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Should Napa Vintners Follow Lodi’s lead?

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The six Lodi Native wines

The six Lodi Native wines

Lodi Native Project

I was fortunate to be one of 25 wine bloggers who attended a post conference session devoted to the Lodi Native Project.  The session included vineyard walks and meeting the project winemakers and growers, followed by  a tasting of all six Lodi Native wines.  This is a first-of-a-kind project and an eye-opener for myself and all the other wine bloggers. This is a testament to the cooperation and spirit of the Lodi wine region and its winery owners, winemakers, and vineyard growers. The Lodi Native is an intriguing project intended to showcase the terroir, or sense of place, from six unique old vine Zinfandel vineyards. You’ve heard the old adage ,”Wine is made in the Vineyards.” The Lodi Native project proves that.

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Wegat Vineyard – Old Vine Zinfandel  – hollowed out trunk is typical of these old vines

In brief, this is what the Lodi Native Project is all about. In 2012 the Lodi Wine Grape Commission convinced six winemakers to make a 100% Zinfandel wine from a designated Zinfandel vineyard. Each winemaker was to stick to strict rules. Only native yeast could be used, and no new oak barrels were allowed. Acidifying wines or adding water were not allowed. In short, the wine is made with minimal intervention by the winemaker. The wine should reflect the place in which the Zinfandel is grown.  All the winemakers use the same label, with the exception of the name of the vineyard and the name of the producing winery on the bottle.  More information on the Lodi Native requirements go to this link.

Moderator and Lodi Native winemakers

Moderator and Lodi Native winemakers

From the start the winemakers were rather skeptical, thinking that without using their skilled winemaking techniques, the wine was destined to be inferior. The exact opposite occurred, with each wine beautifully showcasing the place where it is was grown. Deep and complex, elegant and restrained, characterize each of the six wines. We tasted the six wines at the Macchia winery. I would love to have tasted these wine in a side-by-side tasting to compare and contrast the individual characteristic of each wine. However, with the number of wine bloggers and the limited space, we tasted the wines one at a time.

The Lodi Native wines are available for purchase, but the 2012 and 2013 Lodi Native wines are sold out. I am hoping to get on the list to purchase the six Lodi Native wines for 2014. The 2014 vintage will be bottled in November and will be sold in a six-pack for a price of $180. $30 a bottle is a great price point for Zinfandel wines of this quality. The Lodi Wine Commission will have a signup list online when the wine is available.  In the meantime, any travelers to Lodi can visit the six wineries. Just maybe, one or two will have their Lodi Native wine available for purchase. See the Lodi Native Project Wine Map below.

old vine ready for harvest

Old vine ready for harvest

The six vineyards and winemakers are:

Hello, Napa Valley Vintners

Now in its third year, all of the six winemakers are 100% committed to the program. Several other Lodi winemakers have expressed interest in joining the project. Which brings us to this thought: Will other wine regions follow in the footsteps of the Lodi Native Project? What if the Napa Valley would take just a few plots from their prized Cabernet Sauvignon Vineyards and undertake the same type of project? Using the same formula as the Lodi Native Project, how would a Howell Mountain Cabernet compare to a Mount Veeder Cab or a Spring Mountain Cab? How would a St. Helena Cabernet compare to Rutherford, Stags Leap, or Oakville Cabernet? What an interesting way to showcase the great terroirs of the Napa Valley or any other of our fine California wine regions!

Lodi Native Wine Map

Old Vine Zinfandel in Lodi

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Lodi old vine Zinfandel

Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel ready for harvest

Old Vine Zinfandel in Lodi

I shot this beautiful cluster of Old Vine Zinfandel in Lodi wine country at the Mohr-Fry Ranch. The Zinfandel vineyards at Mohr-Fry are some of the oldest Zinfandel grapes in California. The first planting of Zinfandel at Mohr-Fry dates back to 1901. The Zinfandel vines are head pruned. That means no trellis system. Mohr-Fry sells its fruit to many wineries in Lodi and elsewhere. Here is a link to view the winery producing wine from the Mohr Fry Ranch.

Old Vine Zinfandel vines are gnarley looking and spread their shoots widely. Little thinning or dropping of grape clusters is needed. The vines are so old that they produce few clusters. What is produced from these vines are intense and concentrated flavors. The Zinfandel vine roots grow deep into the loamy soil in search of water and nutrients. Some roots may be as deep as 30 feet.

There is no legal definition of Old Vine Zinfandel. It is term often misused. Slap the term “Old Vine Zinfandel” on a wine label and it attracts buyers. In the wine community, it is an unwritten rule that any Zinfandel vines 50 years old or older are consider to be true Old Vine Zinfandel.

Let us know in the Comment Section if you have visited or can recommend other Old Vine Zinfandel vineyards in California.

Other Old Vine Zinfandel articles on WCG

1869 Old Vine Zinfandel Vineyard in Amador Wine Country

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1869 Grandpere vineyard

Andis and their 1869 Old Vine Zinfandel

1869 Old Vine Zinfandel vineyards – Oldest Zin

Original Grandpere

Vino Noceto calls its Zinfandel OGP

When in Amador, visit wineries making wine from the oldest Zinfandel vineyard in the U.S.

The 1869 Old Vine Zinfandel vineyard is located in the Shenandoah Valley of Amador County. It is the oldest Zinfandel vineyard in California. It is also known as the Original Grandpere Vineyard. Only four wineries are able to purchase and make wine from this historic vineyard. These wineries are Andis Wines, Scott Harvey Wines, and Vino Noceto in the Amador County. The fourth winery, located in nearby Lodi, is Macchia Wines. The historic 1869 Grandpere is located on Steiner Road behind the Renwood Winery. You can view it from a distance, but it is off-limits to the public.

Vineyard 1869 Scott Harvey

Scott Harvey has renamed the Original Grandpere Vineyard as Vineyard 1869

Scott Harvey and his wife Terri purchased the vineyard in 1982 and Scott named it the Grandpere Vineyard. Later Scott and his wife divorced, and Terri is now the owner of this historic vineyard. It’s a little complicated but at some point, Renwood winery cloned some of the Grandpere vines and replanted another vineyard nearby with the cuttings. Renwood trademarked the name Grandpere, apparently unbeknownst to Terri Harvey. A huge court battle ensued with Renwood the winner. Terri is allowed to call this vineyard the Original Grandpere Vineyard.  Scott Harvey has tagged it Vineyard 1869. Needless to say, Renwood winery is not able to obtain any of the original old vine Zinfandel. Renwood winery later ran into financial difficulties and sold the winery in 2011 to an Argentine wine group. The current owners have revitalized the winery, but of course cannot make a single Zinfandel wine from the original vineyard.

When in Amador wine country, visit the wineries that make the Original Grandpere Zinfandel

Scott Harvey

Scott Harvey has two tasting rooms in Amador. In the gold country town of Sutter Creek, the Scott Harvey Tasting Room is open daily from 11am to 5 pm.  Scott also has a winery and tasting room on Shenandoah Road in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley. This tasting room is open Thursday to Sunday, 11am to 5 pm. Scott is one of the original winemakers in this wine region and is well respected in the wine community. All of his wines are made in an old-world style and are food-friendly wines. The red wines will age wonderfully and as he states, “will develop bottle bouquet over time.” Please see Scott Harvey Wines for complete tasting information.

Vino Noceto

This is a wonderful family-owned winery. It is a small, very friendly winery and is lots of fun to visit. The winery was founded in 1987 by Suzy and Jim Gullet. The Vino Noceto winery specializes in Sangiovese wines, but does indeed produce a wonderful Zinfandel from the Original Grandpere Vineyard. They call it the OGP Zinfandel. It sells for $29 at the winery. Vino Noceto is open daily from 11am to 4 pm and is located on Shenandoah Road.  Please see the Vino Noceto Website for more details.

Andis Wines

Andis 1869 Vineyard Zin

The modern and industrial-style Andis Wines

Andis is one of the more recently-established wineries in the Shenandoah Valley. Its winery and tasting room are modern and spacious and a huge contrast to the more laid-back style of the older and established wineries in Amador. The winery produces a wide range of wines, from a tasty Sauvignon Blanc to the deep and complex Original Grandpere Zinfandel pictured at the top of the article. The Andis winery is open daily from 11am to 4:30 pm. Please see the Andis Wines Website for more details.

More information on visiting Amador Wine Country

Teldeschi Vineyards in Dry Creek Valley

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100 year old Zinfandel

Lush grape clusters on this 100 year-old Zin

A little-known and offbeat vineyard resides on Dry Creek Road. Each day hundreds of tourists drive by and never enter the realm of Teldeschi Vineyards and the winery named Del Carlo. There is no signage or tasting room, so the droves of visitors to the Dry Creek Valley never venture into this remarkable world of 100 year-old Zinfandel vineyards and breathtaking views of the Dry Creek Valley’s east bench lands.

We were in the Dry Creek Valley on Thursday and finished an appointment early. On a whim, we called the number on the Del Carlo website. Within 15 minutes we were riding in Ray Teldeschi’s 1950 red flatbed truck through his Home Ranch of 56 acres, 26 of which are planted with vines. We had been introduced to the Del Carlo wines at a trade tasting, and since then had always wanted to visit. Ray and Lori Teldeschi are the second-generation owners of the ranch; Ray’s parents purchased the property in 1948. In 2005, Ray and Lori established the Del Carlo wine label.

Ray Teldeschi

The Vineyard Tour

The vineyard tour on the flatbed truck made a complete circle of the vineyards, with Ray sitting with us giving details of his sustainable farming and his vineyard management techniques. Ray is growing Zinfandel, Cabernet, Petite Sirah, Sangiovese and even some Delicato grapes. Rays sells 90 percent of his vines to several wineries in Sonoma and Napa. These include the makers of the popular Prisoner wine, Seghesio Winery and Carlisle Winery. Ray uses the final 10 percent of his grapes to produce the Del Carlo label, a mere 600 cases of wonderful tasting wine.

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Robert Rue Vineyard – A Must Visit

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Note: The Robert Rue Winery was sold to Kirk Venge in 2016. The new name of the winery is Croix Estate.

“Rue the Day” is the catchphrase at Robert Rue Vineyards. It really should be “Rue the Day” for those wineries that lost out when Robert Rue and his wife Carlene stopped selling their old vine Zin grapes and decided to start making their own wine from these prized grapes. Robert Rue Vineyards is unique in character in that, not only are the Zinfandel vines over 100 years old, but also the vineyard is sprinkled with Petite Sirah, Alicante Bouchet, and Carignane. Yes, an old field blend where all the grapes are harvested together. That is how wine was made in the old days.

Robert Rue and his old vine Zinfandel

It was in 1973 that Robert and Carlene Rue decided to purchase a small ten-acre ranch of Zinfandel vines in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County. But it was not until 2001 that the Rues stopped selling their grapes and began to make their own wine under the guidance of Carol Shelton, and now Dan Barwick, as consulting winemaker. We first tasted the Robert Rue wine, a 2004 vintage, a few years back at the ZAP tasting at Fort Mason in San Francisco. What a delicious Zinfandel we thought, and when we heard that Robert Rue Vineyards had recently opened a tasting room we headed up north on Highway 101 to the winery. Like so many small wineries, this one is such a treat and a joy to visit. We got a tour of the vineyards and winemaking facility from both Robert and Carlene, and we heard first hand their struggles and fortunes of making a go of their winery. What fun to open a bottle of wine when you have met the owners and know the story behind the making of the wine.

In the tasting room, we sampled 2005, 2006, and 2007 vintages. Perhaps it’s the fact that wines are made from 100-year-old field blend vines, but this Zinfandel has a character all its own. 2006 was our favorite of the tasting. It is smooth and elegant but rich in flavors. No harsh tannins; in essence, a superb dinner wine.

Just last year, the Rues decided to plant some Sauvignon Blanc. It will take a couple of years to yield enough grapes to make a sufficient amount of wine. For now, the Rues have purchased Russian River Valley fruit and have a made a very exquisite Sauvignon Blanc wine.

The 2010 vintage for the Rues is going to be a little tougher than usual. You might recall the terrific heat spike of August 24, where temperatures surged over the 100-degree mark. Because of the very mild summer, most of the vineyard managers had trimmed the overhanging canopy that normally provides shade to the maturing grape clusters. The weather outlook called for continued below-normal temperatures. The last thing the farmers wanted was to have the crops not ripen until into November when the heavy rains come. When the heat spike occurred, it caught everyone off guard. The result for Robert Rue vineyards: sun-damaged grapes and perhaps as much as 40% crop damage.

If you plan on visiting Robert Rue Vineyards, nearby are two other interesting wineries. Benovia is a brand new winery loaded with beauty and state-of-the-art winemaking equipment. They specialize in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Also nearby is Battaglini Winery, much in the same character as Robert Rue. All three are a delight to visit and will make for a fabulous wine country getaway day trip. Tasting hours at Robert Rue are Friday, Saturday and Sunday 10-5pm or by appointment Monday through Thursday.


View Robert Rue, Benovia, Battaglini Wineries in a larger map

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