What better way to celebrate our 10th year in business than with a side-by-side tasting of my wines with my mentor, Giusto Occhipinti of COS? I first tasted Giusto's wine when I was a student at UC Davis (a Frappato/Nero d'Avola blend) and I fell in love with the wine. Shortly after, I emailed him, went to Sicily to work a harvest at COS, and he's been a huge influence ever since.
Giusto is a pioneer in Sicily. He co-owns COS and started making wine in 1980, which may not feel like that long ago, but he was among the first to suggest keeping Sicilian grapes in Italy and making wine from the region, rather than sending bulk grapes up to France. He is a visionary—aging wines in amphora (as opposed to barrique). He works closely with a ceramic artist from Spain to craft these vessels, which stand at about 5' tall, to ferment his wines in.
I would not have started my business without Giusto encouraging me (sometimes with tough love). It's been such a beautiful intergenerational friendship ever since.
