Nalle

“My dad started the winery and I learned how to make wine from him. We both believe in the same kind of winemaking style.

I think that is one thing that makes us a unique winery, and it also makes it gratifying to try the vintages of Nalle through the years. Since the style has persisted, you can really taste the wines as expressions of the Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel that particular year.”

-Andrew Nalle

Nalle is a small family run winery with father, mother and son all having important roles in daily operations. Doug Nalle received a masters degree in enology at U.C. Davis in 1979 and later studied at the University of Bordeaux. Since the first vintage in 1984 Doug Nalle (now alongside his son Andrew) has refused to give in to the changing fashion for high alcohol, jammy zins. As a result, they remain off the radar of the mainstream wine critics and that’s OK with them.

Although they also make tiny amounts of Chardonnay & Pinot Noir, Nalle is best known for their Dry Creek Zinfandel, a classic field blend made in a traditional style. With modest alcohol levels, tasteful oak treatment, and incredible age-ability, this estate remains one of the benchmark Dry Creek Zinfandel being made today.

The grapes come from three vineyards around the Dry Creek Valley. Their main source, just steps from the winery, is their family vineyard, Henderlong Ranch, which was planted in 1927 by Fred and Ruby Henderlong, the great grandparents of Andrew Nalle. The other two vineyards, Carreras and Sibary are located near one another in the northern part of the Valley. The Carreras vines (all three are field blends) are more than 90 years old and the Sibary Vineyard was planted more recently in 1999.

The winemaking for the Zinfandel is aimed towards making expressive wines rather than blockbusters. Nalle is always one of the first wineries to begin the harvest each fall and they still check every bunch by hand on a sorting table, a practice considered too time consuming for most California wineries. After sorting they undergo a three day cold soak followed by 7-14 days of fermentation on the skins, punched down 2-3 times per day. Finally the wine is aged for 11 months in 25% new French oak before bottling.

www.nallewinery.com

Wines

• Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley 2009