Old Wine Or Old Vine?

You’ve probably heard us say this, but great wine starts with great grapes. Great grapes come from great farming practices. For example, did you know that oftentimes wineries that are making high quality wine practice what is called fruit thinning? It is also known as cluster thinning. This is a process where a certain amount of fruit is removed from the vine to leave less grapes for the vine to support. This process results in the remaining fruit being better quality due to there being less fruit sharing nutrients from the vine.

What’s interesting is that this process happens naturally as vines age. As grape vines age, they produce less and less fruit. The less fruit that is produced, the more intense the concentration of nutrients is in the grapes that are produced and this can lead to phenomenal wine.

So, how old is an “old vine”? That’s a great question and like many things, it varies. Grape vines can live to be hundreds of years old and still produce fruit. However, generally speaking, any vine over 50 years old can be considered an old vine and if you get an opportunity to taste wine produced from a 50+ year old vine you should certainly give it shot.

Did we mention that we have an Old Vine Zinfandel? The grapes used to make our Zinfandel come from a vine that is 86 years old. The Zinfandel is intensely flavored with jammy fruit notes and a smokiness that makes it a perfect Texas BBQ wine. If you haven’t already, come and try it. It won’t disappoint.