Wine Notes
Vintage:
2023
Appellation:
Rockpile, Sonoma County
History:
The Pomo Indians called this area “kabe-chana” meaning place with many rocks. In 1865 legendary sheriff Tennessee Bishop established the “Rockpile Sheep Ranch” so dubbed by his prisoners building the road to Bishop’s 20,000-acre mountain ranch, which was also a hideout for his bandit brother! The first vines were planted by S.P. Hallengren in 1884. He shipped the wines to his native Sweden. Modern viticulture started in 1992 with Rod & Kathy Park planting two Bordeaux varietals. In 1994, the intrepid Jack Florence, Sr. planted the first 7 acres of Zinfandel secured from Ulises Valdez and Kent Rosenblum. In 2002 the Rockpile Appellation was formally established. It contains 15,400 acres, but only 160 acres are planted to vines, farmed by 11 growers. Vineyard elevations range from 800-2100’, with 95% of vines above 1000’. The Region III climate is cooled by the Pacific Ocean, 16 miles to the west, and by Lake Sonoma, covering 2500 acres. It was manmade in the 1980’s to mitigate flooding in the Russian River Basin. Soils are shallow: 12-14” deep, consisting of clay loam and iron, which adds unique spicy elements to the wines.
Vineyard:
The vineyard is owned and farmed by the eponymous Jack Florence, Jr. Jack planted the vineyard in 1994, the first Zinfandel vineyard in the Rockpile appellation using the iconic St. Peter’s Church clone. It’s on 110 Rupestris rootstock and a VSP trellis. Now 30 years old, the vineyard yields 2-3 tons an acre and produces consistent high-quality fruit.
Vintage Notes:
The 2023 growing season started out with a whopping 54” of rain; 3 times the 2022 season. It rained into the spring, so flowering and fruit set were late. Set was finalized in May and revealed a large crop. Summer and fall weather was “normal” and harvest was smooth. In retrospect, many vintners view the 2023 wines as the best in a decade.
Fermentation & Aging:
The grapes were harvested on October 12th, over a month later than 2022. The Brix was normally high: 29.4°. The acid excellent: 6.4g/liter and pH was 3.84. Fermentation took place in tank with 3-4 punch downs (pigéage) per day. Pressing was very gentle using a basket press going to less than 2 bars pressure. Aging was for 21 months in both new and once-filled French oak barrels to keep oak nuances subtle. The wine was bottled in July 2025.