The Dirty (Hardy & Kate) and Rowdy (Matt & Amy) families got together for a simple purpose; make honest wines that we want to drink.
There’s a long story about Dirty and Rowdy involving blogs, videos, dream jobs, Atlanta, late nights spent cooking spicy fried chicken in an old cast iron skillet, and a sincere love of real wine and real food.
After years of fried chicken it was only logical that we would start a band…or better yet, a winery. In 2010 we began making wine — these are wines with knees, elbows, and open hearts.
Monterey County, Chalone AVA, Elevation: 1900 ft, Soils: Limestone, Granite, Decomposed Granite Farming: Organic
Vinification Method: 100% Whole Cluster Fermentation. Native yeast. Lightly tread by foot at the start of fermentation (1-2x a day) and then gentle pump overs 2x a day.. Aged in 5-8 year old neutral French Oak barrels Racked only at bottling. Unfined. Unfiltered.
The majority of vineyards are on north facing slopes at 780 metres above sea level, on the left bank of the Duero river near the village of Santibanez. Others, including Terreus, are located on the right bank near Tudela. These vineyards were excluded from the Ribera del Duero DO for obscure historical reasons connected to local politics. However, climatic influeneces are the same as 10 km down the road (where the DO officially starts) and studies show the soil to be on a par with the very best found in the Ribera del Duero. The original Bodega fills a maze of attractive old town houses in the heart of Tudela del Duero (the earliest dating back to 1680) with thick walls and large underground cellars, ideal for the ageing of fine red wine. The new bodega is located just outside town, with sufficient space to manage fermentations and blending, and the first year of ageing.
Since its foundation in 1998, Gianpaolo Paglia’s estate has managed its vineyards and cellar expertly to become one of the best producers in the Maremma. The wines have a clear-cut style that favors mature fruitiness, a good dose of oak and powerful structure, yet they are also nice and fresh. According to Paglia, however, this is all about to change, as he plans to replace almost all of his barriques with large ovals for the upcoming vintage.” GAMBERO ROSSO
Poggio Argentiera is comprised of two estates situated in two very different areas of Tuscany’s Maremma, Podere Adua is located in the coastal region of Grosseto with vineyards planted on sandy soils and has a warmer, drier micro-climate, while Podere Keeling is found in the hilly area north of Scansano, a high altitude, cooler area with rich, fibrous clay soil. The combination of these two areas allows Paglia to work with different, rare indigenous grape varieties and make high-quality value wines.
Even though Poggio Argentiera is a relatively young winery, it has already acquired an impressive record of awards and critical acclaim, both in Italy and worldwide: three glasses from Gambero Rosso Slow Food Guide of Italian Wines, “Vini dell’Eccellenza” from the Espresso Guide of Italian wine, 90 points + scores from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, Wine&Spirits, Wine Enthusiast, Wine Spectator. The spiral on the label represents the swirl of the wine in the glass.
