2013 Dry Creek Old Vine Zinfandel Reserve ($35)

The inspiration for Silvia Cellars began in 1885 on a family owned vineyard in Sicily. Striving to create quality wine for his dinner table, Nonno Silvia shared a passion for vendemmia (harvesting) of his vines with the members of his family. Over a century later, Antonio Silvia carried on his Grandfather’s legacy by starting his own winery with the same values. Silvia Cellars, a family owned winery, was born from the desire to capture the best of California appellations from seeking growing sites that fit their Sicilian winemaking style.

This Silvia Cellars Old Vine Zinfandel is produced from vines that are more than 50 years in age and in some cases, more than 90 years old. It is comprised of 90% Old Vine Zinfandel 5% Petit Syrah 5% Carignane. The Zinfandel in this wine comes from a blend of 87% Dry Creek valley grapes, 6% from Alexander Valley and 7% from Mendocino County. It was aged 14 months in American and Hungarian oak, 15% of which was new oak.

This Zinfandel is medium purple in color with aromas of dark red fruit and soft floral perfume. On the palate it’s very smooth with low tannin and peppery hints. It’s finish is most notable being long and complex with notes from the oak aging.

You can find Silvia Cellars wines on https://silviacellars.com

Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Sample Provided by Antonio Silvia, Managing Director of Silvia Cellars LLC