La Ginestra is a cooperative, mixed-use farm modeled after the pre-industrial traditions of Tuscan agriculture. Beyond wine, they produce honey, meat, olive oil, and pasta, all as part of a holistic approach embodied by the principles of biodynamics. "Abemus" is a pure sangiovese produced and bottled with no additives, relying on the natural structure of this noble grape variety to preserve its purity of fruit. The resulting wine possesses the typical cherry-dominant fruit profile, and while it is "earthy", that facet of the wine doesn't dominate the palate. We'd love this with simple fresh pastas and roasted mushrooms.

Hybrid cabernet comes from California's central valley Lodi appellation: a vast, flat stretch of land with twice the acreage under vine as Napa. Lodi can fairly be called the "wine lake" of California, as its produce forms the basis for many of the industry's largest producers (Woodbridge, Rex Goliath, Bronco, etc.). Hidden within this patchwork of mega-vineyards are all sorts of interesting old vineyards planted to strange things like alicante bouschet, bastardo, charbono, just to name a few. Perhaps what gives this stout, blocky cabernet its interest is the addition to the blend of small amounts of petite sirah and the alpine native teroldego. There's some structure here, with well-integrated acidity and a bit of dusty tannin, to help soak up all the Lodi bombast. It's big, but it's not overweight, and we'd have no problem drinking this with burgers, lasagna, or chicken enchiladas.