Winemaker Notes
With Napa Valley elegance, this single-vineyard Zinfandel offers layers of complex flavors. Bursting with aromas of floral and wild cherry fruit with dusty undertones. This wine is balanced with well-integrated oak essences of cedar, vanilla, and dill. A smooth and luscious finish with framing tannins, that coats your entire palate, will keep you sipping for more.
Professional Ratings
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Connoisseurs' Guide
This expressive, very well-made wine proves that ripeness, deep fruit and real polish are all within good Zinfandel’s grasp all at once. Its careful marriage of sweet oak, slight briary spice and sustained blackberry fruit earn it enthusiastic recommendation, and it gets an extra round of applause for its careful balance and seamless construction. It is structured to age gracefully and should do so for a good half-decade or more, but its enjoyment in no way depends on waiting.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: There is no shyness in the 2017 Ghost Block Pelissa Vineyard Zinfandel; this is an excellent Zin. TASTING NOTES: This wine packs beautiful berries, tart, and earth in its aromas and flavors. Pair it with grilled cheeseburgers. (Tasted: February 21, 2020, Napa, CA)
Unapologetically bold, spice-driven and jammy, Zinfandel has secured its title as the darling of California vintners by adapting well to the state's diverse microclimates and landscapes. Born in Croatia, it later made its way to southern Italy where it was named Primitivo. Fortunately, the imperial nursery of Vienna catalogued specimens of the vine, and it later made its way to New England in 1829. Parading the true American spirit, Zinfandel found a new home in California during the Gold Rush of 1849. Somm Secret—California's ancient vines of Zinfandel are those that survived the neglect of Prohibition; today these vines produce the most concentrated, ethereal and complex examples.
Home to some of the most sought-after Cabernet Sauvignon in America, Napa Valley’s Oakville district stretches across the center of Napa's valley floor and foothills between the Vaca and Mayacamas Mountains. This AVA is home to the legendary To Kalon Vineyard and Martha's Vineyard, as well as many powerhouse wineries including Screaming Eagle, Silver Oak, Robert Mondavi, Opus One, Far Niente and Groth.
The climate is generally warm and agreeable, resulting in year after year of favorable vintages. Summer days see a gentle tug of war between warmer inland air and the cool air coming in from the San Pablo Bay, creating an ideal environment to grow red varieties. Oakville's diverse soils, namely ancient sea bedrock, clay and gravel, are well-drained, and perfect for high-caliber viticulture.
Cabernet here is often bottled varietally but is also popular in Bordeaux Blends. Oakville wines are known for their silky, sensual textures, structured tannins, dark and brooding fruit and lovely aromatics. These age-worthy and prestigious wines are favored by collectors throughout the world.