Preston Farm & Winery - Cinsaut 2023

Preston Farm and Winery is a family-operated, organic property in Healdsburg’s Dry Creek Valley, consisting of 125 acres of diversified crops including vineyards, vegetables, fruit and olive trees, grain, and pastured livestock. Husband-and-wife Lou and Susan Preston have farmed their land since 1974, converting to organic farming in 2000, with the goal that their wines retain an authenticity that reflects where and how they grow them. Environmental diversity and avoiding monoculture ensures the health of the farm, with natural pest control based on interplanting of different crops, mixed orchard and vine culture, establishment of extensive hedgerows, and protection of wild areas adjacent to vineyard blocks. Wines are made with native yeasts and zero inputs, except for small amounts of sulfur at bottling.

Farmed organically on the gravelly benches of Dry Creek Valley and fermented entirely whole cluster with native yeasts, Preston’s 2023 Cinsaut is transparent and finely etched. The aromas open on wild strawberry, redcurrant, hibiscus and violet with gentle notes of fines herbs and a touch of spice. On the palate, it’s supple and refined, carried by fine, soft tannins and a saline freshness that lingers on the finish. It is astonishing how naturally this wine bridges worlds. There’s an undeniable vin de soif pleasure to it, yet it carries the inner composure and subtle seriousness I associate with great cru Beaujolais. It’s unmistakably Californian, but restrained, savory and beautifully balanced. This is a red I love to serve slightly cool, opened without ceremony and enjoyed alongside a myriad of dishes — this is a wine that moves easily at the table.