Ravenswood - Zinfandel Lodi 2020
Ravenswood Winery is located in Sonoma County, California . In 1976, Joel Peterson founded Ravenswood in partnership with fellow wine enthusiast Reed Foster , a Harvard MBA who handled the viticulture while Joel oversaw the winemaking. In the years that followed, Joel had a dual career, working nights and weekends in a laboratory while he built the winery during the day.
Although Ravenswood does not have vineyards, it has existing relationships with several grower vineyards around Sonoma (and one in Napa) where it sources its fruit. Today, Joel works with more than 100 Northern California growers who supply grapes for Ravenswood, advice on irrigation methods, growing practices, crop levels and a host of other topics related to vineyard management. This on-the-ground focus, coupled with the fact that Ravenswood is one of the few wineries to have possessed the philosophical and winemaking skills of a single winemaker for over 30 years, contributes to a consistency of quality and style rarely found in California .
Ravenswood takes its name from an incident in the early days of the business. Joel Peterson purchased grapes and, due to miscommunication with the seller, had to load four tons of already harvested fruit into a truck alone before a storm hit. Peterson was inspired by the crows that watched him while he loaded the truck. Ravenswood boasts that its logo (a totem of three ravens clutching claws) is one of the most tattooed symbols in the wine industry and offers free tastings to anyone who wears one.
Grape variety: 100% Zinfandel