2023 Blasi Zinfandel

Nose of strawberry rhubarb pie and sarsaparilla. Red raspberry on the palate with notes of fresh sage, toffee and minerality. Elegant, fine-grained tannins with a gentle finish. SR (6/25)

Mild weather in July and August prolonged the growing season, pushing harvest back to October 24th. These vines grow in chalky white volcanic ash. The soil type and the warmer microclimate differentiate Chalk Hill from the rest of the Russian River appellation. An excellent location to grow flavorful zinfandel, this elegant wine is enjoyable now and will continue to develop over the next six years. SR (6/24)

Gary Blasi has been farming this old vines vineyard in the Chalk Hill appellation for over forty years on a handshake agreement with owner Jim Metcalfe. This wine has been labeled with Gary’s name to credit his many years of meticulously farming this classic vineyard.

Rainfall: 64 inches (above normal)
Bloom: June
Weather: Late and prolonged harvest due to consistently cool weather throughout the growing season.

Harvest Date: 24 October
Grapes: Average Brix 24.5˚
TA: 5.2 g/L
pH: 3.8
Fermentation: Natural primary and secondary fermentation.
Barrels: 100% air-dried American oak (7% new, 29% four years old, and 64% five-plus years old).
Aging: Fourteen months in barrel

All Blasi grapes, hand-harvested; destemmed and crushed; fermented on the native yeasts, followed by full malolactic on the naturally occurring bacteria; oak from barrel aging; minimum effective sulfur for this wine (35 ppm at crush, 52 ppm over the course of aging), pad filtered at bottling. In keeping with our philosophy of minimal intervention, this is the sum of our actions.

OwenBargreen.com: 96 Points “The 2023 ‘Blasi’ Zinfandel unlike the ’22 edition does not have any Petite Sirah blended in. Coming from the Chalk Hill AVA, fresh sage and dark fruits mark the nose alongside white pepper and orange zest on the nose. The palate has amazing concentration and finesse with good salty nuances. Cardamom and exotic spices fill the palate alongside a glorious melange of red and dark fruits on the palate. This is nothing short of a stunning edition of this wine that wonderfully smooth throughout the drinking experience. Enjoy now and over the next ten plus years. Drink 2025-2038.” -Owen Bargreen (June 2025)

See all food pairing recipes we have created specifically for this wine.