Caleb Leisure 'Impostora' Sierra Foothills 2020
This crystalline red is a blend of varieties grafted from smuggled Sicilian material. Fresh, light and too easy to drink with aromas of bramble citrus and pepper float off of a frame of minerality and textured acidity. A great summer red with plenty of complexity to keep you intrigued.
Tasting Notes: bramble, pepper, citrus, confection. Wild.
Varietal: Hard to say. Something(s) Sicilian. The grapes come from a project in begun by the incomparable winemaker Bryan Harrington. I'm the very fortunate inheritor of this viticultural riddle. In 2015, cuttings believed to be Nerello Mascalese were shipped from a Mt. Etna vineyard to California. After a two year quarantine, they were grafted over Viognier at Sumu Kaw Vineyard. A year in, DNA testing revealed that the varietal was not Nerello Mascalese nor any other of the 28,000 varieties in the DNA database! Also, there were two different varietals. Could be Sicilian clones of Grenache and Mourvedre. Or not.
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Caleb Leisure’s winemaking is steeped in traditional Georgian winemaking methods. He is the only California winemaker using authentic Georgian qvevri in his process. In 2017 he buried 10 qvevri in the earthen cellar at the Coturri Winery, making wines that are steeped in tradition, while being very contemporary. Caleb is using organic and biodynamically grown California grapes. There are no additions or subtractions in the winemaking process.