The Seghesio family have been growing Zinfandel in Sonoma since 1895. They are one of the most-respected producers and produce one of the most iconic reds in the whole of California, their Home Ranch Vineyard, Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.
This is a beautiful and perfectly-balanced Zinfandel that acts as a wonderfully generous entry to the Seghesio portfolio.
We have VERY LIMITED availability of the 2019 vintage!
This is unashamedly attractive, showing a densely-packed nose full of ripe plums, damson, raspberry and strawberry fruit, with earthy spices, coffee and chocolate. There's a lot going on... The palate is rich, but, because of the age of batch that we have managed to get, it is fully relaxed and soft with integrated fine-grained tannins that create a really smooth and rich mouth-feel. It is gorgeous!
Sonoma County is blessed by a series of micro climatic subzones and the Seghesio family have managed to buy a series of them over the past 125 years and continue to work with neighbours who own and farm other key sites as well. In total, they have 150 plots of vineyard to work from, creating a patchwork of amazingly versatile and diverse fruit sources that add significantly to the complexity of their wines. In addition, each plot is vinified separately, creating a huge logistical headache perhaps, but also allowing for the utmost control and quality from one vintage to the next.
All the vineyards are maintained by hand and the winery uses about as many vinification techniques as I can imagine - pumpover, punchdown, delestage, rotary fermenters, concrete eggs and large wooden vats... all with the aim to allow each of the vinifications to produce the best flavours that they can.
The wine is then matured for just under a year, depending on the characteristics of each vintage, in a combination of French and American oak barrels, neither of which are first-use, so as not to overpower the fruit flavours. At the end, though they are quintessentially American, the outlook is still remarkably European and restrained. A very fine balance of the two, which is fitting as it was from the Italy that the family emigrated in 1895 and from there that they still their sense of national heritage and winemaking sensitivity.
Country: USA
Grape(s): Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Sirah
Style: Svelte, Structured, Silky, Round, Rich, Powerful, Full, Complex
Best food matches: Steak, Soft Cheeses, Red Meats, Mature Cheeses, Lamb, Hard Cheeses, Charcuterie
Alcohol: 14.8%
