One of California’s finest Sangiovese-based offerings is the 2005 Venge Family Reserve Sangiovese Penny Lane Vineyard. Its medium ruby color is followed by plenty of strawberry, new saddle leather, roasted herb, and spice characteristics. Filled with fruit and character, it is a bistro-styled, spaghetti and meatball sort of wine that will have many friends. The two Venges, father Nils and son Kirk, look like two Vikings who somehow ended up in Napa Valley, with Nils taking the cowboy route and Kirk following a more conservative path. They own over twenty acres of estate vineyards, six of which are dedicated to the Venge Family Reserve operation in Oakville, and the balance to the Saddleback label. They supplement their estate production with some purchased fruit that forms the backbone of their white wine program, all light, non-malolactic whites that are meant to be drunk during their first several years of life.Tel. (707) 944-1305; Fax (707) 944-1325; Venge Winery tel. (707) 967-1008