Turley Fredericks Vineyard Zinfandel Sonoma 2021

Despite the overwhelming number of Zinfandel producers in the U.S., the MVP of carrying the varietal’s reputation may very well belong to Larry Turley,who has spent the last thirty years in California dedicating his days to preserving and furthering Zinfandel’s cause. So much so that since the co-founder of Frog’s Leap Winery first left to start his own winery in 1993, he has built a portfolio that includes 47 wines across 50 vineyards with 29 of them dedicated to the Zin varietal!

Today, his protege, winemaker Tegan Passalacqua, (a noted Zinfandel and Petite Sirah specialist in his own regard), is the man tasked with overseeing the entire winemaking operation. On top of that, Tegan and his wife started their own brand, Sandlands concentrating on making lesser championed wines. Sound like a lot? You don’t even know. Wine Spectator pointed out that in the 2017 vintage alone, Tegan made 49 different wines from 13 different counties in California under the Turley label, and another dozen wines for Sandlands. Somehow, it seems like everything he makes comes with a big, fat score next to it too. He’s that good at what he does.

There are a lot of special vineyard that Turley and Tegan get to work with, but there’s nothing quick like the Fredericks Vineyard in Sonoma. First planted in 1937, the vines here are some of the most gnarly and unique vines you’ve ever seen. Everything is certified organic here and comes just a mile and a half from the Napa border in the new Moon Mountain AVA in Sonoma. At 1000 feet above sea level and with ancient vines from ancient hillsides, it’s no wonder the Fredericks is always one of the ultimate gems in the portfolio.