Bokisch Vineyards Terra Alta Vineyard Garnacha 2017
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The 2017 vintage of Garnacha has a light garnet hue with aromas of baking spices, French vanilla bean, McIntosh red apple, and cherry vanilla ice cream with a hint of smoke. Zippy flavors of pomegranate, cranberry, orange peel, and black pepper please the palate. This wine has a delicate, but firm, tannic structure with a bright long finish.
Liz suggests pairing this with Pork Loin with a Medjool Date relish.
Certified Green - Lodi Rules of Sustainability
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Powerful but not too tannic, this ripe and round wine matches light oak spices of cinnamon and toast with generous black-plum and mulled cherry flavors. It's well balanced and easy to enjoy.
In 2019 Markus and Liz Bokisch celebrated 20 years of making award winning Spanish wines at Bokisch Vineyards. Markus pioneered the planting of Spanish varieties in California by bringing over budwood from Spain and planting it in Lodi soil in 1999. Inspired by his Catalan heritage and driven by a passion for organic and sustainable farming, he became one the most prominent grape growers and authorities on Spanish grapes in all of the United States.
In 2000 they made their first vintage of Bokisch wine and have continued to grow their Spanish wine portfolio ever since. Bokisch Vineyards is now producing 11 bottlings of 7 different Spanish varieties across 6 different vineyards. Featuring Albariño, Garnacha Blanca, Verdejo, Garnacha, Tempranillo, Monastrell, and Graciano.
Since its inception in 2000, Bokisch Vineyards has been featured in numerous wine publications including Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, and Sunset Magazine. In April, 2018 Bokisch Vineyards was the first American winery to win a gold medal for their Garnacha Blanca in the International Grenaches du Monde Competition held in Gandesa, Spain. In December of 2018, Markus and Bokisch Vineyards was featured in Wine Spectator, highlighting Markus’s vision for Spanish wines and wines made in Lodi. In 2014 they moved into a brand new winery facility located in the rolling hills of Lodi, and hired their winemaker Elyse Perry, giving them full control - grape to glass.
Grenache thrives in any warm, Mediterranean climate where ample sunlight allows its clusters to achieve full phenolic ripeness. While Grenache's birthplace is Spain (there called Garnacha), today it is more recognized as the key player in the red blends of the Southern Rhône, namely Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Côtes du Rhône and its villages. Somm Secret—The Italian island of Sardinia produces bold, rustic, single varietal Grenache (there called Cannonau). California, Washington and Australia have achieved found success with Grenache, both flying solo and in blends.
Positioned between the San Francisco Bay and the Sierra Nevada mountain range, the Lodi appellation, while relatively far inland, is able to maintain a classic Mediterranean climate featuring warm, sunny days and cool evenings. This is because the appellation is uniquely situated at the end of the Sacramento River Delta, which brings chilly, afternoon “delta breezes” to the area during the growing season.
Lodi is a premier source of 100+ year old ancient Zinfandel vineyards—some dating back as far as 1888! With low yields of small berries, these heritage vines produce complex and bold wines, concentrated in rich and voluptuous, dark fruit.
But Lodi doesn’t just produce Zinfandel; in fact, the appellation produces high quality wines from over 100 different grape varieties. Among them are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon blanc as well as some of California's more rare and unique grapes. Lodi is recognized as an ideal spot for growing Spanish varieties like Albarino and Tempranillo, Portugese varieties—namely Touriga Nacional—as well as many German, Italian and French varieties.
Soil types vary widely among Lodi’s seven sub-appellations (Cosumnes River, Alta Mesa, Deer Creek Hills, Borden Ranch, Jahant, Clements Hills and Mokelumne River). The eastern hills are clay-based and rocky and in the west, along the Mokelumne and Cosumnes Rivers, sandy and mineral-heavy soils support the majority of Lodi’s century-old own-rooted Zinfandel vineyards. Unique to Lodi are pink Rocklin-Jahant loam soils, mainly found in the Jahant sub-appellation.