School House Vineyard Zinfandel Blend Mescolanza 2015

This winery takes its name from the 1880's one-room school house that had graced the property until it was consumed by fire in the mid 1980's. A unique dry-farmed property, it is nestled amongst the cool, lushly forested slopes of Spring Mountain at approximately 1500 feet (460 metres). Purchased by the Gantner family just after the Depression in 1940, John Gantner, an octogenarian, and his partner Nancy Walker still do some of the vineyard work themselves with the help of their estate manager, Tim Mosher. It is truly a genuine labour of love, which can be felt in their wines. Their Zinfandel Blend is a field blend of Zinfandel (of course), Petite Sirah, and Carignan, some hailing from vines that were originally planted in the 1890s! This fusion gives their wine a lovely ample but sculpted palate brimming with notes of bramble fruits, spice and black pepper. Almost Italian in style with a genuine Old World feel. In one word…delizioso!

Robin says "Many old vineyards from Europe and beyond would have what are called “field blends”, a mix of varieties that are grown, picked and vinified together to give a wine more complexity than it might have with just a single variety. School House’s Zinfandel Blend comes from their Mescolanza Block (a Spanish word for ‘medley’) and is a true success. A wine not to miss. "