Verdant Circle is under the domain of Arroyo Seco Vineyards, or ASV. It is one of the largest wineries and grape growing operations in California. ASV owns and operates two wineries located in the San Joaquin Valley and California's Central Coast. Their extensive vineyard holdings include the premium wine growing appellations of Monterey, Arroyo Seco, and Paso Robles. ASV is family owned with two generations currently managing the company. Their wineries and vineyards are part of an international agribusiness enterprise that includes a grapevine nursery, table grapes and other fresh fruits.
ASV was established in 1982 as a supplier of grapes and wines to some of the most prestigious wineries in all of California. They began bottling and selling their own limited production wines in 2001. Today they offer a wide variety of bottled wines from a number of California appellations, quality levels and price points specializing in control brands and private labels.
Zinfandel is a local favorite as it has been for some 40 years. It likes the climate and soil of California very much and is what accounts for the bramble, raspberry, chocolate and black cherry flavors we love. The Verdant Circle is everything it should be and then some. It's big and imposing, yet not over the top and not as high in alcohol as most. In other words, hot without being too hot and yet totally cool.
The grape came over on the "Wine Mayflower" around the 1850s. A man named Agoston Haraszthy took three ships to Europe funded by the new state of California to jump start the California wine industry. Unfortunately, Haraszthy was a better salesman than viticulturalist as he didn't keep very good records regarding what the grapes were or where they came from. As a result, cool climate grapes were planted in warm climates and warm climate grapes in cool ones. It took over a hundred years to sort it all out. Zinfandel was one of the last orphans to get properly classified and planted in the right areas. It was the favorite grape of many California winemakers in the 50s and 60s because it could grow almost anywhere and make an acceptable wine at high yields. When it's grown in the best areas and the yields are kept down, the result is a great wine like this month's selection.
June 2010 Vintners Series Newsletter (.pdf)
