“Meet Magdalena. Quite a remarkable, resilient character, according to those who knew her best. Born in the early 1930s, Magdalena lived a long and fruitful life in Lodi, California, luxuriating in the loamy sandy soil, not far from the Mokelumne River until her early death from tractor blight.” So begins my entry to the 2021 Wine Writing Competition about the Lucas Winery’s Lodi ZinStar Vineyard.

And today I’m SO EXCITED to announce my essay on old vines is up NOW on JancisRobinson.com! How did this happen? In late July, Sue Hill and I visited Lucas in Lodi with hopes that they’d qualify for the next Slow Wine Guide. We had a lot of help from the Lodi Wine Commission setting up appointments in the region, and we were told possibly David Lucas might be able to meet with us briefly. Imagine my surprise and joy to have both David Lucas and Heather Pyle Lucas sit with us under the redwoods for an interview. Continue reading →