| Region of production: | Santa Lucia Highlands AVA |
| Winery Location: | Gonzales |
| Year Established: | 1982 |
Vineyard Holdings
18.2 ha
- Pisoni Vineyard: East-/northeast-facing vineyard at 1,300 feet in elevation with sandy, decomposed granite soils. Planted in 1982.
Sourced Vineyards
- Garys’ Vineyard: Owned by Gary Franscioni and managed by Gary Pisoni. Planted in 1997.
- Soberanes Vineyard: Second vineyard partnership with Gary Franscioni. Planted in 2008.
Top Wines Produced & Inaugural Vintages
- Pisoni Estate (Santa Lucia Highlands AVA): The only wine made under the Pisoni name. 500 to 800 cases produced. Inaugural vintage 1998.
Average Total Production
- 6,000 bottles
Summary
Gary Pisoni’s parents, Jane and Eddie, began farming in the Salinas Valley in 1952. Gary, a collector of French wine since he was in college, became a pioneer of the Central Coast, planting his first five acres of vines in 1982. The vineyards are planted to the Pisoni clone, rumored to be a suitcase clone from a famous domaine in Vosne-Romanée. The first vintage was released in 1999, with Lucia, a second label, following the next year. Gary’s sons, Mark and Jeff, now manage the vineyards and winemaking, respectively.
Style & Vinification Techniques
All grapes are hand-sorted before arriving at the winery. Fermentations are done exclusively with native yeast and with approximately one-third whole clusters, and all punchdowns are by hand. The wines are aged for one year in two-thirds new French oak before being bottled unfined and unfiltered and aging an additional year in bottle before release.
Producer Website: Pisoni