Description

VARIETALS: 85% Carignan, 10% Alicante, 4% Zinfandel, 1% Palomino
VINEYARD: Oat Valley Vineyard
LOCATION: Alexander Valley
ALCOHOL: 12.5%

WINEMAKER'S NOTES: We take the whole clusters and transfer them from bin into our 2 large concrete tanks. The berries remain intact and protected with a constant blanket of C02 until their native yeasts begin to ferment the grape sugars from the inside out. A slow mortification breaks down the color components in the skins, infusing the juice inside the still-unbroken berries with a vibrant red hue. When fully dry, it is pressed back into the concrete vessels for aging. Bottled after 6 months of aging. This wine shows the amazing depth of flavor from these rugged, ancient vines.

VITICULTURAL AREA: Having saved a remarkable ancient vineyard from imminent “Cabernetification”, we continue to nurture its 130+ year-old vines, capturing a character unfound in mere 120-year-old vineyards. An original field-planted block, these Carignan plants are interspersed with Palomino (white variety from Jerez), Zinfandel and Alicante (a rare black-fruited vine that produces some of the darkest juice on the planet). Its decomposed sandy soils make it impossible for the vine-pest phylloxera to survive, leaving these some of the last remaining self-rooted vines in the state.

All of our wines are made naturally, meaning no use of inoculated yeasts or bacteria. We use only native yeast to spark fermentation. We do not add any powdered tannins or enzymes. A minimal dose of S02 is added 4 weeks before bottling to some wines.