Joseph-Jibril Green Valley Vineyard Valdiguié Solano County 2023

Creating a wine brand is an ultimate act of collaboration and draws on a wider-reaching community than most wine enthusiasts know.  The many facets of winemaking the general public sees (i.e., vineyard management, winemaking technique, aging program) are the foundational decisions of "who are we" and "what do we offer."  However, even before the wine is in the bottle, many business choices descend, begging for answers to questions about labeling, permitting, brand design, storage, etc.  For those winemakers trained in viticulture, this side of the business can seem daunting and, dare we say, boring.  However, these hurdles are mere leaps before presenting the product of their hard work and passion.  The brand's two owner/winemakers, Bobby & Jaam, lovingly referenced the child-rearing quote "it takes a village" in describing the inception and fruition of their "baby," the Joseph Jibril wine label.  Wine industry friends, colleagues, and the like rallied around the two to lend a helping hand in harvest, share expertise in Excel spreadsheets and accounting, and allow the use of their winery equipment.

The two friends met while working at Kosta Browne Winery in 2018.  Bobby found wine late in life, as many do, with a career working in restaurants before "retiring" and beginning his wine studies.  After getting a few wine classes under his belt at the local junior college, he transferred to Cal Poly, where he earned a degree in Wine & Viticulture.  Jaam knew he was destined for winemaking as a teenager, stating how he appreciates that wine "involves all aspects of the human experience.  From the artistic to the social, from scientific to physical, making wine encompasses it all."  His intrigue took him across the globe, chasing harvest seasons in Spain, Chile, Bordeaux, Australia, and finally, Sebastopol, California.  By the end of their tenures at Kosta Browne, the pair had worked up to positions as the Cellar Master and Chardonnay winemaker.

Friend and mentor, Scott Schultz of Jolie-Laide wines, played a pivotal role in Bobby and Jaam's journey. He presented them with an opportunity to join the opening team of a new cooperative winemaking and tasting space, a venture led by Schultz.  Recognizing their dream of creating a wine brand, Scott offered them 'sweat equity', providing assistance to Jolie-Laide in establishing the new facility in exchange for access to the winery, business management advice, and logistical help.  This marked the beginning of a collaborative journey, surrounded by a community of like-minded, passionate wine enthusiasts, who guided them in their inaugural vintage of 2021.  They chose the name Joseph-Jibril, a combination of their middle names, to symbolize the personal nature of their winemaking and the collective effort that went into its creation.

The newest addition to their line-up for the 2023 vintage is a 100% Valdiguié sourced from Green Valley Vineyard in Solano County.  Despite its relative obscurity, Valdiguié has seen a resurgence of popularity in recent years thanks to winemakers like Bobby and Jaam looking to embrace esoteric, lighter-bodied varietals.  Before Cabernet was king, many northern California vineyards had Valdiguié plantings, yet at that time, they were referred to as Napa Gamay.   It wasn't until the 1980s that a scientist discovered Napa Gamay was not Gamay at all but a relatively unknown varietal from southern France, Valdiguié.  Green Valley's Valdiguié is 40 years old and experiences impactful cooling breezes from San Pablo Bay.  As Valdiguié can be a high-yielding grape, the older age reduces the number of clusters and berries, concentrating the flavors.  The breezes assist in maintaining bright acidity and keep a light, refreshing palate.  

Jaam and Bobby split their 2023 Valdiguié into thirds and employed three different techniques for each lot during fermentation.  They foot-treaded the first lot and left the fruit as whole clusters, de-stemmed and cold-soaked the second lot before native fermentation, and wrapped the third lot in plastic wrap for a 7-day carbonic maceration.  Once fermentation finished, they blended all three back together for aging in neutral oak puncheon and barrel.  "Deep ruby in color, aromatics of mixed berry, pomegranate, bramble, tea, and violet with a hint of licorice spice. Super juicy on the palate with candied red and blue fruit and crunchy texture. Our ode to old-school "Napa Gamay"." -Jaam & Bobby