Le Vigne Winery Domenico Petite Sirah 2007
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Le Vigne Winery is family-owned and located in the heart of the Estrella District AVA on the Eastside of Paso Robles. The Filippini family history began in the early 1960’s when Sylvia Filippini parents purchased the ranch from country music legend “Buck Owens”. In 1981 the first set of vines were planted and today Le Vigne has fifteen different varietals planted on its three estate vineyards. The 125 acres under vine have planting of well-known varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot as well as unique varietals of Corvina and Tannat. Le Vigne first started producing wine in 1989 and in 1995 built a state-of-the-art winery that has been upgraded over the years.
Walter Filippini spent his younger years at his parents’ home in the lakeside town of Como, Italy and spent many summers working with his grandparents on their vineyards in Valtellina. As Walter grew, he developed as passion for cooking and the kitchen – an important facet of Italian life. By the age of 15 Walter entered the Culinary Institute in San Pellegrino, Italy. Spending summers working at the famed Excelsior Palace Hotel in Venice and Grand Albergo Villa d’Este in Como allowed Walters’ talent in the kitchen to excel and in 1981 won Italy’s National Chef Competition for a delectable display of pheasant pate.
Le Vigne winemaker is Terry Culton, one of Paso Robles top winemakers with an extensive resume in winemaking; working with some of West Coast's top wineries in California and Oregon. Terry has a broad range of winemaking prowess with multiple grape varieties. He has a proven track record of making sought after wines with consistent 90+ ratings from every major publication and has been called a “Top Flight” winemaker by notable writer Robert Parker of The Wine Advocate.
With its deep color, firm tannins and bold flavors, there is nothing petite about Petite Sirah. The variety, originally known as Durif in the Rhône, took on its more popular moniker after being imported to California in the early 1880s. Quintessentially recognized today as a grape of the Golden State, Petite Sirah works well blended with Zinfandel and finds success as a single varietal wine in the state’s warmer districts. Somm Secret—Petite Sirah is not a smaller version of Syrah but it is an offspring of Syrah and the now nearly extinct French Alpine variety called Peloursin.
Paso Robles has made a name for itself as a source of supple, powerful, fruit-driven Central Coast wines. But with eleven smaller sub-AVAs, there is actually quite a bit of diversity to be found in this inland portion of California’s Central Coast.
Just east over the Santa Lucia Mountains from the chilly Pacific Ocean, lie the coolest in the region: Adelaida, Templeton Gap and (Paso Robles) Willow Creek Districts, as well as York Mountain AVA and Santa Margarita Ranch. These all experience more ocean fog, wind and precipitation compared to the rest of the Paso sub-appellations. The San Miguel, (Paso Robles) Estrella, (Paso Robles) Geneso, (Paso Robles) Highlands, El Pomar and Creston Districts, along with San Juan Creek, are the hotter, more western appellations of the greater Paso Robles AVA.
This is mostly red wine country, with Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel standing out as the star performers. Other popular varieties include Merlot, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Grenache and Rhône blends, both red and white. There is a fairly uniform tendency here towards wines that are unapologetically bold and opulently fruit-driven, albeit with a surprising amount of acidity thanks to the region’s chilly nighttime temperatures.