2014 Seghesio Family Vineyards Zinfandel Monte Rosso Heritage Grower Series Sonoma Valley 750 ml

A Modern Zinfandel Built from Sonoma Folklore

For fans of sumptuous Zinfandel, the rich, concentrated, single-vineyard 2014 Seghesio Zinfandel Monte Rosso Heritage Grower Series Sonoma Valley checks every box. It’s ruby-cored and ripe, boasting fruit leather, a gentle tannic grip, and the kind of supercharged concentration that only century-old vines can produce. 

Seghesio is synonymous with stellar Zinfandel, and this juicy, delicious, gem from what Robert Parker called “one of Sonoma’s icon vineyards” is now polished by five years in their cellars—and there’s very little left to go around. 

No family has more of a claim to California’s Zinfandel heritage than Seghesio, whose story is straight out of 19th-century folklore. Edoardo Seghesio left Piedmont, Italy in 1886, and settled in the Italian Swiss Colony nestled in Sonoma County. In 1893, he wed Angela Vasconi, the niece of the colony’s manager. Two years later, the couple purchased 56 untouched acres in northern Alexander Valley, planting their first Zinfandel vines along with a few Italian varietals. 

Now, five generations of Seghesios have continued the proud family tradition on the “red mountain,” Monte Rosso, the iron-rich, 1000-foot site that hugs the Sonoma-facing slopes of Mount Veeder. Amazingly, some of the vines planted on St. George rootstock survived the devastating phylloxera epidemic, and are still producing powerful Zinfandel fruit. 

Up on Monte Rosso, the vines get everything they need to thrive: tons of sunshine, stiff winds, and a fresh jolt of acid, thanks to cooling breezes from the San Pablo Bay that can keep temperatures 10-15 degrees cooler than on the valley floor. The confluence of conditions, especially in an outstanding vintage like 2014, results in a sumptuously rich wine. 

This a rare, cellared bottling, straight from one of the most revered wineries in California Zinfandel. Don’t miss it.