Three Contra Costa Zinfandel

So What?

"Three Wine Company is a family winery run by Matt and Erin Cline who focus on making wine from old vines of California's "heritage" varietals: Zinfandel, Mataro, Carignan and Petit Sirah. Matt believes the the dirt, the micro-climate and sustainable wine growing form the cornerstone of good winemaking. These three elements are in every bottle three produces. Matt focuses his energies on finding old vine plantings in places few growers and winemakers find interesting, mainly in the sandy soils of Contra Costa County. He is able to source fruit from vines that are over 100 years old!

Three Zinfandel is a blend of 77% Zinfandel, 14% Petite Sirah, 6% Carignane, 2% Mataro, and 1% Alicante Bouschet. All the grapes in this blend come from vineyard blocks with extremely sandy-loam soils called Delhi loam. Sixty-five percent of this Zinfandel blend consists of 18 - 20 year old vines with the balance (35%) being well over 100 years old. These younger vine Zinfandel grapes show the typical raspberry to blackberry fruit so dominate in the older vines in the area, validating this Contra Costa appellation. The “field blend” contingent of this wine adds structure, color, cherry, and black fruit flavors. There is a deep concentration of ripe black cherries and spice with a minerality (earthy berry) sneaking through. The mouth-feel is rich and balanced with a lingering peppery finish. Enjoy now or age 3 to 7 years."