Everything is Okay Still Red 2020

Still Red 2020 is a blend of Sangiovese and a small amount of Carignan from Hidden Hawk Ranch in Redwood Valley, Mendocino County. The vineyard is CCOF-certified organic, dry-farmed, and sits at roughly 722 feet elevation on Pinole Gravelly Loam soils. The Carignan vines are old, head-trained, and grown on St. George rootstock. The large diurnal temperature swings in Redwood Valley — often 50 degrees between day and night — allow the fruit to ripen fully while retaining natural acidity.

The Sangiovese is fermented using carbonic maceration: whole uncrushed clusters are placed in a sealed vessel filled with CO2, triggering intracellular fermentation inside each berry before the grapes rupture and release their juice. This technique extracts color and fruit character while keeping tannin extraction minimal, producing a light-bodied, juicy red. No sulfites or other additions are used at any stage — this is a zero-zero wine.

Winemaker Booker Riley operates out of a shared facility in Richmond, California, alongside Gearhead Wines and Purity Wine. Riley sources exclusively from organically farmed California vineyards, and his approach prioritizes letting the vineyard do the talking rather than intervening in the cellar. The result here is a transparent, fresh expression of Mendocino fruit with very little winemaker fingerprint beyond the carbonic technique applied to the Sangiovese.