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California Wine Tasting

  • Domaine South 103 North Side Square Huntsville, AL, 35801 United States (map)

California Wine
Tasting
Friday, December 6th
Le Petit Bijou


Lady of the Sunshine & Scar of the Sea!
Gina Giugni is a second generation biodynamic farmer and winemaker. Gina started Lady of the Sunshine in 2017, with a focus on regenerative, organic, and biodynamic farming in pursuit of making natural wines that reflect the purity of the place they come from. 
Gina and her husband, Mikey, run Scar of the Sea and Lady of the Sunshine together out of their winery in San Luis Obispo, CA.


Call 256-964-7980 to Reserve


California Wine Tasting

Le Petit Bijou

Friday, December 6th

4pm - 6pm, $20

With Special Guest, Allaina Nielsen of International Wines

256-964-7980 to Reserve

Lady Of The Sunshine Botanical Solera White Wine #3, San Luis Obispo, California $50.99

This wine is inspired by the broader landscape of our central coast.  Wild shrubs among the wildflowers, fields of local citrus in bloom, and the salty ocean mist of the pacific coastline.  These are the nostalgic aromatics that remind us of home.  The base wine is a compilation of white wine, strung together from 2018 through 2022 of each vintage and vineyard I have connected with.  This solera style base makes up 50% of the blend with the other 50% being fresh wine of the 2023 vintage which offers freshness and acidity to the layered and richer base wine. The 2 components were blended together, then steeped with dried botanicals and foraged delights from our garden and stepladder ranch. This wine is full of texture and freshness, best served around cellar temperature.  Think wild lemon balm, spiced sun tea and salted citrus rinds. 96 cases produced. 

2023 Lady Of The Sunshine Chene Vineyard Chardonnay, Edna Valley, California $50.99

Lady of the Sunshine was founded in 2017 by Gina Giugni, a practitioner of sustainable and regenerative farming, making wines that honor and represent the place they come from. The grapes are foot stomped, whole cluster pressed, and fermented in neutral oak barrels. The wines truly are “of the sunshine,” as the fermenting barrels are left to sit in the warm California sun to complete the process. Bottled unfined and unfiltered with minimal sulfur usage. Floral aromas shine alongside bright citrus and zesty grapefruit. The Chene Vineyard, siting only four miles from the Pacific Ocean, lends a lovely freshness and lively acidity to the wine that is carefully retained during wine making. Organically grown, certified biodynamic, low-intervention/natural wine.

2023 Lady Of The Sunshine Chene Vineyard Pinot Noir, Edna Valley, California $50.99

Gina Hildebrand grew up on her family’s biodynamic farm, the 86 acre Narrow Gate Vineyard, just east of Placerville in northern California’s Sierra Foothills. Now a biodynamic farmer herself, Gina established Lady of the Sunshine in 2017, taking inspiration from her family roots. She earned her degree in Wine and Viticulture and worked for several years with sustainably-focused, terroir-driven winemakers in France, New Zealand, Oregon’s Willamette Valley, and Howell Mountain in Napa. Gina now makes her home in the Edna Valley of California’s Central Coast. The motto of Lady of the Sunshine is “know your farmer” and Gina farms, sources, and makes wines that are honest-yet-playful reflections of serious vineyard sites. This pinot noir comes from the Chêne Vineyard, a plot of steep hillside plantings upon Monterey bedrock. This site is known for producing small, concentrated clusters of fruit, which upon harvest were fermented 100% whole-cluster with light extraction. The wine was then pressed in a wooden basket press and aged in neutral French oak barrels for 10 months before being bottled without fining or filtration. An elegant offering, it unfurls delicate layers of fresh raspberries, rose petals, wildflowers, and fine-grained tannin. Certified biodynamic, low-intervention/natural wine, vegan.

2023 Scar Of The Sea Lopez Vineyard Old Vine Zinfandel, Central Coast, California $38.99

Grape: Zinfandel

Planted in 1918, 70 miles inland from Los Angeles, this certified organic vineyard is part of California history. The vines are farmed without irrigation in granite rocks and sandy soil, surrounded by freeways and track homes.

The wine was picked right before the September heat wave and fermented 50% whole-cluster. Aged for 8 months in old French oak barrels, it was bottled unfined and unfiltered, with minimal sulfur.

Notes of candied raspberry and blueberry, accents of tea leaves, dried flowers and dusty earth.

2023 Scar Of The Sea Topotero Vineyard Gamay, San Luis Obispo, California $38.99

The 5-acre Topotero vineyard sits next door to the Bassi Vineyard in Avila Beach. Surrounded by gardens, palm trees, apples and a creek bed, this little vineyard is one of my favorites. These vines were grafted to Gamay from Pinot Noir in 2019. Farmed practicing organic by Ben Taylor, this is his home vineyard. The wine is fermented with 60% whole-cluster for 10 days, then pressed with the wooden basket press. The wine is bottled after 10 month of aging in barrel and without filtration.

2023 Scar Of The Sea Vino De Los Ranchos Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley, California $35.99

The 2023 Pinot Noir Vino de los Ranchos opens with a charming, bright nose with tinges of rustic, dusty overtones. The palate is blue-fruited and precise, deceptive in its medium to light-bodied richness. It finishes on a grippy, earthy note that retains pure, vibrant fruit flavors and subtle but persistent tannins.

Entirely from the Rancho Ontiveros Vineyard in Sana Maria Valley. Farmed organically. Picked on three different dates. 33% whole cluster, native yeast fermentation, aged in neutral oak for 9 months. Bottled with minimal sulfur, unfined, unfiltered.


Earlier Event: November 29
Grower Champagne Tasting
Later Event: December 13
Broc Cellars Release Party Tasting