“Sashi Moorman’s Piedrasassi label focuses on Syrah. The wines are deep, savoury, and quite distinctive. In recent years, the use of whole clusters has come down, but that has not materially changed the personalities of the wine, or their tremendous appeal.” -Antonio Galloni

The husband and wife team began making a small amount of wine in Lompoc, CA in 2003 under the Piedrasassi label. The focus of Piedrasassi’s wine program is the cool climate Syrah. Sashi & Melissa believe that good Syrah can be made at many sites in Santa Barbara County, but it is at the cool climate sites that Syrah is at its most compelling; producing the most complex aromas and the most savoury textures. The vineyard sites for Piedrasassi range from Ballard Canyon in the east to the Santa Rita Hills and Arroyo Grande in the west.

In the vineyard, Sashi picks a bit earlier than local Santa Barbara County colleagues to keep alcohol levels in balance with flavour and to preserve the natural acidity of the fruit. He also uses some whole-cluster inclusion, only indigenous yeast fermentation, and no sulphur added at fermentation, remaining as natural as possible without compromising the integrity, flavour, and stability of the wine.

Bien Nacido Vineyard has long been a highly sought-after site for Syrah in Santa Barbara County. We are lucky to work with the vineyard's two best plantings, X Block and Z Block. X Block, grafted from Riesling to Syrah in 1986, represents the very first cool-climate Syrah planting in North America. Z Block was planted in 1992, making these the oldest Syrah vines we work with at Piedrasassi. The advanced vine age slows ripening, keeping potential alcohol levels lower. Bien Nacido is farmed biodynamically.

Year in and year out, we find our Santa Maria Valley Syrah to be the most elegant and restrained of the lineup. High-toned aromas of red fruits, cherries, and sweet spice lead to juicy flavours of pomegranate, raspberry coulis, pine, and a touch of white pepper on the palate. Softer, silkier tannins give way to a refreshing, acid-laden finish. In 2019, 306 cases of Santa Maria Valley Syrah were produced.