The wine is from a terrific producer in Oregon called St. Innocent and this particular wine is their Zenith Vineyard cuvee. Founded in 1988 by Mark Vlossak, St. Innocent was started with the vision of producing wines that focuses on the traditions and attention to detail of the old world but produced in the new world. In the 30+ years since their founding, St. Innocent has become known for their hand-made, single vineyard bottlings and we’re absolutely loving this particular cuvee with its opulent aromatics and generous fruit. Sourced from a hillside plot of sedimentary soils, this is handcrafted wine par excellence. All of the fruit is picked by hand, fermented using indigenous yeasts, and moved from fermenter to bottle using the power of gravity and not pumps. Once filled, the barrels are not allowed to be touched, let alone moved and the people at St. Innocent aren’t even allowed to have any machinery in the barrel room once the barrels are filled. In short, they spare no expense in their winemaking and the results are obvious once you try a bottle. Upon opening, this wine presents a nose that offers a macerated cherry, spices like allspice and nutmeg, and forest floor notes. On the palate this is generous and rich with a marvelous interplay between the berry fruits, the crisp acidity, and the silky, fine-grained tannins. This sort of quality and complexity usually comes with a pretty hefty price tag but not this time around. For less than $30 you get a truly memorable bottle that you’ll come back to again and again. Cheers!