A. Rafanelli Red Wine Offer

Do you ever get that vaguely déjà vu-ish feeling when you see something, and a somewhat, quite possibly hallucinatory distant bell rings? I occasionally get that feeling when I see the Rafanelli wine label.

I remember exactly where I was, who I was with, and even the direction I was facing when I first held a bottle of Rafanelli in my hands. It was over twenty years ago in the Hamptons, with my friends, Autumn and John. John had just walked up to us, after hours, in the hallway outside of the tasting room of Wölffer Estate Vineyards, and showed us a bottle of Rafanelli Zinfandel. He asked us if we’d heard of them. Well, we hadn’t. We’d never even tried a Zinfandel before. That day would become the first time.

John told us Rafanelli was the gold standard for California Zinfandel, and he felt that Zinfandel is the quintessential California grape. Halfway through his pitch, he said, “Oh, the hell with it, let’s pop it.” So, we did. It was a solid move—we should all take John’s example and do more of that. But anyway, we did, and it was no small act of generosity on John’s part; Rafanelli wasn’t, and still isn’t, distributed outside of restaurants in the great state of New York. John had to jump through more than a few hoops to even get that bottle in the first place. And he shared it with us. There we stood, solemnly and respectfully hushed, at the momentarily closed bar of the Wölffer tasting room, and swirled through this special bottle of some new-to-me grape called Zinfandel, and it was eye-opening.

It was like, well, do you ever get that vaguely déjà vu-ish feeling when you see something, and a somewhat, quite possibly hallucinatory distant bell rings?

Picture it, Italy, 1903, Letizia Rafanelli left her family’s vineyards in Orentano with the dream of creating her own winery, her own Azienda Agricola, in America. She met her husband, Alberto Rafanelli, in San Francisco and the two moved North to the tiny farming town of Healdsburg. In 1920, they purchased their home with vineyards and an orchard, in what is now the downtown district. All through prohibition, Letizia and Alberto planted vineyards, sold grapes, made wine, and yes, they bootlegged. Good for them, I love a good bootlegging story. Continuing on, at the repeal of prohibition in 1933, they bonded their barn as A. Rafanelli Winery and sold field blends of red and white wine by the barrel and in gallons. It was their son, Americo, who in 1955, purchased the property where the current winery is located, and sold grapes and made wine until his first vintage of A. Rafanelli Zinfandel in 1974. Today, sisters Shelly and Stacy run the show and continue to make beautiful wines that make me say, “Wow.”

2022 Zinfandel: Maybe the quintessential California grape, certainly the backbone of Dry Creek Valley, Zinfandel can’t be denied it’s place on the wine stage. No Sonoma County Wine collection is complete without some Rafanelli Zinfandel. Twenty-two months in new, one, and two year old French oak barrels. No fining or filtration. 5,000 cases produced. $50/ Bottle. 

2021 Cabernet Sauvignon: It took years for Shelly’s father David to convince his father Americo that they could and should plant and produce Cabernet Sauvignon. The first time I tasted Rafanelli Cabernet Sauvignon was in Downtown Los Angeles at Faith and Flower. Our allocation was just one case. I’d have to check with Shelley and Stacy on this one, but I want to say the entire allocation for Southern California that year was maybe only 20 cases or so. I bought that one case for Faith and Flower, and it was gone in a week. Twenty-two months in New French Oak. No Fining or filtration. 3,000 cases produced. $64/ Bottle.

2022 Merlot: Let’s talk Merlot. I know, I know, “I’m not drinking any F’ing Merlot!” -Miles Raymond. But here’s the thing, not only was that famous line from the movie, ‘Sideways’ taken out of context from the screenplay, it was taken out of context from the entire world from which it sprang. Maybe we’ve conveniently forgotten, maybe we’ve blocked it out, but there was a very real time when Merlot was king. It still dominates the cépage of some of the most expensive Bordeaux on the planet, think Cheval Blanc, Petrus, and the ever elusive Le Pin. As with many examples, it was Merlot’s very success that led to its demise. It was the popularity of Merlot that led to a watered-down overproduction, and an easy target for Miles Raymond of ‘Sideways’.

One of my favorite tricks is to bring guests a decanted Merlot as a blind taste. I can’t tell you how often I hear, “That’s an incredible Cab.” Oh yeah? Well that’s because it’s Merlot. Shelly Rafanelli knows this. She had to convince her father David to let her plant it and produce it. Just like David had to convince his father Americo to let him plant and produce Cabernet. Guess what? All three generations are correct. Get some of each. Twenty-two months in New and One year old French oak barrels. No fining or filtration. 500 cases produced. $47/ Bottle

These are wines with stories—and staying power.

Whether you’ve been collecting Rafanelli for years or this is your first encounter, I can’t recommend these bottlings enough. Each one speaks to the character of Dry Creek Valley, the care of the Rafanelli family, and the kind of winemaking that stands the test of time.

Quantities are, as always, very limited—particularly the Merlot, and allocations tend to disappear quickly. Let me know if you'd like me to set a few bottles aside for you.

Here’s to old friends, new bottles, and wines worth remembering.

Cheers!

Jared Hooper, Wine Director

WINES BEING OFFERED: (3-bottle minimums per wine)

Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley Valley 2022 ($50/btl)

Cabernet Sauvignon, Dry Creek Valley 2021 ($64/btl)

Merlot, Dry Creek Valley 2022 ($47/btl)