This is an atypical rich and intense Cinsault that explodes strawberry and spiced rhubarb pie in the glass. The 2013 vintage produced fruit with higher tannin levels, giving a bigger structure and more midpalate weight. The big red fruit is nicely balanced with white pepper and a hint of “Rhone meatiness”.
The Bechthold vineyard is the oldest vineyard in the Lodi region, planted in 1886. It is the oldest Cinsault vineyard in the world! The old vines are head trained, organically grown and dry farmed. Onesta is lucky to have a 4.2 acre block on the east side of the vineyard where the weakest vines are planted producing the most concentrated fruit in the whole vineyard. 100% Cinsault from 130 year old vines in the famous Bechthold Vineyard in Lodi. The perfect recipe involves gentle handling, saignée, cold soak, raging fermentation, extended maceration, and 12 months aging untouched in neutral French oak barrels.
Onesta Wines capture the truth and honesty of each vintage, uniting the vines, the land, Mother Nature, and maturation. Jillian, Winemaker/Owner, promises to deliver wines with personality and depth every year. She believes life should be filled with family, good friends and adventure. Life is short, live by truth and honesty and you will always find peace and happiness. Enjoy wine on a regular basis!
Specifications
Vintage: 2013
91 Points, Wine Enthusiast
Blend: 100% Cinsault
Appellation: Bechthold Vineyard is in Lodi, the winery where Onesta is produced is in Napa.
Production: 500 cases
pH: 3.55
TA: 6.0g/L
Brix: 25
Residual Sugar: none
Alcohol: 14.5%
Picking Methods: hand picked
Sorting Methods: Vineyard sort
Crush Details: 100% destem
Cold Soak: 3 day cold soak
SO2 Applications: yes
Yeast: Zymaflore RX60 yeast by Laffort, a French wine product company Fermentation
Temperature: 80F Fermentation
Technique: tank fermentation
Nutrients: Complex organic
Acid Additions: minimal
Malolactic: yes
Punch-down/Pump-over Methods: during peak fermentation, 3 pump overs a day
Winery: Onesta Wines
Owners: Jillian Johnson
Location: Lodi, CA
Owner Jillian Johnson found her passion for wine while studying neurobiology at UC Davis. Home brewing introduced her to the magic of fermentation, and after taking the “Introductory to Winemaking” class at UC Davis, she quickly switched her major to Viticulture and Enology. She graduated with her degree in 2001 and soon thereafter found herself as an intern at the famous Bonny Doon Winery.
Her desire to learn more about winemaking has taken her around the globe. To gain essential winemaking experience in a short time, Jillian traveled to the southern hemisphere to work an additional harvest each year. For three years she traveled south to learn how to work with different varieties and observe different winemaking styles. She did internships in McLaren Vale (South Australia), Margaret River (Western Australia), and Stellenbosch (South Africa).
Syrah quickly became her deepest passion and she returned to Bonny Doon as Associate Winemaker in 2005, focusing her talents on the Rhone varieties that the Dooner is known for. She played a major role in the transition to biodynamic winemaking at Bonny Doon. Now a truly seasoned winemaker, Jillian has started her own passion project, Onesta. Her artistic expression is manifested in her wines. Jillian’s wines speak the truth of each growing season and each vintage is a new adventure for her, riding the waves of Mother Nature. Her promise to herself and her customers is to deliver wines with personality and depth every year. Jillian’s wines are made with passion and love, just like she lives her life. Her hope is that every sip of Onesta will ignite the soul with passion and enthusiasm for living life to the fullest.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
@InFrom Hello, the '13 has a bit more structure to it, as did many '13 wines. So I’d say this vintage leans more towards Zinfandel in the Cinsault = Pinot Noir meets Zin equation. BTW, team Onesta prefers the '13 to the '12
@onesta Yeah, I also loved Turley’s Cinsault from that vineyard. @MarkDaSpark who said I was buying? At this point I’d only get 3. If there’s enough interest for a case in SoCal, let’s discuss.
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
2013 Onesta Wines Cinsault - $35 = 17.49%
I was not particularly a fan of the 2012. Nothing wrong with it per se, but I can only describe it as “vinis” which has been defined to me as the quality of tasting like alcohol made from grapes but not much else.
I was waiting/hoping for this to come back around, but I’m over-maxed out. If anyone in Northern Virginia wants to work together on this, please see my post over at NOVA group thread with what I could trade from recent offerings.
@PatrickKarcher Would you like 6?I can pick up a case and trade you 6 for whatever equal value is of a combination of the Spaniard and the Onesta Mentida White blend
Otherwise maybe we can find additional people who want it in the DMV, I’d prefer 6 tops. Was gonna just buy the 3
@kray05 Yes, kray05, do it! I’ll take 6+, trading some Spaniard and Mentida (which is great). If you don’t have free shipping, lemme know and I’ll do it.
We ordered a case last time and have been rationing the last of it. We have really enjoyed sharing this wine with others as it appeals to a wide range of palates. We give the 2012 a hour to open up and the alcohol subsides. We totally agree with the Pinot Noir meets Zin. We compaired it recently with a South African Cinsault blend and the Onesta was much more rich in flavor and balanced. This is a very enjoyable wine. Jillian has made us a fan of Cinsault! Thank you! We are in for the 2013.
Description says one year older than the last, but it’s the other way around. Was a 2012 last time. Which I loved and ran out of, so I’m in for a case.
@nostrom0 I’ve decided to pick up some of these…was thinking of doing 6. Want to split a case? Or are you so into the last year I should buy my own case and you keep the one you ordered? I’m getting a bit full and need to stop buying cases, but this write-up intrigued me.
@kr4@msdixon@kelaiem The FedEx tracking is still insisting that it’ll be delivered tomorrow, but I’m skeptical. It left CA on Tuesday, it’s hard to believe it would be here that soon. Plus, ordinarily it’s showing a nearby arrival by the night before delivery, but there have been no arrival/departure scans since Tuesday. So we shall see.
@kelaiem@kr4@msdixon I doubt any of you will be surprised to learn that we have a new arrival date, Monday. Our wine will be cooling its heels in Keasbey this weekend, where overnight temps are predicted to be around freezing, tonight and tomorrow night. If it were a deep freeze I’d be concerned, but I don’t think we have anything to worry about at 32F-ish.
I’ve really made a mistake in finally making time to check in on here most days…
Sounds like a superb wine; all the comments in the past offering about the quality + comparisons to Sangiovese and Noceto’s in particular (our go-to easy drinker) make this an easy decison. In for our first Onesta case!
@chipgreen@pjmartin three way split works for me! The 2012 was delicious, leaning towards a PN. Sounds like the ‘13 might have a little more omph. I also liked the Grenache Blanc Jillian let us CaseMaters try. Nice addition to the CM lineup!
@chipgreen@mrn1@pjmartin I also picked up a case! Onesta’s wine have a great QPR here on Casemates. I may have some extra bottles, but it may be slim. I buying it for my son’s wedding in a couple of weeks so I hope it gets here by Turkey Day. I believe the Cinsault should go well with the food they are having catered, Old Carolina BBQ. I’m giving them a huge wine list to chose from to handle many tastes buds before, during and after dinner, plus all the other beverages. So the chances are slim any of this 2013 will be available, BUT if you are interested in this or the 2012 Cinsault give me a shout back. No guarantees because these millennials love their wine and IPAs!! I’d contact you after Nov 25th or a little later depending on the status of my saturated brain!
I got a golden ticket and it was luckily in time for me to bring to a Halloween party and so was able to be sampled by quite a few people. I will say that the crowd was drinking a few big Napa reds a Kamen Kashmir Cab Sav, and Joseph Phelps Insignia.
On to the review! A lot of love for this wine as it was a nice change of pace from those big reds. A lot of comments about its bright acidity, “Tart but in a good way.” Flavors were reported to be cranberry and tart red cherries. It’s not tannic but still balanced. In contrast to the Napa reds it was commented as fruit flavored, but not rich. So a lighter wine. People thought it would go well with Thanksgiving and in general turkey and pork, though it was perfectly fine as a drink alone. We did have one person report a smokey flavor, that was nice, but she was the only one. All in all, no one hated it and everyone gave it positive reviews.
Price wise most people felt that a $20 would be appropriate. But I’m not sure if that was skewed by the Lodi production.
Going in on my first casemate order. So few wines of interest to me can be shipped to Vermont… I have to jump on this. My cellar shelves are starting to look bare and in the spring I’ll be moving into my new house where I included an 800 to a 1000 bottle walk in wine cellar… need to start restocking
This is one quality wine! These are truly special vines - 130 years old or so, IIRC - and they produce some outstanding grapes.
I dig this variety and make one myself and have fallen head over heels for it. It tends to be much lighter in color than most other reds - the berry size is usually quite large, meaning that you will never get ‘crazy color’ unless you blend.
Give it a shot - I don’t think you’d be disappointed!!!
Not sure about this one, but that’s the beauty of casemates, right? Trying new wines without breaking the bank. In for a case (it takes a lot for me to understand if I like it )
Hello Casemates, thanks @tercerowines for the nice Cinsault comments. The cinsault grape clusters are huge! Which makes it the perfect variety for making Rose. That being said, the age of the vines from this specific vineyard (the Bechthold Vineyard) is what allows us to make a concentrated red wine. I also bleed some juice off for rose, so the red wine gets one extra concentration step. The Cinsault is aged in neutral French oak barrels to let the fruit shine through without the heavy oak character. It is a truly delicious wine with a great story. Oldest Cinsault Vineyard in the WORLD!
@WineDocNapa I just picked up my 4 bottles from a case split, and noticed the label spells it Cinsaut. (I know these are interchangeable) However, I had just wrote Cinsault on the envelope with the money and thought I was going crazy.
I checked casemates, and sure enough the image shows 2013 spelled Cinsault. A labeling error that was caught mid production? Inquiring minds and all…
@radiolysis@klezman
We may have critical mass at 4 each.
Or my office mate might take one or two.
If we had one additional interested in a couple/few, it’s a done deal.
I commute between port authority 41st and 8th and 49th and 7th every day … does that work for you? Yeah I’ll take 2 bottles if someone else’s OK with that
Tasting Notes
This is an atypical rich and intense Cinsault that explodes strawberry and spiced rhubarb pie in the glass. The 2013 vintage produced fruit with higher tannin levels, giving a bigger structure and more midpalate weight. The big red fruit is nicely balanced with white pepper and a hint of “Rhone meatiness”.
The Bechthold vineyard is the oldest vineyard in the Lodi region, planted in 1886. It is the oldest Cinsault vineyard in the world! The old vines are head trained, organically grown and dry farmed. Onesta is lucky to have a 4.2 acre block on the east side of the vineyard where the weakest vines are planted producing the most concentrated fruit in the whole vineyard. 100% Cinsault from 130 year old vines in the famous Bechthold Vineyard in Lodi. The perfect recipe involves gentle handling, saignée, cold soak, raging fermentation, extended maceration, and 12 months aging untouched in neutral French oak barrels.
Food Pairings: Peking duck, roasted chicken, lamb burgers, carnitas tacos, thanksgiving dinner.
Vintage and Winemaker Notes
Onesta Wines capture the truth and honesty of each vintage, uniting the vines, the land, Mother Nature, and maturation. Jillian, Winemaker/Owner, promises to deliver wines with personality and depth every year. She believes life should be filled with family, good friends and adventure. Life is short, live by truth and honesty and you will always find peace and happiness. Enjoy wine on a regular basis!
Specifications
Price Comparison
$447.50/case (including shipping) at Onesta Wines
About The Winery
Winery: Onesta Wines
Owners: Jillian Johnson
Location: Lodi, CA
Owner Jillian Johnson found her passion for wine while studying neurobiology at UC Davis. Home brewing introduced her to the magic of fermentation, and after taking the “Introductory to Winemaking” class at UC Davis, she quickly switched her major to Viticulture and Enology. She graduated with her degree in 2001 and soon thereafter found herself as an intern at the famous Bonny Doon Winery.
Her desire to learn more about winemaking has taken her around the globe. To gain essential winemaking experience in a short time, Jillian traveled to the southern hemisphere to work an additional harvest each year. For three years she traveled south to learn how to work with different varieties and observe different winemaking styles. She did internships in McLaren Vale (South Australia), Margaret River (Western Australia), and Stellenbosch (South Africa).
Syrah quickly became her deepest passion and she returned to Bonny Doon as Associate Winemaker in 2005, focusing her talents on the Rhone varieties that the Dooner is known for. She played a major role in the transition to biodynamic winemaking at Bonny Doon. Now a truly seasoned winemaker, Jillian has started her own passion project, Onesta. Her artistic expression is manifested in her wines. Jillian’s wines speak the truth of each growing season and each vintage is a new adventure for her, riding the waves of Mother Nature. Her promise to herself and her customers is to deliver wines with personality and depth every year. Jillian’s wines are made with passion and love, just like she lives her life. Her hope is that every sip of Onesta will ignite the soul with passion and enthusiasm for living life to the fullest.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Monday, November 19th - Friday, November 23rd
Onesta Wines Cinsault
3 bottles for $49.99 $16.66/bottle + $2.67/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $164.99 $13.75/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2013 Onesta Cinsault
I enjoyed the 2012. I wonder how they compare.
@InFrom I wonder too, but I’m pretty sure I’m just going to buy some anyway
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
@InFrom Hello, the '13 has a bit more structure to it, as did many '13 wines. So I’d say this vintage leans more towards Zinfandel in the Cinsault = Pinot Noir meets Zin equation. BTW, team Onesta prefers the '13 to the '12
After this year’s tour went to Lodi and I know more, a wine from this vineyard is extra enticing.
@klezman It’s actually the oldest Cinsault vineyard in the world. It survived phylloxera because of the dry farmed sandy soils.
@klezman I’ll take a bottle from you!
@onesta Yeah, I also loved Turley’s Cinsault from that vineyard.
@MarkDaSpark who said I was buying? At this point I’d only get 3. If there’s enough interest for a case in SoCal, let’s discuss.
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations)
2013 Onesta Wines Cinsault - $35 = 17.49%
I was not particularly a fan of the 2012. Nothing wrong with it per se, but I can only describe it as “vinis” which has been defined to me as the quality of tasting like alcohol made from grapes but not much else.
I was waiting/hoping for this to come back around, but I’m over-maxed out. If anyone in Northern Virginia wants to work together on this, please see my post over at NOVA group thread with what I could trade from recent offerings.
@PatrickKarcher Would you like 6?I can pick up a case and trade you 6 for whatever equal value is of a combination of the Spaniard and the Onesta Mentida White blend
Otherwise maybe we can find additional people who want it in the DMV, I’d prefer 6 tops. Was gonna just buy the 3
@kray05 Yes, kray05, do it! I’ll take 6+, trading some Spaniard and Mentida (which is great). If you don’t have free shipping, lemme know and I’ll do it.
@kray05 @PatrickKarcher I’m interested in getting (late) into this one. 1 bottle maybe?
We ordered a case last time and have been rationing the last of it. We have really enjoyed sharing this wine with others as it appeals to a wide range of palates. We give the 2012 a hour to open up and the alcohol subsides. We totally agree with the Pinot Noir meets Zin. We compaired it recently with a South African Cinsault blend and the Onesta was much more rich in flavor and balanced. This is a very enjoyable wine. Jillian has made us a fan of Cinsault! Thank you! We are in for the 2013.
@Diller1020 Thank you for the kind words!!
Description says one year older than the last, but it’s the other way around. Was a 2012 last time. Which I loved and ran out of, so I’m in for a case.
@nostrom0 I’ve decided to pick up some of these…was thinking of doing 6. Want to split a case? Or are you so into the last year I should buy my own case and you keep the one you ordered? I’m getting a bit full and need to stop buying cases, but this write-up intrigued me.
@redjeep0 Sure, I’ll split my case. I forgot how many fall wine club shipments I had coming!
@nostrom0 great. Hopefully these come in time for T-giving dinner.
FYI, pretty good coffee deal on woot today.
@Winedavid49
"Woot Cellars" Squid Ink Whole Bean Coffee
Last Wooter to Woot: PLSemenza (10 hours ago)
@Winedavid49 how’s it stand out from similarly priced Starbucks beans?
@nostrom0 a slightly less burnt flavor, IMO
@Winedavid49 “slightly” with sarcasm? or “slightly” with seriousness? $14/lb for single origin ain’t bad at all. And fresh roasted too.
But if it’s only SLIGHTLY less burned, that’s a lot bit too burned for me.
@radiolysis @Winedavid49
I was thinking the same thing.
@radiolysis there was a tinge of sarcasm there. i hope you try it.
@radiolysis @Winedavid49
Are you encouraging we try the sarcasm or coffee?
@radiolysis @strongry yes…
@radiolysis @Winedavid49 In for both
@Winedavid49
Last Wooter to Woot:radiolysis
Fine… Take my money.
@Winedavid49 what’s this “woot”? never heard of it (since they killed off wine.woot…)
The extremely pleasant video got me:
/giphy attentive-curved-act
Anyone around NYC interested in splitting a case?
@InFrom I’m in to split! I love this one.
@msdixon Great, I’ll whisper my details. If anyone else is interested, please post. I’m happy to split my 6.
@InFrom , @msdixon I’ll split a case with either one of you.
@kr4 @msdixon A three-way split is fine with me.
@kr4 @msdixon Here we go!
/giphy cluttered-progressive-food
Yum! Bet that would go great with a nice Cinsault!
@kr4 @msdixon @kelaiem The FedEx tracking is still insisting that it’ll be delivered tomorrow, but I’m skeptical. It left CA on Tuesday, it’s hard to believe it would be here that soon. Plus, ordinarily it’s showing a nearby arrival by the night before delivery, but there have been no arrival/departure scans since Tuesday. So we shall see.
@InFrom @kelaiem @kr4 Roger that.
@kelaiem @kr4 @msdixon I doubt any of you will be surprised to learn that we have a new arrival date, Monday. Our wine will be cooling its heels in Keasbey this weekend, where overnight temps are predicted to be around freezing, tonight and tomorrow night. If it were a deep freeze I’d be concerned, but I don’t think we have anything to worry about at 32F-ish.
@InFrom @kelaiem @msdixon We’ll just have to wait a bit longer for the gratification.
@kelaiem @kr4 @msdixon I just hope I can find something else to drink in the meantime!
I’ve really made a mistake in finally making time to check in on here most days…
Sounds like a superb wine; all the comments in the past offering about the quality + comparisons to Sangiovese and Noceto’s in particular (our go-to easy drinker) make this an easy decison. In for our first Onesta case!
@sdilullo We hope you enjoy it! Cinsault pairs pretty perfectly with everything on the Thanksgiving table
Anyone in CMH / Central Ohio up for a split?
@cdn1127 I could be persuaded to go in for 3 or 4
@cdn1127 I will take 3 or 4.
@KNmeh7 @lehigh OK cool. I’ll place the order. 4 each it is.
/giphy loving-angry-band
How about NE Ohio?
@chipgreen well @mrn1 spoke highly of this the first time. I’d jump in for some. others?
@chipgreen @pjmartin three way split works for me! The 2012 was delicious, leaning towards a PN. Sounds like the ‘13 might have a little more omph. I also liked the Grenache Blanc Jillian let us CaseMaters try. Nice addition to the CM lineup!
@chipgreen @pjmartin I’ll be happy to do the heavy lifting.
@chipgreen @pjmartin I went ahead and picked up a case. Let me know how many you would like.
@chipgreen @mrn1 Thanks - I will take whatever the split requires, three way is fine here.
@chipgreen @mrn1 @pjmartin I also picked up a case! Onesta’s wine have a great QPR here on Casemates. I may have some extra bottles, but it may be slim. I buying it for my son’s wedding in a couple of weeks so I hope it gets here by Turkey Day. I believe the Cinsault should go well with the food they are having catered, Old Carolina BBQ. I’m giving them a huge wine list to chose from to handle many tastes buds before, during and after dinner, plus all the other beverages. So the chances are slim any of this 2013 will be available, BUT if you are interested in this or the 2012 Cinsault give me a shout back. No guarantees because these millennials love their wine and IPAs!! I’d contact you after Nov 25th or a little later depending on the status of my saturated brain!
@mrn1 @pjmartin
3-way split is perfect, thanks mrn!
The 2013 Cinsault is a hit at the Kickoff party for Napa Valley Film Festival!
Oops sorry for the late report.
I got a golden ticket and it was luckily in time for me to bring to a Halloween party and so was able to be sampled by quite a few people. I will say that the crowd was drinking a few big Napa reds a Kamen Kashmir Cab Sav, and Joseph Phelps Insignia.
On to the review! A lot of love for this wine as it was a nice change of pace from those big reds. A lot of comments about its bright acidity, “Tart but in a good way.” Flavors were reported to be cranberry and tart red cherries. It’s not tannic but still balanced. In contrast to the Napa reds it was commented as fruit flavored, but not rich. So a lighter wine. People thought it would go well with Thanksgiving and in general turkey and pork, though it was perfectly fine as a drink alone. We did have one person report a smokey flavor, that was nice, but she was the only one. All in all, no one hated it and everyone gave it positive reviews.
Price wise most people felt that a $20 would be appropriate. But I’m not sure if that was skewed by the Lodi production.
Going in on my first casemate order. So few wines of interest to me can be shipped to Vermont… I have to jump on this. My cellar shelves are starting to look bare and in the spring I’ll be moving into my new house where I included an 800 to a 1000 bottle walk in wine cellar… need to start restocking
@mschauber Is this an invitation to CM’s to come to your open house and break in your new cellar???
/giphy relished-underwhelmed-curve
This is one quality wine! These are truly special vines - 130 years old or so, IIRC - and they produce some outstanding grapes.
I dig this variety and make one myself and have fallen head over heels for it. It tends to be much lighter in color than most other reds - the berry size is usually quite large, meaning that you will never get ‘crazy color’ unless you blend.
Give it a shot - I don’t think you’d be disappointed!!!
Not sure about this one, but that’s the beauty of casemates, right? Trying new wines without breaking the bank. In for a case (it takes a lot for me to understand if I like it
)
@W74 Illinois has become a very tough state to ship into. Consider having the shipment go somewhere else close
Hello Casemates, thanks @tercerowines for the nice Cinsault comments. The cinsault grape clusters are huge! Which makes it the perfect variety for making Rose. That being said, the age of the vines from this specific vineyard (the Bechthold Vineyard) is what allows us to make a concentrated red wine. I also bleed some juice off for rose, so the red wine gets one extra concentration step. The Cinsault is aged in neutral French oak barrels to let the fruit shine through without the heavy oak character. It is a truly delicious wine with a great story. Oldest Cinsault Vineyard in the WORLD!
@WineDocNapa You are welcome. We need to do a trade sometime soon please
I just pressed my 2018 Cinsault this morning - loving it already! Cheers!
@WineDocNapa I just picked up my 4 bottles from a case split, and noticed the label spells it Cinsaut. (I know these are interchangeable) However, I had just wrote Cinsault on the envelope with the money and thought I was going crazy.
I checked casemates, and sure enough the image shows 2013 spelled Cinsault. A labeling error that was caught mid production? Inquiring minds and all…
San Diego interest?
@rjquillin i was thinking of a 3-pack.
@radiolysis @klezman
We may have critical mass at 4 each.
Or my office mate might take one or two.
If we had one additional interested in a couple/few, it’s a done deal.
@klezman @rjquillin if a four, so be it. It’ll get drunk. Drank? Drinked.
@rjquillin @radiolysis I’ll take 3, I really enjoyed the previous Cinsault and was considering a 3-pack.
@rjquillin @tklivory @klezman fantastic! Three each sound good?
@klezman @radiolysis @tklivory
manageable-vague-corsair
Vought F4U; what a great aircraft that was.
DFW split?
It’s over??? But i just got here!
If anyone has a bottle or two to spare around NJ or NY let me know! I missed this again
I commute between port authority 41st and 8th and 49th and 7th every day … does that work for you? Yeah I’ll take 2 bottles if someone else’s OK with that