La Cuadrilla 2023

Stolpman’s Profit Sharing Project
When Tom Stolpman purchased the land that is now Stolpman Vineyards, he declared that if his dream of owning a vineyard was to come true, it would positively affect everyone involved.  He asked vineyard manager, Ruben Solorzano to employ our vineyard workers year-round, so the team members could have a steady job, a career, and raise their families locally and with security.
Ruben Solorzano took Tom’s idea a step further: he wanted our crew members to learn the lifecycle of the vine and become engaged and passionate about their work.  He decided to give one Cuadra - a small vineyard block - to his team, so they could take responsibility for their land.  Each crew member became the farmer rather than just the worker.  Thrilled with Ruben’s idea, Tom declared that the wine made from the crew’s Cuadra would be given to the team members for their own consumption.  Having the self-titled wine at the dinner table served as both a source of pride and a chance to appreciate fine wine, the fruits of the crew’s labor!
Beginning with the 2009 vintage, we expanded the Cuadrilla program to blend in more wine from the vineyard in addition to the training Cuadra.  Today, about 18% of our winery’s production goes into the blend.  The profits are returned to the crew members, divided by seniority, in the form of both a year-end bonus as well as weekly bonuses on each paycheck.  Our goal is to increase the quality of everyday life for La Cuadrilla and their families. 
Today, La Cuadrilla represents a vineyard-wide blend.  We assemble it from declassified co-fermentations, gentle-press wine from the high-end cuvees, and lastly; riper, more fruit forward lots.
Inspired by our perpetual evolution and innovation, creative director Kari Crist designs a new black and white image for each vintage’s release, which always relate to the Cuadrilla members.  

Healthy late season rains pushed back bud-break and the growing season by 3-4 weeks.  We escaped the summer without any extreme heat events that would have accelerated ripening.  This all led up to even, slow sugar accumulation.  By the end of August, with no red fruit anywhere near ripeness, we knew we were in for a late, compacted red wine harvest.  Sure enough, we strategically jumped into the thick of it in early October.  Even with La Cuadrilla in turbo, as we prioritized each night’s picks, we pushed some micro blocks to hang a day or two longer than originally planned.  Those lots were automatically declassified into La Cuadrilla, making the 2023 even more supple and yummy. 
Plush Lavender with hints of fresh, crunchy red berry.  A swirl of juicy red to purple plum.  The fresh, lively front palate leads into a weighty, more serious middle.  Exciting spicy pepper notes trace behind the fruit on the nose and ride over the soft, fine tannin.   Dynamic and rewarding now on release, this wine will be supple and luxurious by early 2025 and the “yum quotient” will surely rise exponentially.  Even now, with a few minutes of air the 50% Syrah takes command, getting darker and bolder, harkening for grilled red meat.   Another dried herb, menthol layer appears, showing future evolution and complexity.   The 2023 La Cuadrilla might punch even higher than it’s normal $50/bottle Cali peer group.