1990 Joseph Phelps Alexander Valley Zinfandel

Joseph Phelps Vineyards is a family-owned winery based in St. Helena. It was founded in 1973 when Joseph Phelps, a building contractor from Colorado, arrived in Napa Valley to build wineries. He soon decided to make his own wine and purchased a former cattle ranch near St. Helena. Phelps Vineyards now owns or leases 560 acres of vineyards in Napa Valley and the Sonoma Coast. The estate owns choice properties in St. Helena, Stags Leap, Oakville, Rutherford, South Napa Valley and Oak Knoll. Phelps is best known for Insignia, its flagship Napa Valley blend of red Bordeaux varieties first produced in 1974. Awarded Wine Spectator’s “Wine of the Year” in 2005, Insignia is widely regarded as a qualitative benchmark for California winemaking. Besides Cabernet Sauvignon and small amounts of Petit Verdot, Merlot and Malbec, Phelps also grows Chardonnay, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Scheurebe. The estate produces 50,000 cases annually from Napa Valley and an additional 15,000 cases from the Sonoma Coast.

Alexander Valley is an American Viticultural Area just north of Healdsburg, in Sonoma County. It was granted AVA status in 1984, with amendments made in subsequent years. The Russian River flows through the valley, and the region was named for Cyrus Alexander, a 19th century landowner and grape grower. The AVA includes 15,000 vineyard acres, much of it rich, alluvial soil layered on a bed of gravel, somewhat similar to many vineyards in Bordeaux. Alexander Valley is sheltered from marine weather by the low hills northeast of Healdsburg, though it is often shrouded in the morning fog coming off the Russian River. Some of the earliest commercial winemaking in the area started in the 1880s, when immigrants formed the Italian Swiss Colony cooperative at Asti. The region made jug wines until the 1960s and 1970s, when a new wave of quality-minded producers started estates. Today Alexander Valley is home to some of California’s most admired wineries, including Simi, Stonestreet and the Francis Ford Coppola Winery. Silver Oak Cellars, though based in Napa Valley, has a second winery in Alexander Valley where it makes Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Many grapes do well in the Alexander Valley, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Merlot, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Zinfandel.

Zinfandel is a black-skinned grape, but 85% of the wine produced is made into a rosy “White Zinfandel.” Red Zin is far more complex and bold, while still being light-bodied. It grows in popularity as winemakers continue to experiment with new styles and blends.