Hey Drew, This vineyard is still there, You can see it next to the house on the left hand side and then it wraps around the back. I got some grapes from there this year during the morning of the crazy lightning storms. In 2016 I got some Zin from here also. It’s a bit more inland than a lot of the old vine vineyards and seems to ripen pretty early. I was really happy with the wine it made in 2016, this year I was a little less impressed with the quality of the grapes (riper than I would like) but decided to blend it with a couple other things and I think it will come together nicely.
Thanks Matt!
It can be challenging assessing vineyards from 2,000 miles away!
haha it can be hard from 30 miles away. I never would have known about that vineyard if I hadn’t been there. I had no idea it had a name or went into commercial wines until I saw your post and started to read about it.
Here is more information about the property at 2371 Oakley Road, once a Gonsalves family property (most likely the “Salvador Vineyard”), which is destined for development into a residential area.
From the “Phase I Cultural and Paleontological Resource Assessment: Vines at Oakley Project”:
June 18, 2019
"…CRHR and Local Listing Eligibility Evaluation
"The residence at 2371 Oakley Road is part of the overall agricultural development and increased urbanization of the area immediately following World War II. This was due in part to satisfy the enormous postwar demand for new housing, and the continuing development of Oakley’s viticulture industry that began in the late 1800s. The subject property is therefore part of that process of postwar transition and growth in the area, but does not meet Criterion 1: Event, as it is one of many unremarkable examples of small-scale, residential buildings from the period.
"The building is associated with Marion and Manuel Gonsalves, who immigrated to Oakley from the Madeira Islands in 1938. The property is also associated with Ruth and Steven Gonsalves, and Marianne and Steven Harder. These individuals were thoroughly researched at the Contra Costa Records Office, archives at the Contra Costa Historical Society, and through a search of the California Digital Newspaper Collection. The relative absence of these individuals from published accounts of the history of the City of Oakley indicates that they did not achieve a level of historic importance for the property to be considered eligible under Criterion 2: Person.
"The residence, built by unknown architects, displays many features of the gabled contemporary style: a low-pitched roof, close-cropped eaves with exposed rafters, modern elements such as the large 16-lite windows, and a combination of brick and stucco cladding (McAlester and McAlester 2004). The residence is a standard, undistinguished example of common construction design and techniques from the immediate postwar period, and appears to have been renovated in recent years with some minor modifications made to the original design including the addition of a garage. As such, the building does not appear to be eligible for listing on the CRHR under Criteria 3: Architecture.
“Criterion 4: Information Potential, is most often used to evaluate archaeological sites or buildings that employ unusual building techniques. There is no evidence that the building in question exhibits any unusual construction features, or has the ability to contribute significant information to the overall history of Oakley…”.
I included what may be considered too much information from the report in hopes of pointing out that the viticultural history of a site does not appear to weigh into the considerations of modern developing efforts in the region.
The future of Oakley’s vineyards is in danger. As most land-holdings are typically categorized as small residential properties, the need for new, more densely packed housing will outweigh any arguments for the preservation of single-dwellings on lands with tiny vineyards.
Only those vineyard owners who possess greater-sized parcels will hold out longer against the tide of urbanization. If a property owner has enough land to donate a portion for nature conservation purposes, the vineyard on said property might stand for decades to come. Unfortunately, the unique layout of Oakley’s heritage vineyards precludes most sites from qualifying.
Indeed, I cannot think of any case where an owner of an old-growth vineyard, under 5-acres in size and located within the city limits, has expressed interest in attaining official protections to guarantee the future of his/her old-vine property.
From the Ridge Vineyards August 9, 2020, Twitter post:
I received an email today from Bonny Doon Vineyards featuring the 2018 release of the “Old Telegram” Mourvèdre. Sadly, this bottling is being discontinued.
Bonny Doon Vineyards
2018 “Old Telegram” (PDF download)
“Tasting Notes: From the nose, one scents licorice, blood(!) (make that very rare meat), blackberries (both berry and leaf), wet earth. There is a definite scent of beef bouillon, one of the absolute true signifiers of (proper) Mourvèdre. On the palate, the tannins are very plush and soft, almost a sense of sweetness (emphatically no R.S. in this), but with a really vibrant acidity and very great length. We somehow skirted the peril of over- ripeness and raisin-ation, which is always a bit of a peril in the sunny climes of Antioch, CA. The wine is rich but also quite elegant at the same time.”
"Vineyard Notes: We have purchased grapes from the ‘Enea Vineyard’ in the sandy terroirs of Antioch for many years, and have always found this shy-yielding vineyard to ripen as much as two weeks earlier than the other Mourvèdre vines in the neighborhood. I suspect that there is substantially less clay underlying the sand, resulting in diminished water-holding capacity and hence a bit more hydrologic stress on the vines, with resultant concentration in the fruit itself. A high percentage of sand in the soil limits the viability of phylloxera, and these very old (100+ year) vines have never seen rootstock."
“Production Notes: Now it can be told. As much as we love the fruit from the ‘Enea Vineyard’ - it is always the most concentrated and vibrant Mourvèdre we see - we have been habitually plagued by some of the ambient bacterial flora that hitches a ride along with the grapes. As a result, even with reasonable use of SO2, we have with almost vintage seen volatile acidity levels mount during and immediately after fermentation. Not that a little bit of VA is necessarily a bad thing, but these grapes represented a unique challenge.”
“This vintage we experimented with a technique of ozone treatment of the grapes before harvest, wiping out the indigenous microflora and inoculating both with cultured yeast and malolactic culture. I am as much for doing things naturally whenever possible, but in this instance, our enological intervention was certainly the wiser course. Volatile acidity well in hand without the need for major SO2 additions. Success!”
While I have thoroughly enjoyed older vintages of this Contra Costa wine, my present hope is to determine its specific location.
Few Bonny Doon Contra Costa County bottlings have overtly identified their fruit sources. Rather, they often included abstract visual clues or street names.
The “Enea Vineyard” is found in Antioch, not Oakley. Many of its grapevines are over a century in age, too.
According to an article from the “Antioch on the Move” website:
“Perhaps of greatest importance is that ‘Evangelho Vineyard’ is the last, and only vineyard in Antioch.”
This statement is incorrect!!**
What about the “Enea Vineyard”, the “Trembath Vineyard”, the Gonsalves / Sandy Lane Property parcels, as well as the acres of vines on PG&E easements???
If anyone knows precisely where the “Enea Vineyard” is, please lemme know!
** EDIT **
The the “Enea Vineyard” has been determined to be located South of 3030 E 18th St in Antioch.
Seam Wines bottled a Mourvèdre from the “Enea Vineyard” in 2014.
Here is another post from Bonny Doon Vineyards related to the mysterious “EneaVineyard” in Antioch…
I received an email from Matt Cline’s Three Wine Company in anticipation of “National Carignan Day”. I noticed that the current vintage of his winery’s Carignan is sourced not from the “Lucchesi Vineyard”, but from the “Bigelow Vineyard”.
"Marcus James Bigelow was a gentleman farmer and hoedown fiddler who enjoyed playing cards with friends more than farming. While he moved and worked slowly, he was reported to have been a very fast driver. Originally planted in the mid 1880’s, his vineyard on Neroly Road in Oakley is still producing a minuscule quantity of small berry Mataro, Carignane, and Zinfandel. This 130-year-old vineyard is dry-farmed and grown in Delhi Sand series loam soil, which is similar to beach sand. These vines produce a mere 2.5-to-3.5 tons of fruit per acre.
"The 2014 vintage will go down as one of the earliest harvest in over a decade. Despite an ongoing drought and an earthquake that rocked south Napa in late August crush was just getting underway. A mild winter and spring caused early bud break, although the overall length of the growing season was similar to past years. A compacted harvest began in July for sparkling wines and started winding down by mid-October for later ripening varieties. The moderate temperatures allowed for even ripening, concentrated fruit and firm tannins.
“This Carignane is dark black and blue color to the edge, with aromas of cherry, baking spice, and black tea. This savory wine rounds out the palate with dried cranberries, cherry, and supple tannins…”.
Three Wine Company website:
https://threewinecompany.com
*** EDIT ***
The Bigelow Society website features a detailed biography of Marcus J. Bigelow (1840 - 1933):
from a May 12, 2019, Wine Access email
“A Wine Access Favorite: Matt Cline’s Ancient-Vine Zinfandel”
"Hailing from one of California’s true heritage vineyards, this is easily one of the greatest Zinfandels on the coast, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with giants like Paul Draper’s Ridge ‘Geyserville’ and ‘Lytton Springs’. If you love wine with a velvet-like texture, staggering ancient-vine concentration, and a dark-fruit core loaded with spice, this has your name on it.
"…Winning 93 points from Wine Enthusiast, the 2015 Three Wine Company ‘Bigelow Vineyard’ Zinfandel is Matt Cline’s love letter to an endangered and priceless plot of Contra Costa County. An ancient-vines preservationist, Cline helped save the ‘Bigelow Vineyard’ and its 130-year-old vines from development. As his reward, he reaped this ‘big, ripe and fruity wine’ Wine Enthusiast loves for its ‘firm tannins and full body.’
"It’s thanks to Cline that farmer Marcus James Bigelow’s historic vines are in no danger of succumbing to the bulldozer’s blade. These gnarled, century-old vines were in danger of being torn asunder for Contra Costa’s Bay Area real estate development magnates, like other ancient vineyards in the region which have been uprooted in the name of progress, often erasing a century’s worth of viticulture. ‘But not this one,’ Cline told us. ‘No developer is going to uproot a hundred years of history on my watch.’
"If you stop by ‘Bigelow Vineyard’, sitting off Neroly Road, southeast of Antioch, you’ll understand his passion: thick-trunks of bush-trained vines planted on Contra Costa County’s loamy Delhi sands. The vineyard looks like an alien landscape compared to the neatly manicured rows of Napa or Bordeaux, and ‘Bigelow’s’ unique appearance alludes to its equally intriguing wines. Resembling beach sand, the soil stresses the vines, driving high concentration but reducing their overall production. The result is darkly colored, densely flavored wines (like this one) that are nearly impossible to resist upon release, but gorgeous after a few years in the cellar.
“In 2015 - the 130th anniversary of the vineyard - Cline navigated a fast, intense vintage, one of the earliest on record and the fourth straight year of drought, making for exceptional quality in the grapes. This is a profoundly pleasurable red blend of 86% rich Zinfandel with a smattering of Petite Sirah, Alicante Bouschet, Carignane, and Mataro - all from vines that offer a window into distant California history, hand-planted in days long before Prohibition.”
I am not familiar with any successful campaign led by Matt Cline to rescue a vineyard apart from the “Lucchesi Vineyard”, which is a 13-acre Carignan plot in the Dutch Slough Tidal Restoration Project, in northeast Oakley.
Here is an interview with Mr John Viano, president of Contra Costa Winegrowers Association and owner of Viano Winery:
Originally posted to Brentwood Parkbench Blog
Contra Costa Winegrowers Association website:
https://cccwines.com/
Mr Joel Peterson of Once & Future Wine Company discusses his 2018 Contra Costa County “Oakley Road Vineyard” Mataro starting just after 17:30 in the following video:
A Life Well Drunk YouTube video:
“Conversation with Joel Peterson (Godfather of Zinfandel) of Once & Future Wines”
September 4, 2020
Once & Future Wines website:
I have another vineyard mystery with which I could use some help!
Has anyone heard of the “Horse Ranch Vineyard” in Antioch, owned by Mr Gary Gonsalves?
I found two wineries whose fruit was sourced from this location…
Tulocay Winery - 2019 Rosé of Mourvedre
"These grapes hail from century-old vines planted in the sandy soils of Contra Costa County. We picked early for low Brix and high acid and whole cluster pressed (not saignee) to retain freshness and purity. The result is just what you want out of a warm-weather sipper—dry, crisp, elegant, and screw-cap for easy access.
"Vineyard
“These Mourvèdre (aka Mataro) grapes come from the sandy soils of Contra Costa County. Amidst the strip malls and power lines are some of the oldest vineyards in California. These vines are centuries-old, head trained, and own-rooted, and look very much like the vine muse on the Tulocay label. The grapes are from a vineyard known as Horse Ranch (yea, next to some horses), where we also source our Carignane…”.
Revolution Winery & Kitchen - 2018 Alicante Bouschet, 750 ml
"Revolution’s first natural wine to hit the market!
“Vineyard Notes: Gary Gonsalves farms approximately 100 acres of grapes in Contra Costa County, many of them 100+ year old plantings of intermixed Carignane, Cinsault, Mourvedre, Petite Sirah, Grenache & Alicante Bouschet, among others. Horse Ranch Vineyard lies within the city of Antioch, less than a mile from the famous Evangelho Vineyard & on the same dry sandy soil. Alicante itself is an interesting grape - one of the few teinturier varieties, meaning the flesh of the grape is also red. This gives it an intensity of color that is hard to match…”.
Drew - Gary Gonsalves and his family owns Sandy Lane vineyard. They have quite a few parcels spread out. Lots of old vine Zin and interplanted stuff. In fact, one of the vineyards that is interplanted is right next to Evanghelo and is from same era. I took old vine Zin from him this year and we walked the old vineyard at night that’s next to Evanghelo. Mourvedre, Carignan and Zin interplanted. All sandy soils, almost like walking on the beach. Let me know if you need his number.
Thanks for the info, Adam!
I know that the Gonsalves family owns many acres of land, and I recognize that their vineyards are known by several names. However, I always have struggled verifying the names/locations of viticultural sites specific to Antioch.
A recent article from the Antioch On the Move website asserted that the “Evangelho Vineyard” is the sole old-vine parcel in the city. That had me scratching my head.
IF “Evangelho” is the only old vineyard in Antioch, then what about the “Enea Vineyard”, used as a source of Mataro grapes by Bonny Doon Vineyard? The “Trembath Vineyard” (Nottingham Cellars/Vasco Urbano)? And now, the “Horse Ranch Vineyard”(Tulocay, Revolution)?
I understand that wineries are prone to adopting proprietary designations for certain single-vineyard bottlings. This had previously led me to wonder whether any of the above sites were from the “Evangelho Vineyard”, but labeled otherwise (for one reason or another).
In my years of investigating the locations, names, and owners of eastern Contra Costa County’s ancient vineyards, I found a handful of online articles that were of assistance. The problem is that almost every piece was written over 5 years ago. If you search for more up-to-date newspaper articles or blog posts, most focus on the “Evangelho Vineyard”.
As for contacting Mr Gonsalves personally - I would love any help you might be able to provide!!! I live in Louisiana, so it is virtually impossible for me to verify any of the stuff I share on this thread through a primary source.
Note: I must mention that the City of Oakley’s 2013 ACVP vineyard map was of immense help. Again, as the details are 7 years old, some of the data is obsolete. Many of the vineyard plots were owned by land development companies, and it is heartbreaking to compare Google Earth images from 2013 with those of today. It’s as though they paved paradise and…well, you know.
I was listening to the Bedrock 2020 Winter release podcast and they brought up that the Salvador vineyard (RIP) produced a 98 point (Parker) wine with the 2013 Turley Salvador. Aside from being bummed out that the vineyard was ripped up, it got me thinking about scores from Contra Costa. Is 98 the highest score ever for a CC wine?
Great note from RP by the way…
RP98 Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
The 2013 Zinfandel Salvador Vineyard comes from another ancient, organically farmed vineyard, this one in Contra Costa. Its vines were planted in 1896, and the soils are pure sand. An absolutely amazing Zinfandel, this gorgeously proportioned, super-rich wine crosses the palate with a surprisingly unnoticeable 16.1% alcohol. Good acidity, a corpulent, full-bodied, multi-dimensional mouthfeel with blueberry and blackberry jam, some cassis, earth and forest floor notes are all present in this spectacular wine that again will transport a blind taster to the South of France rather than the backwaters of California. I suppose if the FX series “Sons of Anarchy” had a house wine after a long ride on their choppers, this would be it. This is pedal-to-the-metal, full-throttle Zinfandel at its greatest, what California does so well and what no other region in the world can produce. This is killer stuff and a tribute to our early immigrants, who had the foresight to plant these vines at this remarkable site. Drink it over the next decade.
Jeez, way to rub it in there, Sean! ![[cry.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/8/853b6e76c6e8406be77a6727c2a27ad1672678b3.gif "cry"){kind=small}
I never have had a subscription to the WA, but the scores of CoCo wines in Wine & Spirits have been few and far between - never higher than perhaps 88-90 points.
The highest score given to any Contra Costa wine in Wine Spectator has been 94 points, for the 2016 and 2017 vintages of Bedrock’s “Evangelho Vineyard” Heritage Wine. As a matter of fact, the top 4 rated Contra Costa bottlings are vintages of this wine.
The 2013 “Salvador”, which Tim Fish gave 92 pts (along with the '14), isn’t even the highest rated vintage of Turley’s “Salvador Vineyard” Zin in Wine Spectator. The '16 bottling rated 93 pts.
Of corse, one could argue against numerical scores and differing preferences among critics, but that “Sons of Anarchy” metaphor really captivates the imagination, doesn’t it!
Food and Wine
“The Battle for America’s Oldest Vines”
by Ray Isle
October 31, 2015
"It would be easy to drive by the Salvador Vineyard in Oakley, California, without giving it a second thought. The plot is on a residential backstreet, 10 or so acres of widely spaced, low-growing vines. On one side, behind a wooden fence, is a cookie-cutter subdivision full of dun-colored suburban houses. On the other side, more houses. There’s no office at ‘Salvador Vineyard’ and certainly no winery, only a ramshackle, ranch-style building that the Gonsalves family, who own the property, use for storage. In fact, the ‘Salvador Vineyard’ basically looks like a big, drab, sandy backyard, one that just happens to be filled with vines. It’s the definition of unprepossessing.
“…The ‘Salvador’ vines were planted by Portuguese immigrants in the late 1800s, like most of the old vineyards in Contra Costa County, a once-rural area that is now an East Bay commuter suburb. The soil they grow in is sandy, the texture of dunes; the stumpy, gray, knotted vines push their roots down through it, 40 feet or more, in order to produce tiny bunches of intensely flavorful grapes. Passalacqua uses those grapes for the Turley ‘Salvador Vineyard’ Zinfandel, a fragrant red wine with a slightly feral spiciness that makes it unlike any other Zinfandel I’ve run into…”.
Decanting Monterey blog
“Turley Salvador: 1896 – Now Those are Old Vines!”
by Central Coast Sharon
January 28, 2021
The Winter Release from Bedrock Wine Company includes the winery’s other famous Contra Costa vineyard source - Pato Vineyard:
Bedrock Wine Company Notes:
"2019 Pato Vineyard Heritage Wine, Contra Costa County
“The 2019 Pato Heritage is perhaps my favorite we have made from the site. For the first time, it includes part of the vineyard planted in the 1940s we have historically sold to Turley for their great Duarte bottling that produces some dramatic and dense Zinfandel. This is blended with the old Mataro and Petite Sirah from the site to create a deeply fruited, dark and satisfying wine. As always, this shows off the richer and more unctuous side of Oakley and will be a great drinker on the earlier side with some decanting. From own-rooted vines planted in sand.”
Bedrock Wine Company website:
https://www.bedrockwineco.com
RIP Indeed. I always buy a few bottle of Turley Salvador. It really is pedal to the metal full throttle wine which is kind of unique to CoCoCo. Reminds me of a Sonoma Valley, Napa Valley or Dry Creek kind of Zin but from the dry arid sandy soils of Antioch. I think 2019 is Turley’s last vintage and I plan to buy as much as they’ll let me.
Here’s an older article that discusses Rosenblum Cellars and its use of Contra Costa fruit:
Pacific Sun of Marin
“Feature 3: Zin-mania: Spreading the Love for Zinfandel”
by Richard Paul Hinkle
May 7, 2015
“…One concern that [winemaker John] Kane faces is that some of the small vineyards Rosenblum draws from are increasingly impinged upon by the expanding demands of residential housing 'We recently lost half of one of our best vineyards (Carla’s Vineyard) in Contra Costa County when Kmart tried to buy the whole of it. We were able to retain half of the vineyard, but it was a close call. Another of our Contra Costa vineyards, Planchon in Oakley, is completely surrounded by a housing development, so we have to let the neighbors know to close their windows when we spray the vines’…”.
Rosenblum Cellars currently bottles a “Carla’s Reserve” Zinfandel, a “Rosie Rabbit” Petite Sirah, and an “Isabella Francesca” Malbec/Petite Sirah. A 2016 vintage “Rosie Rabbit” Alicante Bouschet is still available via retail sources.
The “Rosie Rabbit” designation may (or may not) be a single Contra Costa vineyard.
“Isabella Francesca” is a younger planting in Brentwood that also is sourced by Rock Wall Wine Company.
The “Carla’s Reserve” has me scratching my head.
The Meadows family’s ancient-growth “Carla’s Vineyard” in north-eastern Antioch was paved over. A now-closed K-Mart, along with other commercial properties, occupy the spot where the vines once stood. That area is a California Designated Qualified Opportunity Zone (“Contra Costa #1 of 2”: Census Tract 3060.02), and the location of the “E 18th Street Specific Plan”.
Rosenblum’s website indicates that “Carla’s Reserve” now comes from a 16-year-old vineyard in Oakley. I suppose the winery simply chose to apply the “Carla’s” designate to a different site - perhaps a surviving Meadows family vineyard.
Rosenblum Cellars website:
https://www.rosenblumcellars.com
I found two articles featuring Cline Cellars and its winemaker Charlie Tsegeletos. Here’s one of them…
Daily Chronicle
“Uncorked: Finding Ancient Vines in the Sands of Oakley”
by James Nokes
September 14, 2018
"…There’s beauty in the imperfections of Oakley, located in Contra Costa County.
"It’s a humble area that doesn’t have the panache of other wine grape-growing regions in California. But, it makes inspired wines from vineyards that are more than 100 years old. Planted by immigrants before the turn of the last century and preserved by Cline’s owner Fred Cline and others who have flocked to the sandy soils and sprawling vineyards that are frozen in time.
“‘What amazes me about Oakley is it is just a whole different world,’ Tsegeletos said. ‘It only gets about 10 inches of rain per year. The rivers have deposited what looks like 30 inches of soil there over the years. It started in the early 1900s and it’s immune from phylloxera because it can’t walk through the sand. So the vines are still on their original rootstock. The fruit has developed an amazing concentration. It’s a wine that we don’t have to do a lot to. We don’t do any wine fining. We farm the vineyard like they would have 100 years ago.’
"Because Cline and other wineries have supported vineyards like Oakley, the temptation to modernize has been avoided.
“‘Some people think we should pull up the vineyards, put some wire out there for vines to grow on and increase the yields to turn a better profit,’ Tsegeletos said. ‘But these are unique wines that really over deliver. The extra work you have to do to harvest them is worth it.’”
Photographs taken by Mr Kevin Romick of Oakley, California, and posted this morning to Facebook:
