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Tasting Notes
This elegant, Zinfandel is driven, mixed-blacks field blend breaths aromas of warm bittersweet chocolate lava cake, toffee, and baked plum. Its polished mouthfeel hints at blueberry and mocha with herbaceous tannins introducing a subtle black licorice note. Rich espresso flavors are concentrated in the sleek finish.
Vintage Notes
The 2017 growing season started out wet with record-breaking rainfall after several dry years. A mild spring led to a timely bud break and good fruit set, followed by ideal conditions of cool mornings and warm, sunny days throughout the summer months. A few days of intense heat at the beginning of September sped up ripening throughout the region. Well-timed picks meant the majority of the fruit was in by the first week of October. Beautiful color, well-defined aromatics, and outstanding flavor are all evident in this year’s vintage.
Vineyard Notes
Eletto, meaning “the chosen one” pays homage to the heritage old vine vineyards planted over 100 years ago. For this vintage winemaker, Katie Madigan chose three such vineyards to showcase in this spectacular blend. The Uboldi Vineyard, Giovanetti Vineyard, and Anaceleto Vineyard were all planted in the early 1900s by Italian families. It was common for these pioneering farmers to ask for cuttings from neighbors and friends to fill out the vineyard. Over time the block became a traditional Italian “field blend” of over a dozen varieties including Alicante, Petite Sirah, and Carignane along with Zinfandel. This field blend, identified as a “Mixed Blacks”, is picked and fermented together having distinct characteristics including more structure and acid than a traditional Zinfandel blend.
Winemaker Notes
The grapes are hand-sorted and undergo a five-day cold soak before fermentation to extract optimal color and flavor. After primary fermentation, the wine is pumped into 100% French oak barrels, 45% new, where it undergoes natural malolactic fermentation, followed by 24 months of aging before blending and bottling.
