Carol Shelton 2019 Wireless Old Vine Carignane

Back to the Future - Carol crafted wine from these 70+ year old Carignane vines during her long stint at Windsor Vineyards and now they have “come back home to mama!” The wine's moniker, “Wireless”, came from the vineyard’s head-trained vines which use no trellis wires to support growth!

WINEMAKER'S NOTES:

Wow — big & smoky with a caramel oakiness on a deep razzberry fruit core. Creamy on the palate, with a bit of brown spices (nutmeg/cinnamon), with good depth of fruit and a lively acidity that keeps the wine from being jammy. Lingering razzelberry-chocolate on the finish. Great with pork tenderloin, and (surprisingly) with strawberry salad and even grilled salmon!

A blend of 97% Old Vine Carignane, 2% Alicante Bouschet, 1% Zinfandel, the grapes are 95% Oat Valley Vineyard, (Alexander Valley just north of Cloverdale) 70+ year old vines, sustainably dry-farmed, Head-trained beauties. The juice was fermented in tank, spending a total of 13 days on skins (including 3 days of cold soak pre-fermentation, to lock in the grape's higher-toned aromatics). It then spent 20 months in used American oak barrels - 75% neutral, 25% 2nd-fill.

Carol Shelton is widely cited as the most awarded winemaker in the United States. She has won countless medals for her wines and has been honored as Winemaker of the Year five times, as of this writing*. In her years of working with some of the industry’s top winemakers and wineries, Carol continues to win awards and accolades for premium Zinfandels produced under her own brand, Carol Shelton Wines, which she launched on a shoestring and a prayer in 2000.

*Whoops, also named "Winemaker of the Year for 2021" by Women's International Wine Competition.