Lot #4 Balletto Vineyards

With only $250 to his name, 17-year-old John Balletto transformed his family’s five-acre home site into a farm to support his family after the untimely death of his father. Four decades later, he now farms more than 800 acres of premium wine grapes in the Sebastopol Hills and Russian River Valley, and uses the top 10 percent of those grapes to bottle distinct and elegant estate grown wine. This special Sonoma County Barrel Auction lot comes from a single block of Swan clone Pinot Noir from one of his most cherished vineyards, Sexton Hill. This hillside vineyard is steep and cold with tricky northeast exposure and outstanding Goldridge soils.

Two lots of Swan clone were divided at the winery, with one lot pushing 100% whole cluster. The other lot was completely destemmed. These two different winemaking approaches used on the same winegrapes produced an amazing result. Bright, spicy and herbal flavors came from the whole cluster portion and pretty hibiscus and lifted red fruit from the destemmed portion.

WINEMAKER(S): Anthony Beckman

ESTIMATED BOTTLING DATE: August 2025
ESTIMATED SHIPPING DATE: June 2026

National Distribution: AL, AR, CA, CO, CT, GA, IA, KS, KY, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, PA, TN, TX, WI

International Distribution: Includes Canada, Japan; please inquire for additional countries.

A winemaker dinner or store visit is offered in your market as part of this lot. Must be scheduled on a mutually agreeable date.