Scythian Wine Co. ‘Revolution Red’ 2023 Lopez Vineyard, Cucamonga Valley

750ml bottle
13% abv

Black licorice and florals on the nose, with cherry, cranberry, and hints of spice on a medium-bodied palate. Fresh and chillable.

70% Zinfandel, 30% Palomino. Lopez Vineyard, Cucamonga Valley, planted 1912. Own-rooted, dry-farmed, sandy granite soils. Never treated with pesticides, fungicides, sulfur, or copper. Organically farmed.

Whole-cluster fermentation in open-top neutral fermenters. Rested in old French oak barrels. Minimal SO2 added after malolactic fermentation. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 

The Revolution Red is a co-fermentation of Zinfandel and Palomino from the same vineyard block, the Palomino inclusion distinguishing it from conventional Zinfandels and contributing aromatic lift and freshness. The Lopez Vineyard is one of a small number of pre-Prohibition plantings that survived in the Cucamonga Valley due to the stewardship of the Galleano family.

Scythian Wine Co. was launched in 2019 by Raj Parr to document and revitalize the viticultural legacy of Los Angeles, which was the center of California's wine industry before Prohibition. The surviving Cucamonga Valley vineyards are over 100 years old, own-rooted, dry-farmed on sandy soils, and untreated since planting. Wines are made at the Phelan Farm winery in Cambria with minimal intervention and neutral vessels.