WTN: 2013 Lodi Native TruLux Zinfandel

Tonight, as we get ready for a long-deferred "summer" vacation, we opened the third out of six of the set of Lodi Native 2013 heritage vineyard Zinfandels, a series produced by six different winemakers using similar techniques, starting with native yeast fermentation and no new wood. This one was the Lodi Native/McCay Cellars 2013 Mokelumne River Zinfandel, TruLux Vineyard. 14.6% ABV. Noticably less opaque than its predecessors in the glass; ripe brambly nose; fruit that stretches from bright red down to deep, black-fruit, almost beefy depths, all still framed by bramble. This had a lot of nerve and energy, especially for being a relatively big wine, and was made more like what I think of as an "old-school" California Zin than either of the others we've had in the series. I notice that the other one we enjoyed, from Marian's Vineyard, was also a west side site, while the one we didn't like at all, from Schmiedt Ranch, was east side. The remaining three bottles sharpen the geographic difference: we have two bottles from even further west and one from even further east, so we'll have to see whether the preference continues. Meanwhile, McCay seems like a name worth remembering.

See you all in a week or so!

[Jenise]

Interesting! The few Lodi zins I've had have all been too ripe, too hot, so I avoid the appellation altogether. That you found that even points in the direction of 'old school' is actually impressive (to me).

I was surprised too. We'll see what the remaining bottles hold! (And sorry for the delayed response -- was away for a week, on a bicycle in the Blue Ridge mountains, without a computer!)

Blue Ridge mountains..any butterflies up there? Am always interested in what one sees in the nature world!

Andrea saw what she retrospectively thinks was an Orange Sulfur somewhere, and something large and blue-black nearly flew into my face when I was going 40mph down a hill. Not really ideal conditions for identification.

It's hawk migration season, so we were watching for broad-shouldered hawks, especially at Caesar's Head, but didn't spy any. Also no bears. Lots of snakes (roadkill and living), and one big turtle in the middle of a country road that one of the ride leaders kindly moved off to the side to save it from oncoming bikes (and pickup trucks).

I did see a big pack of brightly colored MAMILs, though. Oh, wait, I was part of it! (Middle-Aged Men In Lycra.)

Are you guys butterfly fans? I am a collector and prepare display boards for various schools here in Edmonton.

Not really; only in the sense that we enjoy watching them when we come across them, and will occassionally look up the names of unusual ones we notice. Same with birds, trees, and flowers. Basically, we like being outside, and we like knowing what things are called. (I was fascinated by yellow swallowtails as a child in Ohio, though, and I recall a class project in our elementary school that involved watching a monarch metamorphose on locally gathered milkweed....)