2003 Nervo Zinfandel

This is the eighth vintage in which Ridge has worked with this old vineyard on the steep hillsides of western Alexander Valley. The Nervo family purchased the land in 1896. It included ten acres of zinfandel, interplanted with a small amount of petite sirah. In 2003, those hundred-and-twenty-year-old vines set a full crop, providing just over half the grapes for this wine. The balance comes from younger vines around the caboose, and on the north and south parcels. A mid-September heat wave–temperatures soaring to 105°F–quickly pushed the grapes to full ripeness. This intense wine shows rich, complex fruit, and exotic spice. It will be at its best over the next five years.

Frank and Marie Nervo left Italy’s Veneto for the United States in the early 1890s. Like many such Italian pioneers to northern California, they settled at the Italian Swiss Colony in Asti. In 1896, they were able to purchase two hundred and fifty acres south of Geyserville; it included ten acres of hillside vineyard. They planted more vines and, in 1908, built a square, two-story stone winery, which they named Venezia, after their home region.

Average Rating: 89.0

No. of Tasting Notes: 26

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