Family and Tradition

Purpose, Commitment, Continuity

With strong Italian roots and a well-established reputation as premium wine-grape growers, Di Stasio Vineyards is a well known brand in the industry. The story began more than 100 years ago as a part of the original Esola Ranch in Amador County’s Shenandoah Valley. In early 1900, Giacomo Esola, (Isola, the original Italian surname), came from Italy and acquired the property in 1911 with the purpose of building a life in America. Our grandmother, Jennie (Esola) Lavezzo was the eldest of Giacomo's eight children and matriarch of our family. The Di Stasio name was added when Jennie's daughter, Estelle, married John Di Stasio Sr, and now, four generations later, their son John and wife Michelle Di Stasio continue to farm the 108-acre vineyard sustainably.

The winery continues the family's commitment to the property as a natural extension of the farming operation.  Together with daughter and son-in-law Rachae & Joe Vila, Di Stasio Vineyards continues to be a family operation, reflecting 100 years of continuity and a labor of love honoring the work of prior generations.

The Italian Experience

Quality, Hospitality, Italian Tradition

In Italy, wine and culture are inseparable, and the love of the process is reflected in the hospiatlity when the finished wines are shared. This celebration of quality and hospitality is our mission. In true Italian fashion, we combine quality, authenticity and simplicity in an environment of rustic elegance. We have adopted the Pumo as our icon, a unique ceramic piece in the shape of a flower bud often seen on the balconies of Southern Italy as a symbol of new life, prosperity, fertility and abundance. Our tasting room, inspired by the clean, but rustic Italian architecture of Puglia, offers a bright and inviting space.The tasting room and surrounding grounds create a unique opportunity to relax and enjoy with firends and family, reminiscant of the Italian countryside. 

An alfresco experience to enjoy our estate wines paired with imported Italian food specialities. Michelle's collection of regional Italian ceramics enhances the environement with beauty and color. This is a special place that connects us to the past and makes us thankful that we're this generation's stewards. We're pleased to share this environment and history with you and honored to have you as our guests.

Estate Wines

Soils, Climate, Varietals

It all starts with a love of the land and respect for farming in a way that yields the highest quality fruit and sustains the vineyards for generations to come. California's Shenandoah Valley AVA is a unique and special growing region with deep soils combining sandy loam, granite and clay. These soils, rich in minerals and light on nutrients, produce a perfect balance of fruit and canopy resulting in premium wine grapes with characteristics unique to this area. The warm dry summers provide an environment that is ideal to grow varietals that are native to the warmer parts of Italy, Spain/Portugal, and France.

The area also features some of California's oldest historical vineyards and heritage wines such as Zinfandel and Mission. Our property is designated as a historic California vineyard by the Historic Vineyard Society. In many years, the annual rainfall is adequate to allow dry-farming, thus increasing the intensity and varietal character of the resulting wines. The area was primarilty known for Zinfandels and Barberas, but in recent years other varietals have been introduced and refined offering consumers many options. We grow eight varities that are also found in Italy deepening our connections. Nearly all of our wines are estate produced from vineyard to bottle and we feature both California heritage varieties, Italian varities in classic and riserva formats as well as Italian-inspried blends. We love that we are in the very heart of the Sheanadoah Valley with the abiltiy to produce beautiful wines reflecting their varietal characterics and the best that Amador County has to offer.