isn’t just a name — it’s a question.
Why do good things emerge from struggle? Why does pleasure so often grow from tension? In the highlands of Napa Valley, where fractured rock and sun-bent vines wage their quiet war, we found the answer: wine that stuns from the first pour, yet lingers with haunting complexity.
Founded in rebellion...
against the overworked and overpolished, Theodicy is an homage to restraint, structure, and soul. Our inspiration? Ridge Vineyards—where balance is gospel and Zinfandel is treated with reverence. Crafted by Robert Smith (formerly of Quixote), our wines embrace the wild without losing control. Each bottle is a moment of controlled chaos—intense, rooted, and unapologetically expressive.
We believe in power with precision.
Darkness with detail.
And style that doesn’t scream.
At Theodicy, we farm Napa’s rugged fruit not to tame it—but to translate it. We channel the chaos of vintage and vineyard into wines that speak in paradoxes: bold yet focused, lush yet lifted, wild yet deliberate. Our commitment is to a style rarely attempted with Zinfandel—one of density and restraint, inspired by the old-school cool of Ridge, not the syrupy stereotypes of modern Zin.
This is wine as tension. And it’s the tension that makes it sing.
2022 Theodicy Zinfandel
Napa Valley
One wine. One mission. Zin, redefined.
Our inaugural release is a philosophical statement disguised as a bottle of Zin. It’s dark, brooding, and dangerously smooth—crafted from dry-farmed hillside fruit that’s more fist than flourish. Aged in a restrained mix of American and French oak, the 2022 Theodicy is about shadow and structure, not sweetness.Tasting Notes
Opening with a burst of black plum, clove, and dried violets, this wine pulls you into the forest—where toasted cedar, fresh-tilled soil, and wild berries lurk beneath every swirl. On the palate, it's taut and powerful: think crushed blackberry, fennel, cracked pepper, and just the faintest curl of pipe tobacco. The finish is long, dry, and serious—but the kind of serious that still laughs at dark jokes.
© Theodicy Cellars