If you want to talk about “heritage” vineyards in California—the places where the state’s early wine history was written—Morgan Twain-Peterson is your guy. His Bedrock Wine Company is a “mission-driven operation dedicated to preserving and rehabilitating old vineyards around California.” He and partner Chris Cottrell have assembled a far-flung roster of growers that includes some of the most legendary names in California viticulture—including Frank Evangelho, the second-generation steward of a vineyard in Antioch, in Contra Costa County, that dates to 1890.
Today’s wine is a soulful, succulent celebration of this historic site—a jumble of Carignane, Zinfandel, Mourvèdre (a.k.a. Mataro), Alicante, and other varieties, all growing in beach-like sand banks along the San Joaquin River. There’s no limestone château decorating this vineyard, nor any of the gentleman-farmer trappings you might find in Napa or Sonoma—it’s a suburban tract next to a PG&E plant—but it’s a ‘grand cru’ regardless. It was planted by Portuguese immigrants in 1890 and taken over by Manuel Evangelho (Frank’s father), in the 1930s. Grapes from Evangelho have been the foundation of many great wines over the years, but the Bedrock boys are all-in: They took control of the vineyard in 2017, purchasing 10 acres and taking over the lease on 26 more. The story of today’s wine is its uncanny combination of concentration and freshness, something century-old vines are uniquely qualified to deliver. The value-for-dollar is immeasurable. It’s an important American wine, plain and simple!

Morgan is the son of Ravenswood’s Joel Peterson, so he knows a little something about old-vine Zinfandel, which comprises about 60% of the 2018 Heritage, along with 35% Mataro and a smattering of the others. Only about 900 cases were produced, with aging carried out in predominantly used French oak barrels. In the glass, it is an inky purple-black moving to a magenta rim, with lively aromas of crushed blackberry, black currant, pomegranate, juniper, roses, violets, black pepper, anise, dark chocolate, and dusty earth. It is full-bodied without being flabby or sweet—the fate of so many high-octane Zins these days—with a gentle nip of tannin complemented by palate-refreshing acidity. For all its heft, you won’t be weighed down by this wine, which clocks in at 14.5% alcohol but doesn’t feel like it. Decant it 15-30 minutes before serving in Bordeaux stems at 60 degrees. Given the Portuguese immigrant heritage at the heart of this wine, I can’t resist suggesting an old favorite from my days working in Portugal’s Douro region: Feijoada. This, my friends, is what makes America great. Enjoy!