The Wine
Sweet berry flavors give this old-fashioned, earthy zin lasting fruit impact. It has the festive holiday scent of evergreen boughs and tarry, bitter black tannins to balance all the fruit. An hour in a decanter will bring out its rustic charm.

The Winemaking
A pre-fermentation cold soak with traditional pump-over cap management preserved the unique fruit qualities of this wine. After malolactic occurred in neutral wood, an addition of 30% new American oak was used to enhance the spice flavor components and to frame the fruit with added structure in the mid-palate. During 14 months of aging, this wine was racked once and only lightly filtered before bottling.

The Vineyard
The vineyard source for these Zinfandel grapes was planted in 1909 by Portuguese settlers John and Marie Azevedo. In 1955 Gustavo Spenelli along with his wife Mary and two sons Frank, and Angelo began to manage the vineyard for the Azevedo family. They purchased the 18 acre parcel in 1970. Sadly only five acres remain. Fifty-two years of family vineyard management made this wine the gem of our 2005 Vintage.