Denner Vineyards Ditch Digger 2021

Viticulture

Vineyard: 100% Estate – Willow Creek District Paso Robles.

Vinification

Aged for 20 months in 50% used 500L Puncheons, 30% used 225L French oak barriques, and 20% concrete tank.

Tasting notes

Bright nose with boysenberry and petrichor. On the palate, layers of raspberry, pomegranate, and coriander. A striking mineral note drives the finish.

Winery Description

Denner Vineyards is an estate on the far western border of the Paso Robles AVA. Built by Ron Denner in 1999 after an exhaustive search throughout California. The 156-acre parcel presses up against the Santa Lucia Range, giving the site great diversity of elevation, aspect and soil. The estate is nestled into the Templeton Gap, an East/West corridor where the marine layer can reach the inland valleys. As a result, the vineyards receive large diurnal temperature swings without high moisture pressure, giving a near-perfect growing climate.

The 108 acres under the vine are comprised of 19 different varieties in 26 unique blocks. Each block is farmed with painstaking attention to detail, allowing only for the best possible grapes to reach the winery. Aron Nevarez, our vineyard manager, is committed to environmentally friendly farming practices, using only sustainable inputs and minimal irrigation.

The original 96-acres were designed and planted by John Crossland of Beckstoffer fame. Later, Justin Smith of Saxum came on to consult with Aron Nevarez running the operation. Since 2005 Aron has had complete control of all vineyard operations, in addition to designing and planting the remaining 12 acres surrounding the winery.

Denner Vineyards currently uses 45 of the total 108 acres for our estate wine program. The remaining grapes are sold to ultra-premium producers here in Paso Robles. Much of our fruit graces the wines of Villa Creek Cellars, Linne Calodo, and Justin Vineyards among others.

Denner’s winemaking program is headed by Anthony Yount, a graduate of California Polytechnical University. Anthony “cut his teeth” in the wine industry at Denner working as a cellar rat for two vintages. Later, he moved to become Cellar Master at Villa Creek, where he continued to work with Denner fruit. Coming full circle, Anthony returned to Denner as Winemaker in 2009.

Anthony’s winemaking style has brought about a modest shift in Denner wines, dialing back ripeness and using more old wooden puncheons and concrete tanks on many of the wines. In essence, he tries to reveal a distinct Paso-ness of each of his wines. His changes have subsequently brought in many glowing accolades for the wines.