Bedrock 'Old Vine' Zinfandel 2023

Bedrock Old Vine Zinfandel 2023
This old-vine California red is vibrant, layered, and full of character, opening with black raspberry, blackberry, licorice, crushed flowers, peppery spice, and a touch of earth. On the palate, it is rich yet energetic, with concentrated dark fruit, fresh acidity, polished tannins, and a long, detailed finish that makes it especially lovely with things on grills.

Key Details:

Producer: Bedrock Wine Co. — a Sonoma-based winery led by Morgan Twain-Peterson MW and Chris Cottrell, known for championing California’s historic old-vine vineyards. Their work focuses on preserving and showcasing heritage sites planted decades ago, many of them mixed-black vineyards that tell an important story about California wine history.

Region / Appellation: California, USA. This wine is sourced from a range of old-vine vineyards across Northern California, including many historic sites in Sonoma and beyond.

Varietal: Predominantly Zinfandel, with a small portion of traditional field-blend varieties interplanted in the old vineyards.

Vintage: 2023

Style / ABV: Dry red wine; 14.5% ABV. The vines in this bottling average around 80 years old, and the wine was raised primarily in large oak foudre with a small amount of new oak, giving it depth, texture, and freshness.

Why It’s Special: This wine is special because it captures Bedrock’s mission so clearly: to protect and celebrate California’s old-vine heritage through wines with energy, personality, and a real sense of place. The fruit comes from mature vineyards with deep roots and naturally low yields, which gives the wine both concentration and complexity while preserving the vivid, spicy charm that makes old-vine Zinfandel so compelling.

Food Pairing: Excellent with grilled ribs, sausages, barbecue, burgers, braised beef, wood-fired pizza, or aged cheeses. Its dark fruit, spice, and fresh structure make it especially versatile with smoky, savory, and richly flavored foods.  We drink this with JW's smashburgers!