Varietal - Zinfandel
* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
These are always interesting wines made from late harvested grapes at very high sugar and alcohol levels; this bottle was made from grapes picked at 31 brix of sugar, and is 17.2% alcohol; it has a refined, nose with herbs and alcohol, with a sweet, slightly stewed , smoked meat aroma; smooth and sweet in the mouth, very port-like but dry; slightly herbal, hot with a spicy dry finish; elegant sweetness in this wine, not too much not too little; quite good really and a nice finish to a meal. (NR)
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Caymus Special Selection, Late Harvest Napa Valley Zinfandel - 1976
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
Big nose, loaded with spices and smoke, concentrated aromas of blackberries, cherries, raspberries, smoke, pepper; big flavors in the mouth, loaded with ripe fruit, black fruits dominate, mixed with powerful tannins and herbs; not particularly deep or complex, the wine is nevertheless an elegant example of this often maligned grape; long finish, sweet and rich with good fruit definition at the end, and loaded with rough tannins that still need more time to soften and integrate. (16/20)
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L’Aventure Stephan’s Vineyard Napa Valley Zinfandel - 1998
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
I was introduced to this wine last year, and thought of it then as one of the better Zins that I had tasted; I feel the same this year, as the wine continues to exhibit a powerful pull with its big and rich nose loaded with black fruits and tar, spices and full aromas; big and rich in the mouth with a deep and full structure; powerful tannins mix with gobs of fruit; spicy and peppery while at the same time sweet and bordering on elegant; long finish and still pretty tight needing more time before it will be ready to show all of itself. (17+/20)
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Chase Hyde Vineyard St. Helena/Napa Valley Zinfandel - 2000
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
This is one of the “big zins” that come out of California; huge nose loaded with ripe rich berry aromas, lots of alcohol on the nose which is not surprising as it is more than 15% alcohol, spicy and loaded with oriental herbs; this wine needs a lot of time in the glass at this early stage; the first taste is quite hard on the one hand, and also has slightly overripe, too sweet flavors; these resolve themselves with more time in the glass, and after an hour, the wine assumes a beautifully concentrated set of flavors, dominated by raspberry and blackberry, quite spicy, still dominated by big, chunky, dry tannins that will need more time to fully integrate, but this is an impressive wine; not yet ready to drink, however, and I would wait at least two years before tackling this wine again. (17+/20)
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
This is the premium zinfandel from Paul Draper’s repertoire, and is actually only 75% zinfandel; opens with a wonderful and rich nose loaded with layers of ripe fruit aromas, mostly blueberries and blackberries, some spice as well, but more fruit than spice; very balanced and poised with a nice balance of fruit and acidity in the mouth; berry flavors predominate; there are perhaps still too many dry tannins in the body of the wine, as it has a very dusty dry character in the mouth, but the balance in the front of the palate almost makes up for that; perhaps another year or two to address the tannins might help, as there is certainly enough fruit in the wine to last for many years. (17.5/20)
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Ridge Geyserville Santa Cruz Mountains Zinfandel - 1997
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November 10, 2005
A bit "hot" on nose, a bit hot on the finish, with classic jammy, ripe berry quality of most Central Coast Zins. More acidity than usual for Zin on the early-mid palate, which is nice. (6.5/10)
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Toucan Wines Arroyo Grande Valley Arroyo Grande Zinfandel - 2005
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