It has excellent quality, such as a beautiful acidity, rich flavor, and spicy taste that give it the traditional elegance of Syrah without relying on rich fruitiness, and it can be paired with Japanese food.
Influenced by his father, a chef, Danish Leo Hansen had a deep knowledge of wine and food from an early age. He worked as wine director at Copenhagen's first Michelin-starred restaurant, Kong Hans, but was captivated by California when he visited the country to buy wine, and moved there in 1999.
While working at a winery by day and as a sommelier by night, he studied chemistry, viticulture, oenology, etc., and after working as a winemaker at the highly acclaimed Stuhlmuller Vineyards in Alexander Valley, he founded his own winery in 2004, naming it "STEEN", which coincidentally is his middle name and also the name of Chenin Blanc in South Africa.
They are committed to dry farming and their own-rooted vineyards, and have consistently refined their style of craft wine, using wild yeast fermentation, limiting the use of new oak, and resulting in a more natural, handcrafted style with a milder alcohol content, to produce small quantities of elegant, food-friendly, and flavorful Chenin Blanc.
His wines were also featured in the highly acclaimed book "The New California Wine" (by Jon Bonné), which introduces a new generation of winemakers who reflect the local climate.
He is one of the producers who is shining a light on the big wave happening in California right now.