Pianetta Syrah Wins Top Red Honors at San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition.

Caitlin Pianetta – Winemaker

It started with a phone call on January 16th—with a very excited person on the other end of the line stating, “I am so excited, this is the best part of my job, I get to let you know you just won the Red Wine Sweepstakes award.”  At the time I was in the middle of a winemaking spreadsheet, and it took me a bit to try to match the enthusiasm, as I had no idea what this gentleman was talking about. Just a call that immediately felt… different.

Somewhere early in the conversation, the word “Sweepstakes” came up. There was a personal congratulations. The level of his enthusiasm suggested this wasn’t just another result.  We had just won the “Red Wine Sweepstakes” award in the 2026 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition.

And to be completely honest—we didn’t fully understand what it meant. We had submitted 3 wines to this event (kind of at the last minute), and I almost could

n’t recall which wine he had mentioned was the top winner.

Shortly after our phone call, over the next couple of days, it started to take shape.  (research, emails etc.). What we had realized was, that the “Red Wine Sweepstakes” award means, the TOP RED wine in the competition.  All the Napa Cabernets, all the Central Coast blends… our 2022 Syrah was rated BEST.

The following Sunday, while we were working in the winery, we had a few people call to ask to visit us.  They had been part of the tasting panel of the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. They were on their way home and made a point to stop in at the winery. They wanted to taste the wine. There’s a particular kind of moment when someone tastes something they already know is special—and you can see it land all over again. The reaction wasn’t subtle. There was excitement, a little disbelief, and a lot of appreciation.

That’s when it really started to sink in.

For some context, the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition is the largest in the country. This year included over 925 wineries and more than 5,500 wines, all tasted blind by panels of professional judges over 3 days. Wines move through multiple rounds—first within their class, then against other top wines—before a small group is selected for the final sweepstakes judging.

What we didn’t fully grasp in that first phone call was that “sweepstakes” means the wine has already made it through all of those layers. It’s no longer just competing within a category—it was being judged next to the very best wines in the entire competition… and it won.

A big part of it, for us, was the experience of pouring at the grand tasting at the Fort Mason center in San Francisco. You never quite know how a wine will be received in that setting. People come through quickly, they taste a lot, and their reactions are immediate and honest.  But what stood out most wasn’t just the general response—it was the judges.

Over the course of the tasting, judges came to our table specifically to try the wine again. Not casually but intentionally seeking it out.  Several judges were so excited to talk to us, stating they picked out our wine from an early round.  One very enthusiastic judge even showed us a picture from the 4^th round of tasting claiming he had chosen our 22 Syrah to make it to the finals and “win the whole competition.”  He wasn’t the only judge who had this reaction. The enthusiasm and affirmation the judges had about the Syrah really stayed with us.  To have similar reactions from several judges from early panels and then advocating for it even into the final rounds was really exciting and humbling at the same time.  Because in a blind setting, that’s as honest as it gets. Different panels, different palates, different perspectives—and yet the same wine continued to stand out. Wine # 3134

We’ve never set out to make wines for a narrow audience or a specific set of preferences. Our goal has always been to make wines that are balanced, site expressive, and approachable wines that people can connect with, whether they’re tasting professionally or just enjoying a glass at the table. The style we believe in doesn’t just make sense to us. It translates.

If we’re being honest, awards like this don’t change how we make wine.

They don’t suddenly shift our focus or our approach. If anything, they reinforce something we’ve believed for a long time: that careful farming, thoughtful winemaking, and staying true to what we do can quietly compete on a much larger stage.

We’re still the same small family winery. Still focused on overdelivering for the price. Still doing things the way we believe they should be done. But moments like this do matter.

They give us a chance to pause, to appreciate how far things have come, and to share that with the people who have supported us along the way.

And maybe most importantly—they give us a story we’ll remember for a long time.

CURRENT RELEASES

CAB Franc

CROSSWORD

CHEESE ON DEMAND

STORIES FROM THE VAULT

Starting with a phone call we didn’t quite understand… and ending with something that means more than we expected.