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Ruth Lewandowski

Naomi Grenache Gris 2020

Price: $33.95
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Tasting notes

Grenache Gris is one of the rarest white grapes in California, and Gibson Ranch has over 110-year-old bush vines of it — that alone makes Naomi worth seeking out. The whole-cluster press and full malolactic conversion produce a wine with real weight and a waxy, textural mid-palate, anchored by lively natural acidity that keeps it from feeling flat or flabby.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
White PeachQuinceEarthHoney
  • Style: Dry, full-bodied white; old-vine Grenache Gris; textural and mineral; McDowell Valley, Mendocino
  • Grapes & Terroir: 100% Grenache Gris; 110+ year old dry-farmed bush vines; alluvial gravelly loam; ~1,000 ft elevation; McDowell Valley AVA; organic farming
  • Winemaking: Whole-cluster press; 3-week native fermentation; full malolactic conversion; aged in polyethylene; unfined, unfiltered; 20 mg/L SO2
  • Serving: Serve at 52-56°F; 15-20 min in glass to open up
  • Pairing: Roasted chicken, pork with fennel, mushroom pasta, Comté, Gruyère
  • Similar To: For fans of textural whites like white Grenache, Roussanne, or Rhône-style Marsanne

Naomi is 100% Grenache Gris sourced from the Gibson Ranch in the McDowell Valley AVA of southeastern Mendocino County. The vines are over 110 years old, dry-farmed, and head-trained as bush vines on alluvial gravelly loam soils at approximately 1,000 feet elevation. Gibson Ranch holds some of the oldest plantings of Grenache Gris in California, a variety that is rare even in its native Southern Rhône.

For the 2019 and 2020 vintages, winemaker Evan Lewandowski used whole-cluster pressing, a three-week fermentation, and full malolactic conversion. The wine aged in polyethylene, was bottled unfined and unfiltered, and received 20 mg/L of added sulfur dioxide at bottling. No temperature control was used during fermentation.

The McDowell Valley AVA sits on sloped benchland at up to 1,000 feet above sea level, three miles east of Hopland. The Mediterranean climate is moderated by breezes funneling up the Russian River valley, producing cooler summers than the surrounding Mendocino inland areas. The combination of old vines, low-fertility gravelly soils, and warm days with cool nights gives Grenache Gris here unusual depth and freshness simultaneously.

Grenache Gris delivers weight and texture by nature, and Naomi leans into that fully while a streak of natural acidity keeps the wine from feeling heavy. This is a white wine for people who want something with presence on the palate rather than a light, fleeting finish.

The weight and texture of Naomi pair well with dishes that have some richness: roasted chicken with herb butter, pork shoulder with fennel, or a creamy pasta with mushrooms. It also works alongside aged semi-firm cheeses like Comté or Gruyère. The wine's acidity holds up to dishes with a bit of fat or umami depth.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, White Wine
Wine Style:, Full Body
Grapes:, Grenache Gris
Farming:, Organic
Vintage:, 2020
Alcohol:, 13%
Country:, United States
Region:, Mendocino
Appellation:, McDowell Valley AVA
Bottle Size:, 750ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

FedEx and other carriers we might occasionally use can only deliver wine to customers who are 21 years or older. Someone must be at the address to receive the package, carriers don't just drop a package and leave. They must ensure the person receiving the wine is 21 or older.


Re-shipping a Package

If a package is returned to us after three failed delivery attempts, we can only re-ship the wine upon payment of a re-shipping fee, to be determined based on the shipping address and number of bottles. Shipping wine is extremely expensive. We are sorry about this, but we have no other choice. Please make sure there's always someone at the address you enter as your shipping address.

If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


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If you'd like to reroute a package after it's been shipped, we can do so for a $20 re-routing fee. We cannot re-route a package across state borders. For any change of address, please contact us as soon as possible, ideally within 1-2 days from placing the order or we cannot guarantee we'll be able to reroute or change your order's shipping address.


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If you'd like to cancel an order after it's been shipped, we can do so upon payment of a small cancellation fee – the amount depends on the size of the order. Carriers charge us a lot of money to recall a package en-route.


Heat/Frost damage

We are not responsible for heat- or frost-related issues. We offer ice-packs upon request. Please let us know if you think that there could be heat-related issues. If we don't hear anything from you regarding weather issues before an order is shipped, or if you don't request a hold due to the weather, we are not responsible for heat/frost damage.


Placed an order. What next?

1. You will receive an order confirmation email with your order summary.*

2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

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**If delivery is attempted 3 times without success, or if you fail to retrieve your package from the carrier depot by the stated deadline, the shipping fee will not be refunded to the customer.

Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Producer profile

Ruth Lewandowski

Ruth Lewandowski Wines was founded in 2012 by Evan Lewandowski, who grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah and discovered wine while attending the University of Utah. His early exposure to natural wine came through a job at a Salt Lake City wine bar, where he met importer Zev Rovine. Lewandowski went on to work harvests at wineries including Domaine Binner in Alsace, where he gained hands-on experience in organic viticulture and natural winemaking. He earned a degree from the Walla Walla Institute for viticulture and enology and returned to Utah in 2012 to start his own label. The name Ruth Lewandowski is drawn from the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament, a text Lewandowski connects to themes of farming, gleaning, and working with what each season and site provides.

In the early years of the label, Lewandowski sourced organically farmed fruit from Mendocino County, fermented it in California, then transported the fermenting wine to Salt Lake City in a refrigerated U-Haul to complete fermentation, aging, and bottling. In 2018 he relocated his winemaking operation entirely to California, where he shares a facility with Sam Bilbro of Idlewild Wines. The Gibson Ranch fruit for Naomi comes from 110-plus-year-old dry-farmed, head-trained bush vines in McDowell Valley, farmed organically. Lewandowski has described the vineyard as one of the most historically significant sites he works with.

Lewandowski's winemaking approach is defined by minimal intervention at every stage. For Naomi, the 2020 vintage used whole-cluster pressing, a three-week native fermentation, full malolactic conversion, and aging in polyethylene vessels. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered with 20 mg/L added sulfur dioxide. No temperature control is used during fermentation. The method is chosen to let the character of the Grenache Gris and the vineyard site come through without layering on cellar technique.

Wine region

Mendocino, United States

McDowell Valley AVA sits on sloped benchland at elevations up to 1,000 feet above sea level in southeastern Mendocino County, approximately three miles east of the town of Hopland. The valley covers just 540 acres in total and overlooks the Russian River to the west. Soils in the most favorable vineyard areas are gravelly alluvial loam, well-drained and low in fertility, which concentrate flavor in the fruit. The surrounding Mayacamas Mountains enclose the valley, providing warmth in spring and creating a cold-sink effect at night during the summer, giving the AVA a cooler growing season than the broader Mendocino inland areas despite its warm daytime temperatures.

Mendocino County as a whole is divided into two distinct climate zones by the Mendocino Range. The western side, including Anderson Valley, is strongly influenced by Pacific fog and maritime cooling, making it well-suited to Pinot Noir and sparkling wine. The eastern inland areas, including McDowell Valley, experience a warm-summer Mediterranean climate with significant diurnal temperature swings. McDowell Valley has historically been planted to Rhône varieties — Syrah, Grenache, and Grenache Gris — some of which date back to the 1880s and represent among the oldest plantings of those varieties in California. Mendocino County is also one of the leading regions in the state for organically farmed wine grapes, with nearly 25% of cultivation certified organic.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

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