Maria Gaetana Agnesi 1799 Brandy Small Batch 750ml

MEET MARIA GAETANA AGNESI Italian. 16 May 1718 - 9 January 1799 Maria Gaetana Agnesi was a brilliant 18th century mathematician, philosopher, and theologian. She was a known prodigy and fluent in seven languages by her eleventh birthday. The first woman to write a mathematics handbook, she was also the first female mathematics professor at a university. Her work Instituzioni analitiche discussed a curve that has since been known as The Witch of Agnesi in her honor. Often a substitute for the bell curve, the Witch of Agnesi finds its place in all aspects of life, including the fermentation and fractional distillation of Maria Agnesi’s namesake brandy. Agnesi 1799 is a five year old small batch American brandy proofed with pure Napa Valley spring water from the Coppola’s family estate in Rutherford. Our brandy has been crafted by working with some of the original and most celebrated American brandy distillers. Agnesi 1799 brings together the Coppola family’s winemaking heritage and love of cocktails. THE MAKING OF AGNESI 1799 BRANDY The grape based brandies for Agnesi 1799 are sought, sourced, and blended by The Family Coppola and our winery’s master blender from barrel stocks in California’s finest brandy distilleries. Our initial brandy release is a blend of 2012 Dolcetto grapes from Russian River Valley and 2009 French Colombard grapes from the Central Valley. Agnesi 1799 is a true taste of California soil, ambient yeast, naturally filtered water, and warm climate of the Golden State. Through careful selection of barrels and delicate blending of water and spirit, our brandy assumes the best qualities of the artisanally-crafted individual spirits. By sourcing brandy made in different types of stills, both Old World Alembic Charentais stills and modern column stills, and from various local grapes, we are able to craft a proprietary blend that we believe is greater than the sum of its parts. OUR WATER IS SPECIAL IN SO MANY WAYS Our brandy is proofed with Napa Valley spring water from the Coppola family’s estate at Inglenook. Our water contains low levels of dissolved solids that contain minerals that add character and mouthfeel to our finished spirits. Located at the base of the extinct Mount St. John volcano, the water is naturally filtered through lava rock high in carbon, a natural and efficient filter. Other text The Family Coppola are lovers not only of wine, but spirits as well. In fact, when the family gathers, the custom is to have a cocktail, or two, before dinner. They hope to bring even more joy to cocktail enthusiasts everywhere by crafting a collection of spirits as unique and remarkable as the women they honor. All of our spirits are crafted in a style that reflects the individual character of these trailblazers, and are proofed with pristine water from our Napa Valley Estate. Why GREAT WOMEN SPIRITS? “We all know well the great men of history, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar & Napoleon and so on. I can think of as many women who distinguished themselves at that level in the fields of politics, science, mathematics and philosophy. So my choices & reasons are very personal. ” - Francis Ford Coppola “You know why we don’t hear about famous women in history? Because the history books were written by men. ” - Eleanor Coppola
Producer ”I’ve always been influenced by the idea of Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, which was the inspiration for ultimately all modern amusements parks. I remember the beautiful theater pavilions with the curtains painted with peacock feathers that had little ballet performances. At Tivoli, there were rides, but more important than the rides were the cafes and the refreshments, and just the sense of being in a children’s garden, a ‘pleasure garden’ for all people to enjoy - which perhaps is the best phrase to describe what we’re creating here. This vision was replicated at places on Coney Island, like Luna Park, and George C. Tilyou’s Steeplechase Park, or Palisades Park. These were basically wonderlands, and I thought Francis Ford Coppola Winery could become such a park for the family to go and enjoy, where there are things for kids to do, so they can be close to their parents who are sampling wines and foods. I’ve often felt that modern life tends to separate all the ages too much. In the old days, the children lived with the parents and the grandparents, and the family unit each gave one another something very valuable. So when we began to develop the idea for this winery, we thought it should be like a resort, basically a wine wonderland, a park of pleasure where people of all ages can enjoy the best things in life - food, wine, music, dancing, games, swimming and performances of all types. A place to celebrate the love of life. ” - Francis Ford Coppola For more than thirty years, we have been committed to environmentally responsible business practices. It’s been our goal to minimize our impact on the environment by seeking out innovative ways to produce and package our goods. At Francis Ford Coppola Winery, all 24 planted acres are sustainably farmed and part of the California Sustainable Winegrowing Program. We try to purchase fruit from growers who farm sustainably, and some of the vineyards we source from are certified organic as well. Another benefit of participating in the California Sustainable Winegrowing Program is that we have subsequently become a learning-teaching vineyard. Every technique we implement is thoroughly documented so that we, and neighboring Sonoma winegrowers, can pinpoint the best ways to protect our land and craft the best wines from these vineyards. We are also actively involved in the Fish Friendly Farming certification program. While this may seem like a matter totally unrelated to wine, watershed quality management is intrinsically connected to farming our vineyard because our property includes two blue-line creeks. These creeks are a part of the Russian River watershed that supports steelhead trout and Coho salmon populations. In conjunction with our neighbors and local, state, and federal agencies, we work diligently to promote the overall health of the Russian River watershed so that the entire ecosystem remains in balance and is preserved for generations to come. Our winegrowing practices involve the Integrated Pest Management program, which discusses the best practices for maintaining soil and vine health and proactively farming to reduce and treat pest pressures. Field experts provide monthly lectures concerning pest problems and solutions which we implement in our vineyard. Through our integrated pest management program, we have complemented the biodiversity of our vineyard by promoting the presence of beneficial insects, soil fauna, and owls that combat pests of grapevines. Finally, we recycle our grape and water waste by fertilizing with composted grape pomace and irrigating only with reclaimed winery wastewater. In effect, we have closed the loop on our waste system in an effort to reduce our carbon footprint on the land we so love. Outside of the vineyard, our Francis Coppola Diamond Collection wines are packaged in 100% recycled cardboard case boxes, and all of the corks we purchase come from sustainable cork forests. Additionally, we insist that the label and foil companies we do business with have environmentally friendly practices as well. During the reconstruction of Francis Ford Coppola Winery, all of the crews, vendors, and sub-contractors we hired were local residents, helping to cut down on transportation costs, as well as supporting the economy of our community. Rather than use new lumber for the construction, we reused the wood from the Redwood trees that were removed from the courtyard area. Some of this timber was used to build the main reception desk in the Guest Services building, while other portions has been used to build the outdoor dining tables. The pyramid skylights in our towers feature an environmentally friendly material called Kalwall to construct skylights. This material diffuses light in such a way that little artificial lighting is needed, which helps conserve energy.