FOPPIANO VINEYARDS Celebrates 125 Years of Wine Production in the Russian River Valley of California

L. Foppiano Wine Co. recently held a virtual tasting in honor of the premier winery's 125th Anniversary and Broadwayworld had the pleasure of attending. The event was hosted by Paul Foppiano along with the company's winemaker, Nova Perril, and Master Sommelier, Evan Goldstein. Not only did we appreciate the guided tasting, but also learned about the history of Foppiano.

Located in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County, Foppiano is the oldest winery in the region. The family's story is full of tradition and perseverance. It all started when Giovanni Foppiano arrived in New York from Genoa, Italy in 1855 then migrated to California via the Isthmus of Panama and settled in Healdsburg, California. In1896, Foppiano Winery was established when Giovanni purchased the 80-acre Riverside Farm and working winery.

(Young Paul Foppiano on a stack of wine cases. L to R-Paul's uncle, Louis M. Foppiano; his father, Rod Foppiano; and grandfather, Louis J.)

The winery is still owned and operated by Foppiano family as it has been for five generations. They are among the pioneers of California's winemaking history, helping to populate the land with the area's renowned grape varietals such as Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel and Petite Sirah.

Paul Foppiano commented, "My family's tenacity as farmers has preserved our ability to produce award-winning wines through depressions, World Wars and prohibition." In fact, during Prohibition in the 1920's the company showed great ingenuity as they sold home winemaking kits.

(Photo taken at the height of Prohibition in 1926)

Winemaker, Nova Perrill carefully selected the set of six wines for the virtual tasting that exhibits Foppiano Vineyards sustainably farmed estate vineyards. While a few of them are no longer available to consumers, the selection was a great representation of the quality and diversity of Foppiano wines. They included Foppiano Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2019; Foppiano Estate Petite Sirah "Centennial Blend" 1993; Foppiano Estate Rivers Edge Pinot Noir 2016; Foppiano Estate Nono's Block Zinfandel 2017; Foppiano Estate Grant Station Carignane 2018; and Foppiano Estate Gianna's Block Petite Sirah 2017.

We were very impressed with all of the wines. In particular, the Foppiano Estate Rivers Edge Pinot Noir 2016 is very authentic of the varietal's character and and the Foppiano Estate Petite Sirah "Centennial Blend" 1993 was presented as a beautifully aged wine that shares the same soils and climate of Foppiano's younger Petite Sirah selections.

While the tasting was dominated by a delightful selection of reds, we asked Paul Foppiano about the future of their crisp, refreshing Sauvignon Blanc. He told us that it is very well received and hopes to increase production of it in the future.

We are sure our readers will enjoy discovering Foppiano wines. The Foppiano Vineyards are located at 12707 Old Redwood Highway, Healdsburg, California 95448. Visit them at https://foppiano.com/or call 707.433.7272. The wines are widely marketed in the Quintessential Wines, the family owned and operated import, marketing and sales company headquartered in Napa. For more information on Quintessential, please visit https://www.quintessentialwines.com/.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of L. Foppiano Wine Co.

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