Winemaker's Notes
Most of you know this is a synthesis of our ‘Old and Mature Vines’ fermentation lots that were not fully needed to perfectly complete that blend in a given vintage. Waaaaaay too good to ‘bulk out’, over a decade ago I started saving and combining these supposed ‘leftovers’ and combining them in alternating years. It allows me the flexibility to optimize each Old & Mature vintage. In 2012 we found an excess of structured components while in 2013 we found an excess of generous ones. You get the picture. It’s pretty darned awesome to be able to do take the best of both rather than to choose between them.
It has picked up momentum over time and sells out faster with each new release. Not surprising, as it is really nice, food-friendly Zinfandel at a friendly price. Rather than ‘jammy’ and ‘stewed fruit’ characteristics often seen in CA Zinfandel these days, this has red and black fruits, perfumes, fresh loam aromas that suggest something from Italy rather than California. This has a surprising tendency to create a salivary/mouth-watering response which is essential to complement food. At this early stage of life in bottle, being open for a day this shows a lot of rain-on-stones aroma, graphite/pencil and settles into a really pretty, plummy mouth-watering stance.
