Terra D'Oro 2017 Deaver Vyd. 135 Year Old Vine Zinfandel, Amador

The fourteen acre piece of the Deaver Vineyard used to make Terra d'Oro Deaver Vineyard 135 Year Old Vines Zinfandel was planted in 1881. As vines mature they produce less but more concentrated fruit. The dry farmed vine's roots continue to grow deeper into the soil as years pass and pull water and nutrients from multiple soil layers. The limited amount of fruit that does come off the vineyard is hand picked into small bins. Juice is bled from the hopper before crushing; this reduces the juice to skin ratio in order to get maximum extraction. After decades of working with the Deaver fruit they've isolated certain strains of yeast that bring the most effective fermentation. After gentle pressing, the wine is aged 12 months in premium French and American Oak, 30% of which is new.

Wine Enthusiast Magazine awarded this an Editors' Choice and scored it 93 points saying "Handsome oak aromas and intense old-vine fruitiness combine to give this full-bodied wine extra dimension. Cedar, vanilla and new leather tones crowd the nose, while ripe and soothing berry and cherry flavors coat the palate."