Turley Wine Cellars was founded in 1993 by Larry Turley and specializes in small lots of Zinfandel and Petite Sirah from some of California’s most historic and treasured vineyards. Turley now makes right around 50 separate wines from 47 different vineyards, some with vines that date back to the late 1800’s. Tegan Passalacqua is the Director of Winemaking at Turley and…
Chateau de Beaucastel, located in Courthezon in the Southern Rhone Valley, has over 250 acres of organic vineyards. Unlike many Rhone Valley producers, Beaucastel grows all 13 of the grapes permitted in the appellation and the estate uses an unusually high percentage of Mourvèdre in its red wines, usually around 30%, along with 30% Grenache and smaller amounts of Syrah,…
Welcome to the latest installment of The Week in Zinfandel. If I missed your post or story please send me a link and I will be sure to include it next week. Happy reading!
The 2015 Cayuse Grenache God Only Know was the winning bottle in the March installment of Pick My Next Bottle. The wine was not decanted although in retrospect maybe 1-2 hours would have been beneficial. Cayuse was founded in 1997 by Christophe Baron, a native of France who grew up in family of winemakers in Champagne. Baron studied viticulture in…
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 April Zinfandel of the Month is the 2021 Ridge Vineyards Geyserville. I chose this Zinfandel as my…
Marcel Lapierre took over the family domaine from his father in 1973. The winery dates back to the early 1900’s. In 1981 Marcel met Jules Chauvet. A winemaker, researcher and chemist, Chavet preached for natural wines and the traditional methods of Beaujolais. Joined by local vignerons Guy Breton, Jean-Paul Thévenet, and Jean Foillard, Marcel led a group that soon went to the…
Winemaker Matt Courtney founded Ferren Wines in 2013 with longtime friend David Wherritt after an eight-year apprenticeship with Helen Turley at Marcassin Vineyard on the Sonoma Coast. Ferren specializes in Sonoma Coast Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Matt is also the winemaker at Arista. Silver Eagle is a thirty-acre vineyard situated among the rolling hills north of Occidental, in the Green…
The March installment of Pick My Next Bottle focuses on the wines of Christophe Baron and Elizabeth Bourcier. The Cayuse Release Party is a little over a week out and I thought I would prep for the event with a bottle of La Rata, Cayuse or No Girls. As I mentioned in the first installment, the purpose of this series…
AldenAlli is a collaboration between the families Dan Kosta and Emeril Lagasse. The winery is named after their wifes Alli Kosta and Alden Lagasse. The initial release was a 2013 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir. In 2015 the lineup expanded to include a single vineyard Pinot Noir from Campbell Ranch and a Zinfandel from Limerick Lane Vineyard. More Pinot Noir and…
Welcome to the latest installment of The Week in Zinfandel. If I missed your post or story please send me a link and I will be sure to include it next week. Happy reading!