Story – 12EC Vineyard & Winery

On a weekend trip to Napa in early 2014 celebrating his birthday, architect Steven Turley told husband, Vincent Sassone, how much fun it would be to design wineries. Sassone, a filmmaker whose grandfather was a home winemaker, said sure but only if they could grow grapes and make wine, too. Turley agreed thinking that if he was going to design wineries, he should know the winemaking process going on inside.

Fantasizing is both fun and dangerous because less than a year later they and their Schipperke, JetSet! were doing all of that in the backyard and garage of the beautiful little Humboldt Street cottage they moved into in the JC district of Santa Rosa in January 2015. Three years and three garage vintages made from their grapes and second-picks later, Steven and Vincent found themselves making an offer on the five acres of Cabernet Sauvignon vines in southern Monterey County now known as 12EC Vineyard & Winery.

Vincent’s grandfather, Emilio Ciriello, made wine in the basement of his home on June Street in Yonkers, New York. When the family sold the house Emilio built after he and his wife, Philomena, had both passed away, Vincent took one last look at it before leaving and noticed the ornamental grille on the screen door bearing the street number and Emilio’s initials was still there. He borrowed a screwdriver from a neighbor, removed the grille and took it to his apartment in Manhattan. Years later, when he and Steven began making wine in Santa Rosa, that screen door grille gave them the idea for their garage wine’s name and logo.

A carpenter by trade, Emilio worked on several Frank Lloyd Wright projects including the Guggenheim Museum and, pictured here, on several of Wright’s Usonian homes in Pleasantville, New York. 12EC Vineyard & Winery in Lockwood, California, is named for Emilio Ciriello and 12EC wines are a celebration of his love and joy for life.

The 12EC label design is inspired by the decorative screen door grille that identified Emilio’s house and that greeted visitors to 12 June Street. That grille now hangs in the tasting area outside the 12EC Winery in Lockwood, California.

The label itself was designed by fine artist and graphic designer Azedah Saleki, who kept the ornamental design while making a bold new statement, perfect for a wine label! It has been adapted into multiple colors for our various wines.

12EC Vineyard & Winery is located in the California Central Coast town of Lockwood, part of Southern Monterey County’s Jolon Road Wine Corridor, about 30 minutes north and west of Paso Robles in the San Antonio Valley AVA.

We craft our varietal, rose and blended red wines starting with our estate grown Cabernet Sauvignon grapes that are hand-picked from five acres of twenty-two-year old vines which we farm sustainably and free of chemicals.

We use quality, locally sourced grapes to make red blends but also Grenache Blanc, Petite Syrah and Syrah varietal wines. We believe in shepherding the wine making process with little intervention and much love and patience. The result is quality wines naturally made, true to the terroir.

That’s just the beginning of our story. We hope you’ll share in this ongoing adventure as we continue to tell our story through the wine we make for you. The best is yet to come at 12EC!

With love, Steve, Vinnie Sassone, JetSet! and Tink!