Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
One of the unheralded wines in the Rombauer lineup is the Zinfandel, which comes from the Sierra Foothills. The 2022 Zinfandel Twin Rivers combines briary-herbal nuances with sweeter overtones of vanilla and raspberry jam on the nose. Matured in 10% new American oak, with the balance of the wood coming from used Chardonnay barrels, it's full-bodied, soft, plush and almost cloud-like in the mouth, with a long, velvety yet mouthwatering finish.
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James Suckling
Wow, a super-ripe, super-silky and mouth-filling wine that's broad, ripe and mouth-coating. Strawberries, dried plums, raspberry syrup and liqueur notes. High alcohol, but carries it well. Easy tannins and a very full body.
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Wine Spectator
Plump and toasty, with jammy raspberry and blackberry flavors accented by spiced cinnamon, licorice and bittersweet chocolate. Finishes with briary tannins. Drink now through 2031. 4,965 cases made.
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.
As home to California’s highest altitude vineyards, El Dorado is also one of its oldest wine growing regions. When gold miners settled here in the late 1800s, many also planted vineyards and made wine to quench its local demand.
By 1870, El Dorado County, as part of the greater Sierra Foothills growing area, was among the largest wine producers in the state, behind only Los Angeles and Sonoma counties. The local wine industry enjoyed great success until just after the turn of the century when fortune-seekers moved elsewhere and its population diminished. With Prohibition, winemaking and grape growing was totally abandoned. But some of these vines still exist today and are the treasure chest of the Sierra Foothills as we know them.
El Dorado has a diverse terrain with elevations ranging from 1,200 to 3,500 feet, creating countless mesoclimates for its vineyards. This diversity allows success with a wide range of grapes including whites like Gewurztraminer and Sauvignon Blanc, as well as for reds, Grenache, Syrah, Tempranillo, Barbera and especially, Zinfandel.
Soils tend to be fine-grained volcanic rock, shale and decomposed granite. Summer days are hot but nights are cool and the area typically gets ample precipitation in the form or rain or snow in the winter.