Zinfandel "Santinamaria" 2003

Vineyard:
Planted in the heart of Sonoma Valley during the late 1800’s, Casa Santinamaria is one of California’s few       remaining ‘field blended” vineyards. Unlike the single varietal vineyards of today, field blended vineyards – a       traditional European practice brought to California by Italian immigrants – are interplanted with a several       complementary varietals intended for the final blend. Our Casa Santinamaria Vineyard is planted to a classic       field blend of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Carignane, Alicante Bouschet and Mataro; all of which play a role in the       complexity and structure of the final wine. Due to the age of the vines and the fact that are dry farmed, the       yields are well below average for Zinfandel, the clusters are very small and the fruit is very concentrated. In       2003 we were able to harvest only 0.4 tons/acre.

Winemaking: As with the vineyard, our winemaking style is deeply rooted in traditions of Italian field blending. The intent of       the field blend is to make the Zinfandel more complex and ageworthy by blending with select varietals for       structure, most notably Petite Sirah for backbone.

In 2003 our Casa Santinamaria Zinfandel was harvested at 25.8 brix into small bins during the cool of the       early morning. The grapes were de-stemmed into an open-top fermenter (95% whole berry), “cold-soaked”      for 36 hours, and inoculated with a low rate of yeast to allow the “wild yeast” to have an effect before the       cultured yeast takes over. After fermentation the wine was racked to new and one year old French barrels       and aged in barrel for 23 months and in bottle for an additional 12. Our extended aging protocol – long by       most Zinfandel standards – is in keeping with the traditional barrel aging given fine Bordeaux and Cabernet       wines. Our Casa Santinamaria Zinfandel is meant to show fine fruit and nuance in its youth and reward patience with more deeply complex flavors and structure over time. To experience the unusual aging       potential of our Casa Santinamaria Zinfandel, cellar for 10 or more years.

Tasting Notes: Our 2003 Casa Santinamaria Zinfandel has an intense raspberry and dried cranberry signature that seems       to run from year to year, along with black cherry/berry, dark chocolate and sweet elegant oak tones. On the       mouth this wine has great structure and a mélange of dried raspberry, mocha and chocolate dust       reminiscent of a decadent raspberry chocolate torte. This is a very rich and long wine. Production: 254 cases