Scar of the Sea was established in 2012 and is owned & operated by Mikey & Gina Giugni in San Luis Obispo, California. They work directly with growers at carefully selected vineyard sites; people who are instrumental in the future of agriculture. In the cellar, the wines are crafted with as little intervention as possible, made to tell a story of where they come from. 

The Syrah plantings at the Bassi Vineyard are grown on a southwest hillside, in sandstone soils making this an extreme coastal site. The fruit was fermented with native yeast and with 100% whole cluster in an open top redwood tank. The wine was pressed in a wooden basket press and then aged for 10 months in a combination of large format 500L barrels and 225L barrels. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.

The 2021 vintage of this wine won "Best Syrah" in a recent re-do of the Judgment of Paris blind tasting, where it out-scored French Syrah from famous producers in Cote-Rotie and St Joseph which cost over five times as much. Yes, this $50 wine bested the likes of Pierre Gonon Saint-Joseph, Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage, and Jamet Côte-Rôtie. 

Pairing: A very nice hamburger, Skirt steak with kalamata olive tapenade

Grape: Syrah

Soil: Coastal sandstone soils on a southwest-facing hillside

Viticulture: Organic, Biodynamic