Southern Oregon winemaker Andrew Wenzl, who began as a cellar master at Abacela in 2003, picked twice for Tempranillo before the arrival of the torrential September rains that any vintner west of the Cascades will remember from the 2013 vintage. He ended up staging his final pick of the Joneses’ 27 acres of Tempranillo on Oct. 11, and the juice underwent an oak program using a light hand — a mere 15% new wood. That fruit-forward approach makes this different from the other three Tempranillo bottlings and easy to enjoy right away. Dark cherry, plum, black licorice and smoky black pepper aromas echo across the palate. Fun and zesty acidity and tannins give this a bright and taut finish.
Rating: Excellent
Production: 1,675 cases
Alcohol: 13.9%
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