Zinfandel
The Hill, 2016

Winemaker's Notes

This is the second vintage I have kept part of the vineyard separate and bottled on its own. It took me 20 years of making wine from it to understand how to approach this little section of vineyard that over the past 40+years I have helped plant, shot rabbits in as a kid (which we ate), run tractor through (when my dad lets me).

Frank Teldeschi brought budwood from one of his vineyards in Dry Creek Valley for this little section that we had planted rootstock on. All but two vines ‘took’ and Frank came back and rebudded them the next Spring. He would not give up. We were not fussy or aware of ‘clones’ of grape varieties back then and it all seemed sensible. I suspect that the clonal variation we have over the entire property interplays with the soil differences, giving us a wide palette from which to draw (and challenges in understanding the combinations that can take some of us decades to get a tiny handle on).

Plums, red raspberry, flowers, cherries and slight, cool herbal background notes. The mouth is both suave and energetic at the same time with a great expansion of flavor as it rolls across the palate. Interestingly, this site presents quite firm tannins prior to pressing and for several months afterward. Then it relaxes to this state and holds there. No wonder it took me so long to find a way to work with this parcel’s gifts. It’s a good thing I did not give up on it.