Zinfandel of the Month – 2021 Once & Future Zinfandel Napa Valley

Zinfandel of the Month is a regular feature on Zinfandel Chronicles. Keep in mind that although the Zinfandel of the Month might be an older bottle, the current vintage will be one you can find at retail or via the mailing list.

The October Zinfandel of the Month is the 2021 Once & Future Zinfandel Napa Valley.

I chose this wine as my Zinfandel of the Month as it is the first Appellation Zinfandel from Once & Future. Ravenswood made some great Appellation Zins and I hope this wine and perhaps others become a staple in the Once & Future portfolio.

Joel Peterson founded Ravenswood Winery in 1976 with a focus on Single Vineyard Zinfandel. Ravenswood was immensely successful and over time began producing in excess of a million cases per year. Joel eventually sold Ravenswood to Constellation. I recall going to Ravenswood every August in the mid nineties for the release of their Single Vineyard Zins with the intent of securing coveted bottles of Old Hill, Dickerson, Cooke and Belloni. Once & Future is the return to the original vision Joel had for Ravenswood so many years ago – a small project specializing in wines from unique older vineyards.

Purple in color. 14.9% ABV. Gorgeous nose of red and black fruits, baking spices and anise. Medium to full bodied with mouth watering acidity. Claret style with copious dark fruits and great balance. Black cherry, raspberry liqueur, blood orange and pepper on the palate. The first Appellation Zinfandel from Once & Future is a stunner. Best over the next 5-7 years.

My rating: 92 points.

I always hesitate to suggest yet another mailing list to my readers but I’ll make an exception here. Sign up soon as I suspect these wines will be hard to come by in the not so distant future. The 2022 vintage set of wines will released be in early 2024.

I recently visited with Joel and wrote about it in The 2021 Once & Future Zins with Joel Peterson in Bedrock Vineyard.