TASTING NOTES

The nose is filled with ripe blackberries, smoked plum, orange relish, cranberry, blueberry compote, white pepper, and dark chocolate. The palate is round, juicy, and bursting with freshness and concentrated red and dark fruit components. The finish is persistent, layered and vibrant, with a touch of spice.

FERMENTATION

Fermented in stainless steel and small open top bins. The fruit was 100% sorted and de-stemmed. The must spent 20 days on the skins with frequent punch downs. Aged in mostly neutral French oak barrels for 12 months

MIKE DUSI
J. Dusi ESTATE VINEYARD, PASO ROBLES

Located on Highway 46, just west of Highway 101, The J. Dusi Estate Vineyard and Winery is the veritable gateway to the Willow Creek District and the west side of Paso Robles. This vineyard enjoys a geographically desirable balance between the cooler, Pacific Ocean-influenced vineyards and the robust growing conditions of Paso Robles East. Planted in 2014 to the Dusi Clone of Zinfandel, the block is relatively small at only 2 acres, but aggressively spaced at 6x5 feet. It is a prolific producer of both quality and quantity, and a fitting vineyard block to carry the Dusi name.

MiKE Dusi, Paper Street VINEYARD, PASO ROBLES

The Dusi family has always been celebrated as one of the four original immigrant farming families to cultivate vineyards in the Paso Robles area. The Dusi name is synonymous with incredible farming, great wines, and location location location. The Paper Street Vineyard was planted in 2013, although the vineyard name hearkens back to a time when road signs did not exist; road names were only printed on maps. This is an incredibly dynamic and rugged site located in the Willow Creek District of Paso Robles- due west of downtown Paso Robles. There are over 10 different varietals that thrive in this vineyard, including Zinfandel, Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Monastrell, Petite Sirah, Grenache Blanc, and Clairette Blanche-which is an incredible testament to how diverse this site is and how dynamic Paso Robles is as a growing region.

Jim Lewis, Lewis RANCHES, VICTOR

Jim Lewis is directly responsible for 20 acres of impeccably farmed Primitivo in Victor, California. This is located in the historic growing region of the Mokelumne River AVA in Lodi, where deeply-rooted, sandy riverbed soils have fertilized this grape growing hot spot since well before the California Gold Rush. The evenly-manicured canopy provides plenty of cover for the small and densely-clustered berries to ripen evenly throughout the relatively long growing season—while most old vine zinfandel sites in this area harvest in late August to mid-September, Jim Lewis attains perfect ripeness by mid-October every year.

Markus Bokisch, DAIRY VINEYARD, LODI

Markus Bokisch is the grower in the greater Lodi appellation most closely associated with farming for quality vs. quantity. The Dairy Vineyard is one of his favorite turn-of-the-century sites, and to-date our oldest vineyard source. According to the Historic Vineyard Society, The Dairy Vineyard was planted on its own rootstock in 1902. There are varied records of the exact year of planting, but all accounts of the Dairy Vineyard on Schmiedt Lane point to its "beautiful, perfect, healthy, and historic" nature. The Dairy Vineyard, also known as Schmiedt Ranch, has never been overcropped or farmed for tonnage. It has always been farmed for quality and its purity of fruit. It is located .25 miles east of the Mokelumne River, 3.5 miles east of the city of Lodi, one mile north of Victor, and right between Kirschenman Lane and Schmiedt Lane. The proximity to the banks of the Mokelumne River and the resulting deep, sandy soils create a very high-tone, red fruit, deep cherry and baker’s chocolate profile that define this area’s best old vine wines.