections and gentle handling in the
cellar guarantee the pure expression of the terroir. The results are an apt
symbol of what Petroni represents; the potential of Italian immigrants when
allowed to thrive in the perfect conditions of the Sonoma Valley.
The Vintage: 2003
2003 was an intermittently wet year with rain falling into May and
in the latter stages of harvest. Being a predominately hillside vineyard,
however, the estate dried off nicely following each precipitation event and
allowed the individual blocks of Sangiovese Grosso to continue ripening to
their fullest potential. The vineyard was harvested over the course of
several days with fruit arriving having an average brix of 25.8.
In the Cellar:
Gentle Handling
With attention to every detail, and both modern and traditional
methods employed, the wine saw state-of- the-art handling. After a brief
cold soak, individual lots were allowed to undergo fermentation using native
yeasts and were put to barrel shortly after going dry. The cooperage
selected for the 2003 was primarily French, 30 percent new. Unique for
Petroni, the 2003 remained in barrel 26 months to encourage the softening of
tannins and surfacing of fruit flavors, which we feel are critical to this
style of wine. Finishing involved careful racking off egg white finings,
cold settling the wine for a period of one month at 48F, and then racking to
assure all solids and tartrates were left out of the bottles.
The Wine: Glorious
Dark garnet colored center, strawberry rim, very clear appearance.
The immediate impression of the bouquet is combination of floral and sweet
herbal scents, underlain with maraschino cherry, tobacco and leather aromas.
The attack on the palate is forward, concentrated with mouth-coating ripe
red fruit, kirsch, and cherry cola flavors. Lovely long dry finish.
2003
Brunello di Sonoma
Variety: 100% Sangiovese Grosso
Appellation: Sonoma Valley, Estate Grown and Produced
Harvest: September – October, 2003
Fermentation: 100% native yeast and malolactic bacteria
Aging: Twenty-six months in new and used French Oak
Production: 1030 cases Alcohol: 14.1%
