The Vineyard:
The grapes from this vineyard came to me via an old friend, Darryl Miller, who is a wine marketer and worked for the former White Oak Winery property in Alexander Valley. As the winery went up for sale, the grapes had no buyer. Enter Woodenhead…I did due diligence on trying to locate the original planting ownership to no avail. It was beyond my scope even after doing extensive research. This is no doubt a field blend of mixed black varietals with Zinfandel predominating. 94 years and 80 years old respectively. A one off, as new owners have moved in…

Tasting notes:
Medium dark ruby in color. Aromas of sweet briar predominate, dark fruits with a little creamy toasted oak. Maybe a little rose and Earl Grey tea also. Mouthfilling, almost explosive (in a good way). Dark plums and berries, blueberries and blood orange. Asian spices underlay with interesting herbal characteristics. Not a blockbuster, but restrained in a good way. Substantial yet elegant, finishes long and lip smacking. Drinking well now, but I believe it will age well. Fun stuff, wish I could make it again! Artisan sausages (Caggiano smoked duck for instance), a killer wood fired pepperoni or linguica pizza, or spaghetti and meatballs. Cheers!
– Nikolai Stez, Winemaker

Harvest Date: October 10th, 2019
Bottled: May 21, 2022
PH 3.48
T.A. 7gr/L
Alcohol: 15%
Unfined and Unfiltered
245 Cases Produced

Review by Wine Road, July 2023

The Woodenhead 2019 Zinfandel, from Alexander Valley is another fine example of a dazzling field-blend with great depth and nuance. The wine is one-of-a-kind, the product of a confluence of circumstances that led the winemaker to acquire the old vine grapes before the vineyard was sold to a new owner. On the nose, ripe boysenberry and black plum with a touch of sweet briar, sage and rooibos tea. The palate is full with flavors of just picked strawberry, blueberry, rhubarb and grounding notes of mocha and nutmeg. The long taut finish recalls the herbal qualities first detected on the nose and rounds out with a gingery note of cardamom. Unfined and unfiltered it’s an honest expression of the varietal with no pretense. The “just right” tannins leave you thirsting for the next sip.