The 2021 Zinfandel Old Vines has a medium ruby color and plush red and black cherries on the nose with accents of mushrooms, forest floor, savory spices and mint. The full-bodied palate is grainy and refreshing with generous berry fruit and a long, spicy finish. It's similar to the Juvenile with a bit more oomph, and it's just as easy to drink.

The odd lots of old vine fruit that do not fit in with any of the single vineyard wines are combined to produce the 2009 Zinfandel Old Vines. Its dark plum/ruby hue is followed by sweet aromas of briery berry fruit, herbs, incense, underbrush and soil undertones. This delicious, medium to full-bodied effort should drink well for 4-5 years. Larry Turley and his sidekick, longtime winemaker Ehren Jordan remain the reference point, along with Mike Officer at Carlisle in Sonoma and the Biale Family in Napa, for world-class, quintessential old vine Zinfandels. Sadly, few California Zinfandels reach these heights. 2009 is a softer, lighter-styled vintage for Turley, but the wines are already charming and irresistible. They should be ready to drink when released and best consumed in their first 4-6 years of life. The exceptions are a few of the old vine cuvees as well as their Petite Syrahs, which are all 30-50-year wines. Surprisingly, the alcohol levels are nearly as high as usual, running between 15.1% and 16.5% for the Zinfandels and 1 to 2% lower in the Petite Syrahs. Turley Cellars’ Petite Syrahs are something to behold. As stated above, they are all 30- to 50-year wines and even in a more fruit-forward, slightly lighter vintage such as 2009, they deliver massive fruit and richness, yet possess considerably lower alcohols than any of the Zinfandels. Although they can be drunk young, their true character tends to emerge at ages 10-20 or later as they are the ultimate anti-oxidant when it comes to wine. All of them exhibits dense opaque purple colors, full body and notes of graphite, blackberries, blueberries and incense as well as superb purity and density.Tel. (707) 963-0940; Fax (707) 963-8683

Made from parcels culled out from the single vineyard lots and blended with some tiny parcels that are too small to bottle on their own, the 2008 Zinfandel Old Vines is a fuller effort displaying a deep ruby/plum color along with a big, sweet bouquet of gamy roasted herbs, sweet cherries and berries, plush, heady flavors, and a luscious finish. It should drink well for 3-4 years. There are mind-boggling numbers of old vine Zinfandels produced, most of them hitting 14.5%-16% natural alcohol. As I have said many times, the most underrated varietal (especially if you are a connoisseur or collector wanting to age California wines for 10-20 years) is Petite Sirah, which ages just as well as the finest Cabernet Sauvignons. In fact, it ages more slowly, and in 2009, well-cellared examples from the late 1960s and early 1970s continue to be remarkable wines. All of the following wines are noteworthy, and I am sure they will still be drinking beautifully in 25, 35, perhaps even 40 or more years. They need plenty of time to age, and because they have never been fashionable, their prices tend to be realistic. That said, you have to be a masochist to drink these wines young as they are massive, inky/blue/black, super-concentrated offerings that need at least 8-10 years of bottle age.Tel. (707) 963-0940; Fax (707) 963-8683