HISTORY

Old Vines is composed of a variety of old sites from California that are either too small to be made into a vineyard designate wine or are “new” to the Turley family (and way of farming). Vines are anywhere from 50 to 130 years old, and a true representation of California old vine Zinfandel, hailing from vineyards in Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino, Lodi, Contra Costa, Amador and Paso Robles. There is no better way to gauge the classic character of old vine Zinfandel in California than through this wine.

VINTAGE SPECIFIC TASTING NOTES

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DETAILS

• AVA: California

• Number of Vineyards: 20+

• Counties Represented: 8

• Age of Vines: 50-130 years

• Varieties: 95% Zinfandel, 5% Mataro, Alicante Bouschet, Petite Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault

• Fermentation: Native yeast

• Barrels: 90% used oak, 10% new; 80% French oak, 20% American

• Aging: 12 months in barrel

• Bottled unfined

• First Turley Vintage: 1996

• Serving Temp: 55-60ºF

• Release: Fall

What Constitutes an “Old Vine?”

            There is no technical (read: legal) definition of an “old vine” in the United States, so the common claims on wine labels vary widely. Not content with arbitrary labels—after all, very little is done arbitrarily in emergency medicine—Turley employs fifty years as the minimum vine age to be considered for “Old Vines.” This number was chosen purposefully thanks to the Historic Vineyard Society, of which Tegan is a founding board member. By adopting much of the criteria for consideration as a United States National Historic Landmark, the goal of HVS is to achieve legal protection for these (agri)cultural vineyard sites as historic landmarks. Some of these shared criteria for these sites include:

1. “Sites…that possess exceptional value or quality in illustrating or interpreting the heritage of the United States in history…and culture” and “possess a high degree of integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association.”

2. “Associated with events that have made a significant contribution to, and are identified with, or that outstandingly represent, the broad national patterns of United States history and from which an understanding and appreciation of those patterns may be gained.”

3. “That represent some great idea or ideal of the American people”

4. “That are composed of integral parts of the environment …[that] collectively compose an entity of exceptional historical or artistic significance, or outstandingly commemorate or illustrate a way of life or culture.”

            With all of that in mind, it is easy to see why we might consider these ancient vineyards a significant part of our cultural heritage. They are the fruit of immigration patterns in the United States as a whole and California in particular; most of the very oldest vines are in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, planted by the early pioneers of America’s “Manifest Destiny” and a direct result of the California Gold Rush in 1849. Indeed, immigration patterns within California can often be traced through the names of many of these old vineyards, as well as the way and varieties to which they’re planted; from the Germans of Lodi (Kirschenmann, Bechtoldt, Schmeid) to the Portuguese of Contra Costa (Evangelho, Salvador, Mori) to the many Italians of Sonoma and Paso Robles (Pesenti, Martinelli, Dusi).

            Furthermore, many of these vineyards have survived Prohibition and two separate devastating bouts of phylloxera. Thanks to the diverse agriculture, geography, topography and unique cultural circumstances, “the world’s most extensive plantings of really old vines are, perhaps contrary to expectations, in California” (Jancis Robinson MW et al, Wine Grapes: A Complete Guide to 1,368 Vine Varieties, Including Their Origins and Flavours, 2012). Thus winemaking from old vine vineyards, particularly of old vine Zinfandel vineyards, is one of the most unique and significantly Californian cultural contributions to our nation’s heritage.

 Why are old vines superior?

            In addition to their cultural significance, old vines produce a naturally more complex, balanced, and sustainable wine. Young vines tend to be vigorous and high yielding for a short period of time (16-20 years) before most wineries rip them up and replant, to keep yields at a maximum; think of the brief but intense career of an NFL player. Young modern vineyards are also almost always irrigated, which keeps the yields high and the root systems shallow, but can (in our opinion) dilute the quality and integrity of the final wine.

            An old vine, on the other hand, naturally regulates its yields, focusing all of the vine’s energy into a more finite—and ultimately more concentrated—final wine. Furthermore, these vines are dry-farmed, meaning they survive only on the natural rainfall patterns and water tables of their respective micro-climates. Finally, they are more deeply rooted in the soils, reaching down over 40 feet into the earth in some cases. For these reasons, we believe the final wines produced by truly old vines are the truest representations of their respective terroirs. Plus, they just taste good (see tasting note, below).