We tried tonight (8/3/16) some New Zins:
1. Carlisle Compagni-Portis SonomaVlly/SonomaCnty (13.7%; Plntd: 1954; GWT/TrousseauGris/Riesling; 200 cs;
Pharmed by PhilCoturri/Organic; 4 hr cold soak; Frmtd: SS; no M-L) 2014: Light yellow color; very fragrant/
perfumed GWT/lychee/hair oil/spicy powerfully aromatic nose; soft rich/lush very strong GWT/hair oil/lychee
very spicy light herbal lovely flavor; very long/lingering very strong GWT/hair oil/lychee/spicy very
floral/perfumed soft/ripe/lush finish; quite a lovely expression of Calif GWT. $28.65
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2. BedrockWineCo CompagniPortisVnyd/SonomaVlly/SonomaCnty WW (14.2%; Pharmed by PhilCoturri; Dry farmed;
Plntd: 1954; GWT/TrousseauGris/RoterVeltliner/Riesling/Chard + others; 50% destemmed & cold-soaked for
4 hrs/ 50% whole-cluster pressed) 2014: Light yellow color; more subtle spicy/floral/light GWT almost
Malvasia-like some stony/mineral more complex nose; light floral/GWT/lychee somewhat tart slight stony/
mineral flavor; very long slightly tart some floral/lychee/GWT slight stony/mineral finish; more
restrained in style. $26.50
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3. Ridge Zin HookerCreek/SonomaVlly/SonomaCnty (BedrockVnyd; 96% Zin/2% AlicanteBouschet/2% PS; 2% water
addition; 15.0%; 34 brls; bttld 12/2015; Drk: 9/15-9/21-9/22: JO) 2014: Med.dark color; very strong bright
blackberry/raspberry/Zin some dusty/OV slight herbal/thyme some vanilla/oak quite spicy lovely nose; rather
tart very bright very spicy/raspberry/blackberry/Zin light dusty/OV some vanilla/oak balanced classic Ridge
flavor w/ modest/brisk tannins; very long/lingering very spicy/raspberry/blackberry/Zin some vanilla/oak bit
dusty/OV finish w/ light nervy tannins; very classic Ridge Zin in style; a lovely Zin of LyttonSprings level.
$30.00 (Z-List)
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4. BedrockWineCo BedrockHeritage BedrockVnyd/SonomaVlly RW (127 yr old vines; 25 varieties including Mondeuse/
BequignolBlanc; 14.6%) 2014: Med.dark color; deeper strong more blackberry/Zin/boysenberry quite dusty/OV
light toasty/oak more complex nose; bit softer slight tangy/metallic/sharp deeper blackberry/boysenberry/Zin
more dusty/OV light toasty/oak more complex flavor w/ ample hard/ripe tannins; very long/lingering deeper
stronger blackberry/boysenberry/Zin/less spicy light toasty/oak rather dusty/OV finish w/ ample hard tannins;
more depth & broader flavors and less intrusive winemaking; a beautiful expression of Bedrock. $38.50
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5. LimerickLane Zin BedrockVnyd/SonomaVlly/SonomaCnty (14.8%) 2014: Very dark color; ripe fruit strong toasty/
smokey/oak strong ripe/blackberry/Zin/boysenberry rather dusty/OV quite rich/big fruit nose; softer very
rich/lush strong toasty/smokey/oak rather ripe blackberry/boysenberry/Zin slight dusty/OV less complex flavor
w/ lighter/smoother tannins; very long ripe/blackberry/boysenberry/Zin light dusty/OV strong toasty/oak finish
w/ some smooth/ripe tannins; classic LL ripe style and less expressive of Bedrock vnyd. $48.00
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6. Bedrock Zin LimerickLaneVnyd/RRV/SCnty (14.0%; Plntd in 1910) 2014: Med.dark color; lightly spicy/herbal rather
light/blackberry/raspberry/Zin bit simple pleasant nose; lightly tart lighter simple/raspberry/blackberry/Zin/
lightly spicy light toasty/oak simple flavor w/ light gentle tannins; med.long slightly tart simple blackberry/
raspberry/Zin very light dusty/OV finish w/ light tannins; a rather weak Zin for a Bedrock, a bit on the simple
side, and not the depth you'd expect from LL vnyd; a pleasant enough Zin but just that. $38.00
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7. Carlisle Zin MonteRossoVnyd/SonomaVlly/SonomaCnty (15.1%; Plntd: 1886; + 9% GrandNoir; 265 cs; U/U) 2014[/b]: Dark
color; very strong bright/raspberry/Zin/Zinberry/very spicy light toasty/oak rather dusty/OV more complex quite
aromatic nose; lightly tart deep/ripe raspberry/blackberry/Zin/bright/very spicy fairly dusty/OV light earthy/
loamy structured rather high-toned flavor w/ light edgy tannins; very long/lingering bright/raspberry/blackberry/
Zinberry/Zin/very spicy light toasty/oak fairly dusty/OV complex finish w/ modest nervy tannins; very spicy &
bright for a Carlisle Zin; very structured & will go out yrs; a beautiful Carlisle Zin; my favorite. $44.50
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8. BedrockWineCo Zin MonteRossoVnyd/SonomaVlly/SonomaCnty (Block 32; Plntd: 1886; 14.5%; 2%-3%
AlicanteBouschet/GrandNoir) 2014: Med.dark color; beautiful briary/brambly very aromatic Zin/raspberry/very spicy
high-toned light dusty/OV light oak fairly complex nose; rather tart very floral/fragrant/brambly/briary bright/
raspberry/Zin/blackberry bit dusty/OV high-toned flavor w/ ample angular tannins; very long high-toned/raspberry/
blackberry/Zin/very spicy structured light oak rather dusty/OV very perfumey complex finish w/ some firn tannins;
needs age and should go another 10-15 yrs; a beautiful MR Zin. $42.50
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9. BedrockWineCo NervoRanchHeritage/AlexVlly/SonomaCnty (14.5%; Planted in 1896-?; Zin/Negrette/PS/
AlicanteBouschet/GrandNoir/Grenache/Carignane/TrousseauNoir/Cardinal/Burger/Semillon/SauvBlanc) 2013: Dark
color; low-key bright raspberry/Zinberry/Zin/lightly spicy light toasty/oak attractive nose; soft light
very raspberry/Zinberry/Zin slight spicy light toasty/oak flavor w/ light tannins; long bright/raspberry/
Zinberry/Zin/blackberry light toasty/oak some soft finish w/ light gentle tannins; a pleasant enough Zin but
not much OV character and a bit on the simple side. $39.00
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10. Bedrock NervoRanch Heritage RW AlexVlly/SonomaCnty (14.5%; Plntd in 1896; Zin/Negrette/Abouriou/Alicante
Bouchet/Carignane/Cinsault/PS/Valdigue/TrousseauNoir/Cardinal/Burger/Colombard/SauvBlanc) 2014: Dark color;
stronger more blackberry/raspberry/Zin/spicy light toasty/oak light dusty/OV stronger nose; bit tarter but
still a bit soft rather spicy/raspberry/blackberry/Zin light dusty/OV/earthy light toasty/oak bit simple
flavor w/ light smooth tannins; med.long soft some spicy/raspberry/blackberry slight dusty/earthy/OV finish
w/ light tannins; a bit more intensity but still a bit on the light side; lacks the depth & character of
the other Bedrock Zins; a pretty Zin but just that. $38.00
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More stuff from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. Compagni-Portis: I liked both of these whites quite a lot, but for different reasons. The Carlisle was pure/
exhuberant GWT w/o being over the top like some Z-H GWT's. The Bedrock was more interesting, more restrained,
more complex w/ some stony/mineral character, plus more acidity. Wouldn't throw either one of these
out of bed.
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2. BedrockVnyd Zin: Of these three Zins; I really liked the Ridge & Bedrock. The LL spoke more of the LL winemaking,
on the ripe side, and not so expressive of the Bedrock vnyd. The Ridge showed classic Ridge winemaking, but
still was expressive of Bedrock vnyd. The Bedrock seemed more expressive of the Bedrock vnyd...at least as I
recognize it. The Ridge was a bit simpler w/ very spicy Zin fruit and the Bedrock seemed more structured and
complex. All in all, a very interesting comparison. All three outstanding Zins.
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3. Bedrock Terroir: So we have here 3 Bedrock vnyd wines from 3 producers, from the same vintage. Surely....
but Shirly...one should be able to identify a common thread in these 3 wines and definitively identify the
terroir of Bedrock vnyd. Alas...I was not able to pick out any singular/common trait that I could put my
finger on. Maybe the Bedrock vnyd doesn't have a unique terroir? Maybe I'm just a klutz when it comes to terroir?
Maybe this terroir thing only exists in France?? Maybe nobody knows jack-$hit about terroir? Maybe this
terroir thing is all smoke & mirrors? Maybe Matthews is right and terroir is just a myth? Beats heck out of me.
The 3 wineries take their grapes from different blocks of Bedrock vnyd...so maybe that's part of the
problem. But if I were given these three wines blind and asked if they came from the the same vnyd, I'd
be hard pressed to say "yes". Friggin' terroir.
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4. NervoVnyd: The one time DaveGates walked the NervoVnyd w/ me, I was impressed by the vines. Ugly/gnarly old
beasts. Yet the Zins that come from that vnyd continue to underwhelm. I can't recall a reall great Zin that
I've had from Nervo by Ridge. Every time I try a Ridge Nervo Zin...it's always "meh"...just one step above
3Vllys or EastBench Zin. Maybe Mike Officer should make a Nervo Zin to see if that vnyd is truly capable
of greatness.
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5. MonteRosso: Little doubt that this is one of Calif's great vnyds (not just Zin, but also Semillon). I fell in
love w/ it when Ravenswood first started using it. It gives very structured Zins w/ loads of spicy character
and lots of high-toned Zin fruit.
Tom