History and Family

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 1911with 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 Estelle Lavezzo 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 and is 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.

Philosophy and Values

Quality, Hospitality, Italian Tradition

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. The tasting room, inspired by the clean, but rustic Italian architecture of Puglia, is nestled among 110-year old Mission vines, and a newly planted vineyard of Arneis, a northern Italian varietal, and overlooking vineyards of Barbera, Cabernet and Zinfandel. The tasting room and surrounding grounds create a unique hospitality  opportunity reminiscant of the Italian countryside. An alfresco experience where guests can enjoy a taste or glass of our estate wines and Italian food specialities. Also enjoy Michelle's collection of regional Italian ceramics available for viewing and purchase. This is a place to relax, enjoy wine, food, friends and family in the Italian tradition. We're pleased to share this environment and history with you and honored to have you as our guests.

The Land and Vineyards

Soils, Climate, Varietals

California's Shenandoah Valley AVA is a unique and special growing region with deep soils of 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. 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 love that we are in the very heart of the Valley with the abiltiy to produce beautiful wines reflecting their varietal characterics and the best that Amador County has to offer.