2015 Saggi - 1.5L

Among Tuscany's oldest and most prestigious wine families, Ambrogio and Giovanni Folonari teamed with Allen Shoup to produce a wine that showcases Washington state's terroir with plenty of Italian character. Saggi (meaning "wisdom") is a blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah.

An early spring and hot weather conditions during the summer growing season defined the 2015 Columbia Valley vintage. Building on the success of our ongoing canopy management program, we worked with growers throughout the season to hand-prune and trim each vine for good airflow inside the canopy while maintaining a uniform fruit zone. By September and into October, conditions returned to a more typical Columbia Valley weather pattern marked by warm days and cool nights to yield small berries with thick skins that produced high quality, fruit-forward wines. 

Hand-harvested grapes were brought to the winery in small lots and crushed, then 5-10% of the juice was removed from the tank at the beginning of fermentation, a technique known as saignée used to enhance richenss and concentration. Extended maceration in small, two-ton tanks for an average of 30 days provided for optimal extraction and helped broaden the finished wine's mid-palate. Aged 18 months in all French oak barrels, 55% new.