As the wine opens, the enticing aromatics that make you want to dive into the glass shift from pronounced tart cherry and black pepper to ripe blackberry with hints of dried fine herbs. A smooth entry leads into just the right amount of vibrant acidity, making the flavors pop. Savor a fusion of dark cherry, blackberry, and dried strawberry laced with traces of dried herbs, black pepper, sweet tobacco, loamy earth, and lavender. The layers of flavors create a roundness that balances the bright acidity to offer up a lovely, easy sipper. With so many perfect pairings, it’s tough to just pick a few. Try it with your favorite lasagna with garlic bread on the side, or smoked brisket with curly fries and a range of barbecue sauces from sweet to spicy.
Vintage
The 2021 is our twelfth vintage from this block. As a 100% varietal from Tollini Vineyard, it truly showcases what the grape is capable of when grown in the right location. This wine hits the high notes, with power and depth behind it, and a purity and clarity one would expect from this ancient varietal.
Specs
Vintage: 2021
Composition: 100% Barbera
Vineyard: Tollini Vineyard
Appellation: Redwood Valley, Mendocino
Harvest Date: September 20, 2021
Barrel Aging: 22 months
Cooperage: 100% neutral oak barrels
Bottling Date: June 28, 2023 (unfined & unfiltered)
Aromas of dark cherry and black raspberry mingle with hints of brown spices and a touch of earthiness. Lively, juicy flavors of black cherry and strawberry fill the palate, while traces of pomegranate and rhubarb add interest and depth. The vivid fruit is balanced with a very subtle essence of mocha-laced oak. The smooth mouthfeel and inviting blend of flavors create an easy-drinking, no-thinking wine. And yet, the complexity and quality give you pause as you sip this seamlessly delicious Rhône blend. An ideal wine to grab when enjoying conversation with friends, diving into a good book, or unwinding after a long day. It will also pair perfectly with take-out pizza or a Reuben sandwich with fries, and can easily complement something elegant like lamb chops with herbs and garlic served with a wild mushroom rice pilaf.
Vintage
Our Zero Manipulation is blended using 100% Tollini Vineyard fruit, and is the first in our line of wines honoring this great vineyard and farmer/friend to the north. We’ve produced Zero every year since 2000 using old vine Carignane as the dominant varietal, and in 2020, it makes up 62% of the blend. From this core of spicy, zippy red fruit flavors, we’ve added layers of depth, complexity, and balance with Grenache and Syrah. Our goal in the blend is to create a wine that is a true bistro wine—tasty, food-friendly, full of soul, and almost refreshing, without ever becoming heavy. As our original t-shirt proclaimed, this wine is always “easy to use and cheap to operate.”
Best in Class, Double Gold and 97 points ~ 2025 Press Democrat North Coast Wine Challenge
The blended noble beast. A high class ass. Call it what you like and kick off your heels, this brawny yet silky blend is not shy on personality. 100% sourced from the sustainably farmed Tollini Vineyard in Mendocino each year, the core of the wine is built from the more robust varieties. We bring a little zip and balance with fruitier and spicy blended flavors. Enjoy now or lay it down, this wine lets you have your cake and eat it too.
Specs
Vintage: 2022
Varietal: 46% Syrah, 42% Petite Sirah, 8% Grenach, 4% Carignane
Appellation: Redwood Valley
Vineyard Designation: Tollini Vineyard
Bottling Date: 07/24/2024
Alcohol: 13.7%
Production: 550 cases
What’s Included
6-bottles:
2x 2021 Peterson Barbera, Tollini Vineyard
2x 2020 Peterson Zero Manipulation, Tollini Vineyard
Peterson Winery has been producing wine in Dry Creek Valley for 30 years and, like most wineries in the Valley, produces Zinfandel as well as other wines. Yet a closer look shows that is where the similarities end.
Owner Fred Peterson is an iconoclast with an old world winemaking philosophy and a reverence for sustainable farming. The Peterson approach is to capture the essence of vintage and vineyard—a philosophy they call Zero Manipulation—with low tech, yet high touch, to produce wines of a place, wines with soul. The evolution of Peterson wines and winemaking accelerated when Fred’s son Jamie became assistant winemaker in the summer of 2002. In 2006, after moving from the tiny red barn on Lytton Springs to Timber Crest Farms, Jamie was given the overall responsibilities as winemaker. As a winegrowing team, Fred and Jamie assess the grapes from each vineyard and vintage as the season progresses, evaluating how the weather, soil, and site are interacting for the particular vintage.
At Peterson Winery, the winemaking process begins while the grapes are still on the vines. Zero Manipulation is a discipline the Petersons follow to capture the character and balance of inherent in the grapes. Zero Manipulation means using the most gentle, traditional winemaking practices possible to maximize the flavors, aromatics, and texture of the wines. Fred and Jamie celebrate vintage differences and don’t tweak or homogenize the wine to obtain consistency of flavors, a common practice in mass-market wineries. For Fred and Jamie, Peterson Winery is all about the wines. But if you look a little deeper, you’ll see the heart and soul that goes into every bottle.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KY, LA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OR, RI, SC, TX, VT, WA, WV, WI, WY
I got the email and UPS notification that I get the chance to Rat again! Since the weather is warming up in my part of the country I put the wine into the fridge for longer than I usually would since I knew the ambient temps would warm it up very quickly. The wine was a deep plum color in a pretty jewel tone when I poured it. On the first sniff I immediately got a lot of fruit, mostly dark berries and currants, a little mustiness (in a good way), and not much else, but that could have been because it was at a lower temperature. I gave it a sip and I still got a surprising amount of fruit, but also some nice creamy notes with a hint of nuttiness. I would say this wine has medium to high tannins, but the amount of fruitiness really mellows it out. I can see someone who maybe is not as into dry wines or trying to build their palette really enjoying this. I had this wine with some Beef Stroganoff and it did a great job of standing up to the rich sauce without overpowering it. It definitely enhanced the flavors of the Dijon mustard in the sauce. I also drank a few glasses the next day without food and the wine was just as good and flavors held true to the tastes on the first day. I enjoyed the wine just as much on its own and I felt it had a great balance that you would really want from a blend. I think this is a good buy and I don’t have room, but I might have to get in on this deal!
Got a bottle of this around 2 weeks ago and tried it right away. I guess I thought it would be here sooner and then kind of forgot about it. Really did not like this very much. It was ok but too thin and hot for our tastes. Maybe a pizza wine. Light red color, some berry fruit, high alcohol (14.8), some acid, no tannins or oak, very dry. A little unbalanced and not too complex. Sorry but not sure I buy this zero manipulation idea, give me some manipulation at least! Looking at the specs and varietals and the other review I think the mendo blendo sounds like something I would like better. Anyway this isn’t bad especially for an everyday wine and it is all a good price, with the variety.
2021 Peterson Barbera, Tollini Vineyard
Tasting Notes
Vintage
Specs
2020 Peterson Zero Manipulation, Tollini Vineyard
Tasting Notes
Vintage
Specs
2022 Peterson Mendo Blendo, Tollini Vineyard
Tasting Notes
Specs
What’s Included
6-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
$288.00/Case for 4x 2020 Peterson Zero Manipulation, Tollini Vineyard + 4x 2022 Peterson Mendo Blendo, Tollini Vineyard + 4x 2021 Peterson Barbera, Tollini Vineyard at Peterson Winery
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KY, LA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OR, RI, SC, TX, VT, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Jun 9 - Tuesday, Jun 10
Peterson Tollini Vineyards Mixed Reds
6 bottles for $79.99 $13.33/bottle + $1.33/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $134.99 $11.25/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2021 Peterson Barbera
2020 Peterson Zero Manipulation Red
2022 Peterson Mendo Blendo
2022 Peterson Tollini Vineyard Mendo Blendo
I got the email and UPS notification that I get the chance to Rat again! Since the weather is warming up in my part of the country I put the wine into the fridge for longer than I usually would since I knew the ambient temps would warm it up very quickly. The wine was a deep plum color in a pretty jewel tone when I poured it. On the first sniff I immediately got a lot of fruit, mostly dark berries and currants, a little mustiness (in a good way), and not much else, but that could have been because it was at a lower temperature. I gave it a sip and I still got a surprising amount of fruit, but also some nice creamy notes with a hint of nuttiness. I would say this wine has medium to high tannins, but the amount of fruitiness really mellows it out. I can see someone who maybe is not as into dry wines or trying to build their palette really enjoying this. I had this wine with some Beef Stroganoff and it did a great job of standing up to the rich sauce without overpowering it. It definitely enhanced the flavors of the Dijon mustard in the sauce. I also drank a few glasses the next day without food and the wine was just as good and flavors held true to the tastes on the first day. I enjoyed the wine just as much on its own and I felt it had a great balance that you would really want from a blend. I think this is a good buy and I don’t have room, but I might have to get in on this deal!
2020 Peterson Zero Manipulation
Got a bottle of this around 2 weeks ago and tried it right away. I guess I thought it would be here sooner and then kind of forgot about it. Really did not like this very much. It was ok but too thin and hot for our tastes. Maybe a pizza wine. Light red color, some berry fruit, high alcohol (14.8), some acid, no tannins or oak, very dry. A little unbalanced and not too complex. Sorry but not sure I buy this zero manipulation idea, give me some manipulation at least! Looking at the specs and varietals and the other review I think the mendo blendo sounds like something I would like better. Anyway this isn’t bad especially for an everyday wine and it is all a good price, with the variety.
@ilCesare quote of the day: “give me some manipulation at least”.
@ilCesare
/giphy give me some manipulation at least