Zinfandel - '99 & '00 |
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Notes and impressions from a Zinfandel tasting - Saturday, October 20, 2001, at the Wine Exchange in Orange, CA. Nineteen wines were poured for a tasting fee of $18. |
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Overall impressions: very nice tasting, with several really good '99s, and a couple of surprise 2000s. The JC Cellars was fabulous, and both the Owen Roe and Sineann were very impressive. I've come to expect good value in Seghesio Zins, but their '99 San Leandro really raises the bar - while still being quite a value. The Chase is also very good. I thought most of the wines performed about as expected, and the only real disappointment for me was the Howell Mtn Black Sears. The profile of this bottling just seemed a little too not-Zin for me, and at $34 and from pedigreed vineyard, I expected better. Finally, I've had better Blockhedia's than this 2000 offering. Generally, the California bottling is tasty and almost Turleyesque - fat and shapely. This one just seemed fat and flabby. |
2000 Joel
Gott Zinfandel. $11.99.
Medium ruby garnet color. Kind of funky, very oaky - almost corky,
with a spicy fruit background. Decent fruit and mouthfeel, good
balance, long finish. 2000 Blockheadia
Ringnosii Zinfandel - California. $13.99. Medium ruby color.
Very ripe and grapey in the nose. Sweet ripe and grapey-tasting
mouthfeel, medium-long finish; definitely has lots of fruit, but
seems fairly flabby across the palate. 1999 Norman
Zinfandel The Monster - Paso Robles. $17.99. Medium-dark
ruby garnet color. Nose of ripe boysenberry and anise, with a hint
of raisin, but not overly so. Sweet tasty young mouthfeelvery good
balance and very long off-sweet finish that shows just a trace of
heat. 1999 Stephen
Ross Zinfandel - Dusi Vnyd, Paso Robles. $15.99. Medium
garnet color. Nice spicy boysenberry, slightly stemmy. Young mouthfeel,
slightly tart-sour and maybe underripe fruit, also feels a bit thin
on the palate through long finish. 1999 Lava
Cap Zinfandel Reserve - Amador County. $24.99. Medium
garnet color. Floral and beefy at the same time, with notes of cedar,
oak and toast. Off-sweet slightly coarse mouthfeel, with good balance,
and an somewhat oaky long finish. 1999 Karly
Zinfandel Warrior Fires - Amador County. $18.99. Medium
ruby-garnet color. Nose of spicy fruit, cedar and oak. Chewy and
young in mouthfeel, with nice toasty fruit, and a long finish that
shows a trace of heat. 2000 Sineann
Zinfandel Old Vine - Columbia Valley, Washington. $32.99.
Medium-dark ruby color. Nose of sweet and spicy floral aromas, with
vanilla, blackberry, boysenberry and blueberry scents. Very smooth
mouthfeel, with flavors of cherries jubilee and vanilla, and a long
tasty finish. 2000 Owen
Roe Zinfandel - Columbia Valley, Washington. $24.99. Dark ruby
purple color. Nose of boysenberry jam and toast, with a slight floral
background aroma. Big mouthfeel with lots of chewy fruit, slightly
sweet, very tasty, excellent balance, long finish. 1999 Rocking
Horse Zinfandel - Napa Valley. $15.99. Dark ruby garnet color.
Sweaty and grapey in the nose, with underlying aroma of ripe boysenberry.
Full mouthfeel, somewhat grapey flavors, good balance, long finish. 1999 Elyse
Zinfandel - Morisoli Vnyd, Napa Valley. $21.99. Medium ruby
color. Fabulous nose of black cherry, boysenberry, toast, and a
touch of anise. Very tasty fruit and mouthfeel, seems just a bit
light on the palate, but the flavors and balance make up for it. 1999 Storybook
Mountain Zinfandel - Mayacamas Range, Napa Valley. $21.99. Very
nice spicy and complex nose of toast, spicy boysenberry, and anise.
A bit light in mouthfeel, good balance, with toasty fruit and a
hint of cocoa on the long finish. 1999 Chase
Zinfandel - Hayne Vnyd, Napa Valley. $29.99. Medium-dark ruby
garnet color. Spicy and complex nose of black cherry, chocolate,
vanilla, and a touch of juniper. Smooth and very tasty mouthfeel,
moderately chewy - not a blockbuster in style, but very refined
and delicious, with a long finish.
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1999 JC
Cellars Zinfandel - Bolduc Vnyd, Napa Valley. $31.99. Very dark
ruby color. Thick, sweet luscious and polished nose, with lots of
black cherry and blackberry fruit, and tarry-anise notes. Big and
chewy mouthfeel, excellent balance, nice use of oak, and long smooth
yet gripping finish. 1999 Rosenblum
Zinfandel - Hendry Vnyd, Napa Valley. $26.99. Dark ruby color.
Old viney nose, with kind of a brambly fruit quality in the nose,
along with oak and some bacon. Off-sweet mouthfeel, a bit tart and
puckery, but nice flavors. 1999 Howell
Mountain Zinfandel - Black Sears Vnyd, Napa Valley. $33.99.
Medium-dark garnet color. Very toasty and brambly in the nose. Toasty
mouthfeel, with fruit leaning more to a tarry blackberry - almost
Syrah-like flavor. 1999 Gary
Farrell Zinfandel - Dry Creek Valley. $19.99. Medium ruby color.
Nose of brambly raspberry, oak, cedar, and floral aromas. Medium
mouthfeel, good balance,nice flavors, but seems a bit thin on the
palate. 1999 St.
Francis Zinfandel Old Vines - Sonoma County. $16.99.
Medium garnet color. Stinky and sweaty nose, with oaky and woody
aromas. Ripe and oaky mouthfeel, the fruit seems a bit pinched and
the acids more obvious through the finish. 1999 Seghesio
Zinfandel Old Vine - Sonoma County. $21.99. Medium-dark
ruby garnet color. Well-integrated oak and cedar aromas, with plenty
of ripe raspberry fruit and a touch of vanilla. Slightly sweet mouthfeel,
smooth textures on the palate, very nice fruit and balance, and
long tasty finish. 1999 Seghesio
Zinfandel San Lorenzo - Sonoma County. $21.99. Very dark
ruby color. Very dense and slightly restrained nose of boysenberry,
blackberry, tar and ink. Big chewy off-sweet mouthfeel, with tar
and licorice accents to the thick fruit, and showing massive fruit
and tannins on the very long finish. |
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Mail & Comments - Eric Anderson
