2 - 2012 Zinfandel Mother Clone, Dry Creek Valley
2 - 2013 Red Wine Blend Barrel Select, Dry Creek Valley
2 - 2013 Merlot Bench Vineyards, Dry Creek Valley
2012 Zinfandel Mother Clone, Dry Creek Valley
Our Mother Clone is a classic Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel. Fragrant aroma of raspberry and red plum with a touch of black pepper and vanilla. Bing cherry and raspberry flavors framed by subtle black pepper spice. Well integrated flavors with round tannins and warm toasty oak are a hallmark of our style. Enjoy now or cellar for three to five years.
89 Points Robert M. Parker, Jr.
89 POINTS Wine Enthusiast Magazine’s Best of the Year 2014
87 Points: Wine Spectator 10/31/2014
96 points justwinepoints.com
Gold Medal: West Coast Wine Competition
Gold Medal: Grand Harvest Awards Competition
Gold Medal: Amenti Del Vino International Wine Competition 2015
Gold Medal: International Women's Wine Competition
Gold Medal: Tasters Guild International Wine Judging
Mother Clone Vineyard Sources
Pedroncelli’s historic Zinfandel vineyards are located on the hillsides surrounding the winery, on the ranch originally purchased by John Pedroncelli Sr. in 1927 and planted to Zinfandel since 1904. Our Zinfandel vines are head-pruned and hand-picked, a second generation vineyard cloned from the original “Mother” vines of which one quarter of an acre exist today. Although a small part of the blend, the fruit from these 100-year-old vines is included. Along with the grapes from our estate vineyards, it has been a tradition to include two other old vine and heritage vineyards comprising a portion of the blend.
Winemaking
An ideal growing season with mild temperatures and opportune heat spikes to get the grapes to full maturity. Yields and fruit quality were exceptional. We harvested the grapes over the last week of September. The resulting fruit had exceptional color, flavor, and quality. During fermentation in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks, the cellar crew performed daily pumpovers—extracting color and flavor from the skins. The wine was aged in American oak barrels for 11 months. A touch of Petite Sirah (6%) adds depth of color and layers of structure,
and tannin to our Zinfandel.
2013 Red Wine Blend Barrel Select, Dry Creek Valley
Rich aromas of red currant, warm spice and cherry pie are followed by flavors of blackberry jam, ripe plum and mocha notes. A silky smooth,
lush wine with rounded fruit and medium tannins with enough acidity to give structure and a lasting finish.
Gold Medal: Grand Harvest Awards
Vineyard Sources
Sourced and hand-picked from several vineyards dotting the hills and benches in northern Sonoma County where red wine varietals do best
in the rocky, gravelly soil and where the unique climate of sun and fog combine to best develop and ripen the grapes.
Winemaking
Our 2013 Red Wine Blend is made with an easy-to-drink focus and a ‘kick back with a glass’ attitude. Barrel Select means we carefully
searched through our cellar looking for the best combination of varietals to give you an enjoyable yet interesting glass of wine. Merlot,
Zinfandel and Sangiovese were balanced with just the right amount of time in small seasoned oak barrels-not too much to overwhelm the
fruit flavors.
The 2013 season had ideal growing conditions with warm days and cool nights that allowed grapes to reach full ripeness with balanced
acids. The result is a rich, complex and well balanced wine. Harvested between September 3rd and the 24th, there was time for great development
of acidity and sugar in the grapes and the resulting wine shows great finesse. Aging for one year in seasoned American oak barrels gave
the wine some additional complexity and softened up the tannins.
2013 Merlot Bench Vineyards, Dry Creek Valley
Our Merlot shows aromas of ripe cherry, red plum and clove. On the palate there is bright berry as well as toasted oak and, in the background, some dried herb and cola notes. Medium bodied with ripe tannins which follow through to a lush, almost velvety finish.
Bench Vineyards
The source for our Bench Vineyards Merlot comes from selected blocks off of our vineyard located along Dry Creek Road as well as one other grower a short distance from ours. Bench Vineyards, the name chosen for this wine, describes the natural terraces that flank Dry Creek Valley and rise gradually into the steep hills. Characterized by sloped topography and gravelly/rocky residual soils, the unique growing conditions combine to bring out the best in our Merlot.
Winemaker Notes
Grapes were harvested the first week of September following the dry and warm growing season of 2013 which accelerated the ripeness of our Merlot by one week. The result is a flavor concentrated wine with soft tannins and excellent structure. The grapes were crushed into temperature controlled stainless steel tanks and cold-soaked for 48 hours. Daily pumpovers during the fermentation gives a substantial increase in color, tannins and flavor. The young wine was transferred to small American oak barrels to age for 14 months in order to develop smoothness and complexity giving it a subtle backbone of oak components.
Specs
2012 Zinfandel Mother Clone, Dry Creek Valley
Appellation: Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
Barrel Aging: 11 months in American oak, 30% new oak
Alcohol: 14.8%
pH: 3.84
Total Acidity: .563g/100mg
2013 Red Wine Blend Barrel Select, Dry Creek Valley
Appellation: Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
Composition: A proprietary blend of Merlot, Zinfandel and Sangiovese
Barrel Aging: Each lot was aged one year in seasoned American oak barrels
Alcohol: 14.3%
pH: 3.59
Total Acidity: .585g/100mg
2013 Merlot Bench Vineyards, Dry Creek Valley
Appellation: Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
Barrel Aging: 14 months in American Oak
Alcohol: 14.2%
pH: 3.61
Total Acidity: .575g/100mg