100-year-old Vines in Contra Costa County Produce Balanced, Food-Friendly Zin
Beauty lies in the imperfections of Oakley vineyards.
Since the vineyards were originally planted, the world became a smaller place. It’s been paved over, buildings have risen, technology has advanced at an unimaginable pace, world wars have started and ended, there’s been extinctions and countless tragedies and triumphs. How amazing to think that the plants creating these grapes are older than nearly all of the consumers who will eventually enjoy their fruit!
Yet, in Contra Costa County about an hour south of Napa, on soil that resembles a sand dune, Oakley vineyard has not only endured, but as the Cline Family Cellars Ancient Vines Zinfandel 2016 ($14.99) proves, these venerable plants thrived.
Grown on its original rootstock, the sandy soils warded off the blight of Phylloxera and allowed the vines to grow unfettered. Today, they grow at various heights in gnarly tangles of knots and produce some interesting wines with unique character.
When winemaker Charlie Tsegeletos scours the vineyard with his picking knife and a bucket, he is certain to get in a workout as he forges through the sandy soil, but he’s uncertain as to what he might find.
“There’s Petite Sirah, Carignane, Alicante Bouschet and other things mixed into the vineyards,” Tsegeletos said. “But, that’s the beauty of the old vineyards.”
The sand deposits from the Sacramento and San Joaquin River Delta were a gift for immigrant winemakers in the 1880s. Vineyards planted in sandy soil, across the world, produce some of the tastiest and complex wines.
The Cline Zin is an exceptional wine with plump, ripe fruit flavors that are juicy and full bodied. Balanced flavors of strawberry pie, cherry cola, raspberry and blackberry emerge on this food-friendly wine.
“We only get about two to three tons per acre because the old vines are very self limiting,” Tsegeletos said. “They don’t produce a lot, but they develop amazing concentration.”
An affordable wine that over-delivers from a century old vineyard. Raise a toast to Oakley’s longevity and its next 100 years when it’s opened.