Tag: Zinfandel
Hobo Wine Co. Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel 2006
I’ve long been a fan of Zinfandel, and of Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel in particular. I’ve tried Zinfandels from all over California, including those areas where I think it grows best (Paso Robles, Alexander Valley, and Rockpile Road for instance). But in the end, I always come back to Zins from Dry Creek Valley.
The Zinfandels made in this appellation exhibit a degree of character that isn’t quite there in other Zins, however good they may be. I often identify this as a brambly, earthy, rustic element that makes the wines just breathe a sense of place.
Now, there may be a certain degree of romanticism to this belief of mine, but then half the joy of wine is it’s romanticism, isn’t it? A given wine conveys to us its own meaning, a meaning undoubtedly imbued with our own thoughts, expectations, and beliefs. Great wine or not, we enjoy it for reasons beyond merely what’s in the glass.
But I tell you, Zins from dry creek valley really are unique, and delicious too. And this example from the Hobo Wine Company is no exception.
Who is Hobo Wine Company you ask? Good question, and it’s the first question that popped into my head when I saw this bottle. It was a gift from a good friend whose taste is entirely trustworthy, so I figured the wine had a lot of promise. But nonetheless, it was a complete unknown to me. It turns out that the Hobo Wine Company is the name of winemaker Kenny Likitprakong. Begun in 2002, the label was his first foray into winemaking under his own “name”, after having worked in various wine-making capacities at a handful of California wineries.
Initially, Hobo Wine Co. made all of their wine from purchased grapes, establishing relationships with growers throughout Sonoma County. A few years later in 2006, he began leasing vineyards in both Dry Creek Valley and Santa Rosa. Since then, the company’s vineyard holdings have increased incrementally, as has production. Whereas initially Hobo Wine Co. put out a Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel and Dry Creek Valley Port, today the range of releases is somewhat broader, with a year-round lineup that includes two more Zinfandel bottlings and two Cabernet Sauvignon bottlings, alongside special small-lot releases or single-vineyard bottlings.
Their approach is typical of many smaller, more craft-oriented winemakers nowadays, with an emphasis on minimal intervention, selective use of natural yeasts, and a light-handed use of (both French and American) oak.
So the back-story was a good one, but how would the wine stack up? I mean, when it comes to Zins, my expectations are somewhat high…
Tasting Notes
The wine pours a dark, inky purple. The nose is ripe with notes of blackberry and black currant, dark earthy mint, and more subtle notes of French oak and vanilla. The palate is a balanced blend of flavors both earthy and sweet, with ample tannin to boot. In fact, it’s more balanced than the richness of the nose would have you expect. Flavors of sweet and tart black and red berries dominant, with a dark coffee element thrown in for good measure. The tannins dry out the palate and lend a gripping oakiness to it. Over time in the glass they soften, but never fully go away. The finish is medium-length with black fruit left on a drying palate.
I was surprised at how tannic this wine was, and felt that either a) it could have been aged even longer, and b) it should have been opened much earlier. In fact, we kept a couple of glasses worth for the next day, and the tannins had softened considerably by then, making for a much smoother drinking experience. All in all though, a very tasty wine, and I’d be game for looking into more of their wines if I see them in the future.
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Nalle Winery Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel 2008
I’ve written before about Nalle Winery, how much I like all of their wines and particularly their Zinfandel. As I’ve said in the past, Nalle’s Zin was one of the first wines that I fell in love with. It inspired a real appreciation for Zinfandel, and ever since I first tasted it, it has remained right up there among my favorite wines.
Sadly, Nalle’s wines are not available here where we live, and so it is rare that we have the opportunity to taste any of them. So when we were in San Francisco last weekend and saw a bottle of the 2008 Zin in a wine shop, we leaped at the chance to try it.
The 2008 version is a field blend bringing together grapes from 3 separate vineyards. The blend includes 86% Zinfandel, 8% Petite Sirah, 3% Carignane, 2% Mourvedre, and 1% Alicante Bouchet. All of the vineyards are situated in the Dry Creek Valley appellation, one of the most ideal spots for growing Zinfandel in California. The Zins from here consistently and beautifully express a unique terroir.
The wine was bottled in August 2009, and rolls in at a relatively restrained 13.9%.
Tasting Notes
In the glass the wine is a deep, opaque, purple velvet. The nose is rich with opulent fruit – think blackberries, raspberries, and currants – alongside a whisp of tobacco, fennel, and menthol. The palate has big flavors of creamy oak, dark red fruit, black pepper, and black licorice, riding atop a silky smooth-textured body. The finish is surprisingly bright, with flavors of strawberries complementing red licorice and vanilla.
This is a wonderful, classic Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel, loaded with dark, robust brambly fruit and a supple texture. The oaky notes are more pronounced than in a bottle of the 2003 that we tasted not too long ago, with a thread of oaky vanilla underscoring the other flavors in the palate. All in all, outstanding.
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Alexander Valley Vineyards “Sin Zin” Alexander Valley Zinfandel 2007
The strength of my interests tends to take place in waves. One month I’ll be preoccupied with whiskey, tasting several and reading all I can about it, the next week my attention will turn to beer, perhaps blisteringly hoppy IPAs, then on to coffee, followed by scotch, followed by…you get the picture. Because my interest in these various delectable beverages is driven as much by intellectual curiosity as sheer enjoyment, what I end up tasting is very often driven by what I’m enjoying reading about at any given moment.
Recently, the pendulum has swung towards wine, and zinfandel in particular. This is due in part to my love of the zinfandel from Nalle Winery (whose mailer I received recently, and I have to say that it’s very well done and a great enticement to purchase some of their wines! Darn shipping laws!). Recently, I learned that this year they’ve bottled separately the wine made from grapes grown in the field directly in front of the winery. I remember visiting there a few years ago and walking amidst that small plot of vines. How cool to know that they’ve bottled that wine separately. Now if only their wine came out thisaways!
Anyhow, I’ve always loved Nalle’s zinfandel, and as a result I often get drawn back to this grape and the unique and exciting wines that certain producers make from it. During these digressions down the zinfandel path, I end up leafing through Stephen Brook’s California Wine for the umpteenth time, reading the section on zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley, Nalle, Ridge, Ravenswood, etc. I dig up interviews with Doug Nalle, Paul Draper, and others. And I stroll through the aisles of wine shops, admiring bottles of zin from Dry Creek Valley, Alexander Valley, Paso Robles, and other appellations on occasion (admittedly, those are my go-to appellations for zinfandel).
Alexander Valley Vineyards‘ Sin Zin has been one of my favorite zinfandels for many years now, and so when we ran across several bottles of the 2007 vintage at a bargain price, I didn’t hesitate to stock up. Sin Zin is made from grapes grown in the Alexander Valley appellation, adjacent to the Dry Creek Valley and Russian River Valley appellations. It’s one of three uniquely named zinfandels from AVV, alongside Redemption Zin (Dry Creek Valley appellation) and Temptation Zin (Sonoma County appellation). Ever since I first came across Sin Zin, nearly 15 years ago, the label has been the same. Black with red lettering and a drawing of someone imbibing languorously from a wine-filled horn.
As for particulars about the wine, there’s not a lot of information to go on. The wine spends 10 months in American oak barrels, 25% of them new, before being bottled. The 2007 vintage arrives at 14.4%, a not uncommon level of alcohol for California zinfandels.
Tasting Notes
In the glass, the wine is a deep, plush purple red with ruby highlights. The nose has loads of dark red fruits, raspberries, black cherries, and currants, along with warming notes of vanilla, oak, and cedar. The palate is densely textured, with soft, plush tannins and flavors of black cherries, raspberries, currants, oak, soft, vanilla and a whiff of smoky wood presence lurking in the background. The finish continues the theme of deep, dark red fruits with black raspberry sweetness lingering in a medium-length finish.
This is a wonderful zinfandel that captures much of what makes zin such a fun and fascinating wine. It’s rich with dark brambly fruits, has a wonderful texture, and just enough added vanilla and spice from the oak aging. And at this price point (~$20-$25) this is, in my mind, one of the best zinfandels out there.
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Nalle Winery Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel 2003
Nalle Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel. The words never cease to conjure up memories for me. This was the first wine that I really fell in love with, back in the mid-1990′s when I first took an interest in wine. I knew next-to-nothing about wine, and was simply casting about trying a wine here, a different one there, playing the field. At some point I read an article about zinfandel that recommended Nalle, along with a handful of other zins. A local shop not only had bottles of Nalle (a 1994), but a big picture that was taken from the deck of Doug Nalle’s house looking out over the Nalle countryside. That first bottle of Nalle Zin, combined with the romanticism of the photo on the wall to seduce me, forever to be a Nalle fanatic.
Since then I have had the good fortune to try other bottlings and wines from Nalle (they’re very difficult to find in this state), and also to visit the winery itself. During a trip to California a few years ago, we stopped by the winery on a Saturday afternoon, the one day they were open for tastings. It was a memorable visit where we got to try several of their wines, meet the winemakers, and even use their picnic table for an impromptu lunch amidst the vines.
Doug Nalle began producing wine under his own name in 1984, and just this past June celebrated 25 years of production. During that time he’s developed a reputation as one of the handful of zinfandel specialists in California, alongside such names as Paul Draper, Kent Rosenblum, and Joel Ravenswood. Each year since 1984 Nalle has produced a zinfandel made from grapes sourced from three separate growers in Dry Creek Valley: the Saini family, who farm the Nalle family’s home vineyard, Joe Ramazzotti who farms the Carreras vineyard, and Paul Bernier who farms the Sibary vineyard. The average age of the vines is 62 years old, with some having been planted as far back as 1880.
Two aspects of Nalle’s production stand out, namely his preference for low yields in the range of 3-4 tons per acre, and medium-alcohol wines, typically in the range of 13.5-14%. Zinfandel, historically a grape used in California for the production of bulk wines, is a notoriously vigorous vine producing anywhere up to 10-12 tons per acre. The grapes develop sugars quickly, oftentimes before the grapes themselves are fully mature. The result is a tendency for zinfandel-based wines to be rich, alcoholic blockbusters. During the past 10-20 years, this style of wine has been popular among some critics and consumers, and it is now increasingly common to find zinfandels of 15% and higher. Nalle’s winemaking philosophy runs rather counter to this trend.
In The Wines Of California, Stephen Brook writes that, “Nalle wants balance and fruit, and maintains that his wines are best enjoyed at up to six years old. He doesn’t want high alcohol – 14 degrees is ample – nor does he want powerful oak flavors. What he does deliver is stylish fruit and impeccable balance.” Towards this end, Nalle uses about 20% new oak barrels for each vintage, and always uses French barriques, citing his perception that aging in American oak lends a bitterness to wines as the reason for his preference.
All of the grapes are hand-picked, and then hand-sorted at the winery by Nalle and his wife and son. Vinification in open-top fermenters, and aging in oak barrels all take place at their hangar-like facility in Dry Creek.
I’ve always loved Nalle’s zinfandels because they deliver deep, resonant fruit while at the same time offering nuanced, mature flavors balanced against plenty of body without alcohol-overtones. They are eminently drinkable, and improve greatly from the start of the bottle to the last glass. And then there are the tongue-in-cheek labels drawn each year by artist Bob Johnson. Here’s a link to the one for the 1994 Zin.
The 2003 Zinfandel pours a deep,velvety ruby red, evenly colored from the middle of the glass to the rim. The nose is bursting with raspberries, black cherries, and viscous red fruit compote. The fruit theme continues on the palate, with raspberries, blackberries, and black cherries, underscored by a thread of resin and spicy ancho chili. The flavors are mouth warming, vibrant and fresh, kicked into high gear by a dark yet brightening acidity. The body is velvety with soft tannins. The finish highlights rich flavors of raspberry jam, and black cherries, and has a slightly tannic grip.
We opened this bottle of wine during one of the rare days this past June when the sun came out, and it seemed only appropriate to celebrate. I have to say that I was nervous, having moved this bottle from one apartment to another during the past three years, but it more than lived up to its billing. When we finished it we were entirely satiated. We’ve got one bottle of 2004 Zinfandel hanging out, waiting for another proper occasion, and I’m pretty incredibly excited about the chance to open it.
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Rosenblum Cellars Rockpile Zinfandel 2004 Rockpile Road Vineyard
The first wine that really caught my attention and got me excited was Zinfandel, and specifically the 1994 Zinfandel from Nalle Winery. At the time I didn’t know anything about wine, and had not really tasted very many wines. And so Zinfandel quickly caught entranced me with its combination of spicy, peppery red fruit and soft tannins that make for such a wonderfully accessible and exciting red wine.
Since then, I’ve pursued Zinfandel in its many incarnations from California, but always end up coming back to Dry Creek Valley and a handful of producers including Nalle (my perennial favorite), Ridge, and Rosenblum. These days, I drink Zinfandel much less often than in the past, but I never fail to be bowled over by a really great bottle.
The catch with Zinfandel is that it is a grape that, depending on growing conditions, can very easily produce a big, hulking, overbearing red wine. This is why the Zinfandels from Dry Creek Valley have always been my favorite. For the most part, the growing conditions in this AVA produce Zinfandels that take advantage of the grape’s dark, red fruit flavor profile without indulging in its high-alcohol, huge body tendencies. There are definitely exceptions to this rule, but the wines from the above producers that really capture my attention are the ones that generally have more finesse and subtlety than the Zinfandel fruit bombs that are all too common.
And so a few years back I bought a couple bottles of the 2004 Rosenblum Rockpile Zinfandel, and stashed them away to wait for a good time to open them. The wine had gotten rave reviews all around, and the uniqueness of the AVA and its growing conditions really caught my interest.
The Rockpile AVA was approved in 2002, making it one of the newer AVAs in California. Of the AVA’s 15,400 acres, 150 are planted to a variety of red grapes, including Zinfandel, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petite Sirah. The vineyards lie between 800 and 1900 feet above sea level, and most importantly, many of them are above the fog line. The result is that the temperatures, and daily temperature swings, are more moderate than at lower elevations, and the grapes are exposed to constant sun during critical growing periods, ensuring full (very full!) maturity. Rockpile used to be part of the Dry Creek Valley AVA, but in response to the consistently unique quality of the wines produced from fruit grown there, it was determined that it warranted its own AVA status.
That unique quality basically boils down to wines that have serious depth and heft, and loads of dark, jammy black and red fruits. Think blackberries and black cherries on steroids. These are wines that satisfy the way a really great holiday dinner is satisfying. After drinking them you feel full with the wine’s richness, and satisfied in an almost gluttonous way. You wouldn’t want to eat a meal like that every day, but when you do you really treasure and savor the experience.
This is the 2004 release of this wine, and so it has been residing in our cellar for nearly three years now. It weighs in at a massive 16.3% alcohol! I haven’t been able to dig up any information about the percentage of zinfandel in the wine (although it has to be at least 75%), or the number of new oak barrels used. The label indicates that it came from the Rockpile Road vineyard, within the Rockpile AVA. (In a 2004 article, the Wine News indicated that of the 9 vineyards in Rockpile, the majority incorporate the word “Rockpile” into their name in some fashion.)
The wine pours a deep, inky purple, with a viscous surface texture. The nose is rich with vanilla, blueberries and blackberries, and a trace of smoke. The palate is velvety and mouth-coating, with very soft, warm tannins. Lots of dark, red fruits just saturating the palate, accompanied by a hint of black pepper and a trace of vanilla. The same flavors continue through on the finish. The vanilla flavors from new oak are very well integrated with the wine’s fruit flavors, and were not obtrusive at all. On the contrary, they offered a nice counterpoint to the spectrum of dark fruits, highlighting the fruit flavors more so than they would be without that counterpoint.
A wholly enjoyable wine that went superbly with the barbecue dinner that we ate with it. This may not be my favorite style of zinfandel wine, but it really hit the spot on this occasion. What is more, it made me look forward to going back to a bottle of Nalle’s Zin and revisit the more balanced style of Zinfandel that I enjoy so much.
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