When my great grandfather, Francesco Passalacqua purchased this vineyard in 1896 with ten gold coins he earned working in California’s goldmines, the deed made reference to a young zinfandel vineyard. That vineyard I still tend today. In fact, walking the vineyard I realized it is not simply Zinfandel so I enlisted the expertise of Dr. Andy Walker from UC Davis to help me identify the abundance of varietals. We discovered our own gold mine. While this century old field blend is almost 70% Zinfandel, the remainder boasts not only Zin’s usual companions, Petite Sirah and Carignane but also Grand Noir, Alicante, Negrette and Mataro. My mother cherished this original block of San Lorenzo. In her honor, we call it THE PEARL.
In 1890, Gianluca Galasso’s grandfather decided to transform the ancestral land into grape cultivation and thus began the winery. Struck by the extraordinary beauty of the hills, the lushness of nature, and the sweet and fresh aromas arising from the land, he realized that from the vines grown here, was born a good wine. Since then, nature has been kind to the Galasso family and every year, by the early warmth of spring to the cool days of September, excitement and trepidation abound with the beginning of the harvest: everything else is set aside and the grapes,the land, the wines, will take center stage. Check with Siema office for current vintages www.sanlorenzovini.com