Aston Estate was founded in 2001 by Fred Schrader, founder of Schrader Cellars, Chuck Sweeney, co-founder of Vine Cliff and Thomas Rivers-Brown. Several years ago TRB bought out the other two founders and became the sole owner. Aston Estate is located near the remote township of Annapolis, approximately five miles from the coast. Dark red in color. 14.7% ABV. Flamboyant…
Ridge Vineyards was founded in 1959 when three Stanford Research Institute engineers bought an abandoned winery in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The vineyards had been planted in the late 19th century by a San Francisco physician who produced his first vintage in the original winery, called Monte Bello, in 1892. The first Ridge vintage was in 1962. John Olney is Head…
Alberto Rafanelli, an Italian immigrant, first founded A. Rafanelli Winery in the early 1900’s. It wasn’t until the early 70’s that Alberto’s son, Americo, came out with the present day label and started selling the wine commercially. David and Patty Rafanelli now run the winery and a 4th generation Rafanelli, their daughter Shelly, is the winemaker. The winery is perhaps…
Horsepower Vineyards was founded by Christophe Baron in 2011. At its core, Horsepower is about a vigneron working the vineyard with his horse. Horsepower is a return to Christophe’s roots. His family has worked their land in the Marne Valley of France since 1677. As recently as 1957 horses still did all of the vineyard cultivation. The 2011 Grenache Sur…
Bodegas El Nido is a 100-acre estate in the Valle de La Aragona, in the Jumilla region of Spain. It was founded in 2002 and is a collaboration between Australian winemaker Chris Ringland and the Gil Family. Grapes grown are Monastrell and Cabernet Sauvignon. Two wines are produced, the Clio, which is 70% Monastrell and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the…
Cedarville Vineyard was founded by Jonathan Lach and Susan Marks in 2000. Cedarville Vineyard is located in the Gold Rush era town of Fair Play and is situated within the Fair Play, El Dorado, and Sierra Foothills AVAs. The winery produces many wines including a Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache, Petite Sirah and Syrah. Ruby red in color. 14.8% ABV. Pretty nose of red fruits,…
Bedrock Wine Co. was founded by Morgan Twain-Peterson in 2007 and focuses on small production wines from many of California’ s most treasured and historic vineyards. The lineup of wines at Bedrock is expanding rapidly, but I think the best of the best are the ancient vineyard Zinfandels, Morgan is clearly passionate about. Carlisle Vineyard, planted in 1927, lies in…
Kosta Browne was founded in the late nineties by Dan Kosta and Michael Browne and has always focused on Sonoma Coast and Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. The winery has changed hands several times and is currently part of the Duckhorn Wine Company portfolio which was recently acquired by a private equity firm. The waiting list for the Appellation wines…
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 December Zinfandel of the Month is the 2022 Turley Juvenile. I chose this wine as my Zinfandel…
It is the time of the year where every wine blogger publishes their lists of Wines of the Year or Values of the Year, etc. Although I try to blog about all the wines I taste it is clear that Zinfandel is definitely my grape of choice. The link for each wine will take you to the detailed Bottle Note…