After 6 old&decrepit Zins went down the drain, I went for a sure thing:
1. Bedrock Zin EsolaVnyd/AmadorCnty (Tended by DeniseEsola; OldVines; 14.4%) 2015: Med.dark color; very strong blackberry/boysenberry/Zin/very spicy/briary slight ripe/jammy slight earthy/dusty/OV very light oak classic AmadorCnty Zin beautiful nose; soft ripe/lush very strong briary/blackberry/Zin/boysenberry very spicy rather dusty/OV very light oak classic briary AmadorCnty Zin lovely flavor w/ modest ripe tannins; very long/lingering very briary/spicy quite dusty/OV light oak finish w/ light ripe tannins; a classic restrained/balanced AmadorCnty Zin; should age very well for as long as 6-10 yrs; a real trip down memory lane; alas my only btl from this last stash. $36.00
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. EsolaVnyd: I knew I couldn't drink this wine w/o the sense of its history. As NealRosenthal says: "Great wine paves the pathway to memories"
It is so good to see the EsolaVnyd returned to its former greatness. As MikeOfficer did w/ DuPrattVnyd, Morgan has thus done w/ the EsolaVnyd...taken a once-great vnyd and restored its greatness. Now if only Mike & Morgan would do the same for GibsonRanch Syrah.
The EsolaVnyd first came up on my radar when both CarnerosCreek and Ridge produced EsolaZins in '74. They were big/black/rather extracted Zins that showed AmadorCnty at its best. In '75/'76, the ripeness got a bit out of hand and they both produced some LatePicked and LateHrvst renditions of EsolaZin. I think the '77 vintage (the 2'nd of a serious drought vintages), were probably the best, w/ the ripeness not such an issue. Shortly thereafter, both Ridge and CarnerosCreek dropped the Esola (and Eschen) Zins from their tableau because of the ripeness issue, though CC continued to take Cabernet from Esola. Both FrankMahoney and PaulDraper have been soundly scolded (by me) for dropping their two Amador Zins. They ignore me...as do most others.
I'm sorta curious if Morgan ever tasted some of those old Ridge & CarnerosCreek Esola Zins and that is what drew him to make this EsolaZin. They actually aged quite well.
Those CarnerosCreek and Ridge Esolas were pretty big/extracted/fairly alcoholic Zins and some of my favorites. I wonder, now that I have a more sophisticated palate than back in the '70's, if those Zins would still have such a great appeal to me.
This Bedrock Esola is much more restrained than most of those CC & Ridge Zins were. Yet it still displays that classic AmadorCnty briary spiciness in spades. It probably resembles mostly that first CarnerosCreek Esola '74 more than any of them.
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2. EsolaVnyd: This was a pretty old vnyd back then that was farmed by Ernie & John Esola. I never did have the pleasure of meeting John. But I have very fond memories of Ernie & Lena D'Agostino Esola. Around '78, I was writing an article for VintageMagazine (RIP) on Zinfandels of the Esola & Eschen Vnyds. On one of my trips out there, I made an appt to visit them in Plymouth. They were so excited that a "famous/important" wine writer was interested in visiting them that they pulled out all stops. After Ernie drove me out to the vnyd in his old pickup truck to walk it, we returned to their home there in Plymouth. Their home was something else, sorta like out of HillBilly Country in Missouri. Cars scatter around and a lot of junk scattered out back. They invited me in, they were all dressed up in their Sunday best for this "famous" writer. We chatted for over an hour and they insisted I stay for lunch. You couldn't have asked for a more friendly/genuine/no BS/honest couple...two of the best people I've met in my wine travels.
Ernie was apparently a bit cantankerous and curmudgeonly type and some of the ShenandoahVlly folks referred to him as "OrneryErnie". But that was certainly not a side of him that I ever saw. At lunch, I mentioned that my car (a '68 DodgeDart, trunk loaded w/ wine) was making a strange/rattling noise. Ernie immediately diagnosed it as worn U-Joints, had me drive around back, jacked the rear end up, and "Yep..badly worn U-Joints". Had there been a NapaAutoParts there in Plymouth, I'm sure Ernie would have gone out, got new ones, and replaced them on the spot.
Alas, I never did get to reconnect w/ Ernie & Lena. Several times as I would drive by their house, I was tempted to stop & knock on the door. Alas, I was always "too busy". Ernie died in an explosion of an acetylene tank during a welding job several yrs later. When I was up in Amador for NEB#3 about 3 yrs ago, I tried to visit Lena. Alas, no answer on her phone. I stopped in a small shop in Plymouth, and the owner mentioned he had seen her heading into the beauty shop a few doors down. Unfortunately, I had just missed her. So I never got to see her again as she died a yr or two later. The end of an era in the ShenandoahVlly.
The vnyd is now run by their daughter, Denise. I've only met her in CyberSpace, but not RealSpace. I'll remedy that next time I'm in Amador.
I'd be curious to know where the Esola Zin grapes went in the intervening yrs after they were dropped by CarnerosCreek & Ridge. And what is being done w/ the Cabernet grapes in Esola.
Anyway, this Bedrock paved the path to memories of a really special couple...Ernie & Lena Esola. Thanks, Morgan.
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3. AmadorCnty: It used to be when you spoke of an AmadorCnty wine, you were essentially referring to the ShenandoahVlly. In fact, the ShenandoahVlly is a small part of AmadorCnty, though that is where the bulk of the grapes are grown. The Fiddletown area, across a small ridge from the ShenandoahVlly, is at a higher elevation and somewhat cooler. They are viticulturally distinct areas and should not be lumped together as one. At a much lower elevation is the JacksonVlly, where the Spencers have been making some very good wines under the StAmant label. There have always been some small vnyds South of the ShenandoahVlly, small plots here & there. More recently, AnnKraemer's ShakeRidgeVnyd up in the hills above SutterCreek have shown that great wines can also be made outside the ShenandoahVlly.
So...this BedrockEsola should be more accurately labeled ShenandoahVlly rather than AmadorCnty. Unfortunately, it would have to be labeled ShenandoahVlly/Calif because of those uppity folks growing grapes back in the ShenandoahVlly of Virginia, who forced that distinction on the (real) ShenandoahVlly folks quite a few yrs ago. Friggin' upstarts.
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4. BrerRabbit: One of my heros from my childhood days (which, I should point out, was not that long ago), was BrerRabbit. From the UncleRemus Tales book. My parents read me those stories very often and it has a soft spot in my heart.
In one of those tales, BrerFox, a very clever guy, has finally captured BrerRabbit and is debating his fate w/ BrerBear. BrerRabbit pleads w/ BrerFox..."Please/please don't throw me in that briar patch". Finally, BrerFox, clever that he is, swings back and hurls BrerRabbit deep into that prickly briar patch. BrerRabbit pops up above the blackberry vines several times, laughing his head off, on how he has outwitted BrerFox. My Dad always use to laugh at that and point out to me what a clever little wabbit BrerRabbit was. Great memories that come up as I smell the briary/blackberry character in this EsolaZin.
I don't know if the UncleRemusTales are still even available...being as politically incorrect as they are because of the racist overtones. I presume they have all been pulled from libraries across this GreatNation. 'Tis a pity.
Tom
