Cline Cellars, Old Vine Zinfandel 2021

When selecting fruit for Lodi Zinfandel, Cline focus primarily on harmony, early drinkability and elegant structure. This vintage draws from 14 superb Zinfandel vineyards in the legendary area of Lodi where warm days and cool nights have ripened grapes to perfection for over 100 years. The grapes were de-stemmed and lightly crushed to preserve fruit and limit harsh tannin extraction. A moderately warm fermentation in closed stainless steel tanks using specific wine yeast came next. Once desired tannin levels were achieved, the wine was racked two or even three times before aging in wood for eight month. This achieves early elegance without sacrificing bright fruit. They used 35% new French oak with a medium toast level, which contributes a delicate toasty vanilla character to the wine without masking the abundant fruit.

Cline Cellars is a family-owned vineyard and winery in Sonoma's Carneros Valley. Established in 1982 by Fred Cline, a descendant of Italian US settlers, he originally founded the winery in Oakley, Contra Costa County, cultivating Rhone varieties and Zinfandel on vines dating back to 1906. In the 1990s, the family moved their winemaking operation to a 350 acre ranch in Carneros Valley, adopting sustainable farming in 2000, and building the largest solar panelled winery in California. While others in California were focusing on Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay, Fred Cline saw the potential of Rhone varieties and Zinfandel in his vineyards and continues to produce focussed, terroir-driven wines.

We deliver throughout the United Kingdom with no minimum order requirement. For Mainland UK deliveries, the following charges apply:

• £15 for orders below £75
• £9.99 for orders below £125
• Free delivery on orders over £125

We also offer the option to collect from any of our shops at no extra cost. All Mainland UK orders should be delivered within 1-3 working days. Deliveries to Northern Ireland, the Scottish Highlands, and the British Isles may take 3-5 working days. For more information on UK delivery click here and for EU deliveries please click here.