Full disclosure: Massican’s Dan Petroski is a friend of mine. But you know what? This isn’t journalism, this is retail—so I’m fully within my rights to say that my friend is making some of the best white wines in California. Full stop. And besides, the journalists/critics agree with me, so either way, I’m safe. Today’s wine, “Annia,” is Massican’s flagship, a blend inspired by the crystalline whites of Italy’s Friuli-Venezia-Giulia region.
It has become a staple of the savviest wine lists and is a wine which has helped re-shape the dialog around Californian whites. If you’re still thinking that “oaky/buttery” is the dominant narrative, think again. Crafted from grapes grown in the Napa Valley, where Petroski still helms the winemaking operation at the historic Larkmead winery, “Annia” demonstrates unequivocally that racy, mineral, lightly oaked (and un-oaked) white wines are indeed something that Napa can do, and do well (heck, Stony Hill has been doing it for decades). When Petroski was named “Winemaker of the Year” by the
San Francisco Chronicle in 2017, writer Esther Mobley noted the skill with which Dan bounces between the two poles of his winemaking life: succulent Napa Cabernet at Larkmead at one pole; steely, aromatic Massican whites at the other. “It’s the rare winemaker who can contain multitudes such as these,” Mobley wrote. “To forge a style of wine as original and unmoored as Massican while upholding the epitome of the American wine establishment, Napa Valley Cabernet.” I couldn’t have said it better myself (which is why I quoted her), and there’s no better time to enjoy this energy-filled white than RIGHT NOW. Act fast before our small allocation sells out!
A devoted student of wine who once worked in the magazine business in New York, Petroski started getting seriously into production in the late-’90s and eventually dove in headlong—moving to Italy to stage at Sicily’s Valle dell’Acate winery. He moved to California in 2006, landing a harvest internship at DuMol, and from there the die was cast. He’s been at Larkmead for 13 years and founded Massican in 2009, naming today’s wine for his Italian mother, Annia, who herself liked a good glass of wine. The name Massican refers to Monte Massico in Italy’s Campania region, a historic winemaking area and the land of his ancestors. And while Massican wines have recently come to incorporate “Campanian” grapes such as Greco di Tufo, the principal inspiration for the lineup is the stainless steel-fermented style of white wine perfected in Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the ’90s and early 2000s (the era before skin-contact “orange” whites became fashionable).
Although the Massican lineup now includes a Napa Sauvignon Blanc and a Chardonnay from the famed Hyde Vineyard in Carneros, the heart and soul are the two Italian-inspired blends: “Gemina,” which combines Pinot Bianco and Greco, and today’s “Annia,” a blend of Tocai Friulano (53%), Ribolla Gialla (39%) and a little bit of Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay (8%). The most fascinating aspect of Annia is that the Tocai (which is now called “Friulano” after changes to EU regulations) was originally planted in 1946 by the Nichelini family, in Napa’s easterly Chiles Valley. The Ribolla Gialla, meanwhile, boasts 18+ years of vine age, having been planted by legendary Napa vintner George Vare. If you are surprised that two relatively obscure Italian varieties have been planted in Napa Valley for so long, well, I was, too. But perhaps we shouldn’t be, given the huge impact Italian immigrants have had on the California wine industry since its very beginnings.
Petroski’s wines are characterized by modest alcohol levels and minimal oak, and the 2019 is, like the 2018 we offered last year, true to form. Coming in at just 12.8% a.b.v. and featuring a touch more Tocai and less Chardonnay than last year’s version, the ’19 shows the continued evolution of a curious, confident winemaker: It is undoubtedly the most substantial and complex version of this wine I’ve ever had, but that’s not to suggest that it is “weightier” in any way—this wine is not about extraction, it’s about focus. In the glass, it has a medium yellow-gold core moving to silver and green at the rim, with perfumed aromas of white peach, apricot, citrus peels, wildflower honey, green herbs, and wet stones. For lovers of the Friulano grape from Friuli-Venezia-Giulia itself (I count myself among them), you really couldn’t ask for a more faithful representation: the variety’s distant relation to Sauvignon Blanc is discernible in the aromas, while on the palate the Ribolla Gialla is there to jolt your palate to life and ready you for some food. Pull the cork on this wine about 15 minutes before serving in all-purpose white wine stems at 45-50 degrees, preferably with some fresh seafood. Check out the attached recipe and make sure there are plenty of lemon wedges on hand. As far as Summer is concerned, this wine has you covered. Cheers!
