Kept in American Oak barrels for over 20 months 2005 Vintage notes: Bottled in May 2007, this wine delivers the essence of Zin in all aspects. Constant summer temperatures allowed for uniform ripening of the grapes and a wine that shows the full fruit flavors of Zinfandel. This vintage keeps getting better. 2006 Vintage notes: Bottled in June 2008, the ideal 2006 winter rainfall followed by a dry but not excessively hot summer produced concentrated dry-farmed grapes with excellent brix (sugars) at harvest. Full fruit characterizes this Zin, but it is very mellow in the mouth. 2007 Vintage notes: Bottled in June 2009. Full bodied, concentrated fruit of berries and cherries, with a touch of chocolate characteristic of a traditional dry-farmed Zin. The extremely dry year (only 4 inches of rain) and late frost caused a big drop in yields, but produced grapes that were smaller and more concentrated, giving flavors that will coat your mouth. The nine year old vines that produced this Zin show the characteristics of old vines. Drinks very nicely now, and you will also want to lay some down. 2008 Vintage notes: Bottled in January 2010, this wine is full of black cherries and a touch of chocolate characteristic of a traditional dry-farmed Zin. The second year of drought (only 9 inches of rain) and late frost reduced yields as in 2007. Drinks well now. In several years it will take on the full jammy flavors of a classic “Big Zin”. 2009 Vintage notes: Bottled in June 2011, this Zin shows promise of being smooth and dry, yet with the classic fruit and spice essence of Zin. The third year of drought produced rich berry overtones with a nice spice finish. We expect this Zin to cellar well for many years.

Kept in American Oak barrels for over 20 months 2006 Vintage notes: Bottled in May 2008, the ideal winter rainfall of 2006 and even ripening of the grapes brings out the smoky richness of plum and spice of a dry-farmed Shiraz. Enjoy this wine as it continues to deepen with more time in the bottle. 2008 Vintage notes: Bottled in January 2010. The 2008 season was our second year of drought. Yields were very low, but the resulting quality of the grapes was high. Small fruit gave a high skin to juice ratio, leading to very concentrated flavors of plum and spice. Classic Shiraz smokey overtones fill the nose.

2010 Reunion Rosé Vintage notes: This delicious blend of zinfandel, mourvédre, mission, and pedro ximenez grapes was crafted into a dry rosé in the European tradition. The delicate hint of strawberries adds a nice finish that will enhance your drinking pleasure. Enjoy well chilled!

Benito Dusi grew up on the ranch that he farms today just south of Paso Robles, California. He carefully tends Zinfandel vines grown in the traditional dry-farmed, head pruned style that he learned from his father. We met Ben when we began planting our vineyard in 1997. He soon became our mentor, teaching us these traditional techniques to bring out the flavor of our own grapes at Condor’s Hope. We are very, pleased to be one of the few small producers of wine from Benito Dusi’s old vine Zinfandel.

Kept in American Oak barrels for over 20 months 2007 Vintage notes: Bottled in June 2009. We continued the tradition of receiving grapes from our mentor’s 80 year old vines. This drought year will live up to all of our expectations of a fruity, jammy “Big Zin.” 2008 Vintage notes: The second year of drought intensified this old vine Zin even more than usual, with cherries, chocolate, and spice all melding into one of the best Zins we have tasted. With such a small lot, it will be good to stock up your cellar with this beautiful wine.