Summary of opinions on Zinfandels
kinm...@null.dec
A while ago, I asked for comments on Zinfandels. Here is a summary
of the replies:
1) BIG and HEAVY:
-1979 Montevina "Special Selection": complex, tannic, needs flavorful
and rich food to stand up to it; a bargain at $6; needs lots of aging
-1980 Ridge AMADOR: not as heavy as above, but perfectly balanced and
flavorful. The best BIG wine I've ever tried. A steal at $6.
-1980 Montevina estate bottled: not as big as the 79 above; very hot (15%
alcohol); at $5, it's ok, but I won't buy it again.
-1980 Beringer Napa Valley: Full of flavors, but coy with a funny sweetness;
the aftertaste made you want to eat quick to get the taste out. $6.50
-1980 Burgess Napa Valley: Much too young to drink; giant tannin, flavor that
kicks you over: you'd have to drink it with straight blue cheese or something
that powerful... No regular meal could stand up to it. $6.50
2)Medium bodied Zin
-1980 Shenandoah Vineyards: great aroma and flavor; classic Amador wine; short
on the finish; $5, a great price. Perfect with a cheesey lasagna.
-1977 Sebastiani "Proprietor's Reserve": I can't imagine liking a Zin more than
this one. At $5.50, a steal. Balanced, fruity, aroma+, long finish. Try it
-Almaden zin, Sebastiani Country zin, Inglenook Navelle zin... cheap zin is the
worst thing in a bottle: buy Monterey Vineyards Classic Red or Christian Bros.
Burgundy. They're cheaper and better hearty reds.
3)White Zin
-1982 Sutter Home Amador White Zin. I tried a glass once and seem to recall
that it was nice. This stuff is really the going thing now: I have friends
who like it better than any other white, except with seafood. For that, get a
good chardonnay or sauvignon blanc. The other white zins are popular, too.
I wholeheartedly agree that 1977 Sebastiani Proprietors Reserve
Zinfandel is great! Another inexpensive Zin that compares to the
Sebastiani is a 1977 or 1978 Zin from John Phelps vinyards. This
Zin is a little more fruity than the Sebastiani, but I tend to
prefer this.
Speaking of Sebastiani Prop. Res. wines, anybodu ever try their
1978 Cabernet Sauvignon? It, too, is excellent for the money!
I happen to like a HARD TO FIND zinfandel...
Cakebread Cellers 1978.
If you like black peppers this one has the best of
heavy zinfandel, and pepper aroma. I find it best
with a classic recipe "Individual Beef wellingtons
with Green Peppercorn Sauce". ( I will mail that
to anyone who wants it.. Or research net.cooks, I
posted it about 4 weeks ago)
I also like a zinfandel from Soda Rock winery, if
you are in the Napa/Sonoma Valley, go past and see
if they have some for sale. You have to be in the
winery to purchase, they are far too small for shipping
to major distributors (get their Chardonay, Best I ever
tasted)
Yes!!! Zin is one of my three favorite wines and I would be happy to
share the following recommends:
Burgess 1980 Napa Valley Zinfandel - All one could want in a
reasonably priced zin. Available in the L.A. area for
$6-8 - depending on where you look. First tasted this
wine on a visit to the winery - bought two bottles there
and a case later (which is, alas, down to my last two
bottles.)
De Loach Vineyards 1980 Estate Bottled Sonoma County Zinfandel -
De Loach is located in the Russian River Valley. I tasted
this one at a local wine tasting and it was my Zin pick from
amongst 25 or so choices. Can't give a price - I bought my
only two bottles in a mixed case. Probably $8-10.
Cuvaison 1976 Napa Valley Zinfandel - This wine is a MONSTER! I
first tasted this one mythical evening at a small wine shop
in S. Pasadena (The Wine Press, if you're local). It was a
blind tasting. Well, everybody new it was Zin right off, the
amazing thing was how the wine just kept growing in your glass.
After 45 minutes or so, the wine was simply blowing people
away. A little pricey $12.50.
BTW - most of Cuvaison's wines are on the BIG side - if you like a wine
that stands on its own four feet - try theirs - wonderful!
Here is a summary of votes for the below listed Zins. The key follows:
--- No votes
* Barely drinkable
** Alright, what you'd expect for low price
*** Very good
**** Outstanding value
North Coast Cellers no date $3.99 (1.5L) **
Taylor Calif. Cellers no date $2.99 **
Willow Creek 1979 $3.49 ---
Cresta Blanca 1979 $3.99 **1/2
CK Mondavi no date $3.99 ---
Sebastiani 1980 $3.99 ****
Wente Bros 1980 $4.15 **
Charles Krug 1979 $4.39 **1/2
Story 1979 $4.49 ****
Fetzer 1982 $4.89 ***
Burgess 1980 $4.99 ****
San Martin 1980 $5.15 ---
Simi 1981 $5.29 ***
Mirassou 1980 $5.49 ****
Sutter Home 1981 $5.69 ***
Mountainside 1979 $5.79 ***
Sebastiani Proprietor's Reserve 1977 $5.79 ****
R Mondavi 1980 $5.99 ****
Davis Bynum 1979 $6.99 ---
White Zinfandels:
M. Marion no date $4.39 ---
Sutter Home 1983 $4.59 ---
If you'd like to add your votes just send 'em in...
Bruce Kinmonth ...decvax!decwrl!rhea!null!kinmonth
Brian Atkins
Sauvignon 1978. It was probably the best Cab I have ever had!
(This doesn't say much, since I am forced to be content with the under
$20 a bottle price range, and tend to lean toward the $10 ballpark.)
Of all the red wines I have tried, my current favorite is by far Cabernet
Sauvignon. Let me also say that I prefer red to white wine accept under
certian "sea food" conditions. (I find no possible substatute to Green
Hungarian with cracked Dungeness crab over ice.)
If anyone has any suggestions on nice, full bodied red wines, or other
makers of fine Cabernet Sauvignon, I would be greatly please to hear about
them on the net, or via mail.
"Steward, what do you suggest?...."
Brian Atkins
UUCP - {hao | allegra | ucbvax}!nbires!atkins
USPS - NBI, Inc.
3450 Mitchell Lane
P.O. Box 9001
Boulder, CO 80301
444-5710 (x3036)
Archie Lachner
of France (Cote du Rhone, Chateau Neuf duu Pape, etc.). They are very full
bodied, and consequently slow to mature. They have the strength of body
(austerity, some might say) to stand up to barbequed meats.
--
Archie Lachner
Logic Design Systems Division
Tektronix, Inc.
uucp: {ucbvax,decvax,pur-ee,cbosg,ihnss}!tektronix!teklds!archiel
CSnet: archiel@tek
ARPAnet: archiel.tek@csnet-relay
mi...@smu.uucp
smu!mike Aug 13 15:21:00 1984
I recently tried a 1979 Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon at the recomendation
of seemingly knowledgeable waiter. He recommended it over a 1978
Sterling Reserve. I have had the Sterling, and I definitely preferred
the Jordan. Unfortunately, the 79 is very hard to find now (according
to the waiter). Probably over $20, but a bargain compared with stuff
like the Sterling ($30+).
gra...@convex.uucp
convex!graham Aug 16 14:08:00 1984
If anyone has any suggestions on nice, full bodied red wines, or other
makers of fine Cabernet Sauvignon, I would be greatly please to hear about
them on the net, or via mail.
Try Barolo (Reserva (sp?)) from Italy. The older the better: mid 60's is good,
but you may have trouble finding anything older than '74 or so.
Marv Graham; Convex Computer Corp. {allegra,ihnp4,uiucdcs,ctvax}!convex!graham
Berry Kercheval
others we visited Sebastiani. (Ah, I love the Bay area, only an hour
to my favorite wineries. I guess I can't mention anything about job
oppurtunities here, can I?) They had a very nice 'Rosa Gewurtztraminer' --
Rose Gewurtz. They make it "to celebrate the GW's beautifil pink blush"
Ack! Good wine though.
The best place we visited was Gundlach-Bundschuh. Apparently one of CA's older
wineries, they are the only vineyard to grow (and winery to produce)
Klienberger, a nice german varietal that reminded us of Gewurtz. while being
softer and less spicy.
Their good one was the '82 Late Harvest Zin. Harvested late because of a severe
shortage of fermenting vats caused by the bunper crop in '82, these grapes came
in at about 24.8 degrees brix! They fermented it almost dry to 0.6% residual
sugar, and came up with a wonderful full bodied, smooth red wine. Give it a try
if you can find it. If you can't find it locally, send me your resume.....
--
Berry Kercheval Zehntel Inc. (ihnp4!zehntel!zinfandel!berry)
(415)932-6900
M. G. Hand
reserva rating can be very good. One that seems to be reasonably
available is by Caves Velhas. I have had both the '68 and the '74,
but the last 68 I had a couple of years ago was getting distinctly
long in the tooth. The '74 was fine though not as good as the '68
in its prime. Its a bit like a strong earthy burgundy (french, not
that sweet californian filth they serve in bars). It's quite
inexpensive, too, and improves immeasurably from being permitted to
breath for a couple of hours before the guzzling starts.
Marcus Hand (pyuxt!marcus)
PS. I didn't mean that all californian burgundies are plonk, just the
ones that get into bars and are served as "house red".
Berry Kercheval
out this one. To complement their 'Blanc de Noirs' called 'Eye of the Swan',
they have come out with a nice red called 'Tailfeathers'. yuk yuk.
Well, try it. It tastes better than it sounds.
Dick Dunn
>of seemingly knowledgeable waiter. He recommended it over a 1978
>Sterling Reserve. I have had the Sterling, and I definitely preferred
We were fortunate enough to have picked up several bottles of the '79
Jordan Cabernet last year. We tried one last night. It's pretty good, but
still young and needs to be opened to breathe a fair while before drinking.
I'd guess that it's going to be better in a few more years.
Jordan is very good so far (particularly considering how young the winery
is) but a bit overpriced, as is true of many of the really good California
wineries. A variety of factors (dollar-vs-franc not the least of them)
tend to make French wines a better buy these days unless you're into
drinking heavy red wines rather young. In Jordan's case, it isn't going to
help us wine drinkers that their wines have been featured at the White
House (unless Mondale is elected:-):-):-).
Apart from restaurant buying, I'd try to find some of the Jordan Cab's to
set aside for a while yet. They're conscientious to the point that they're
not releasing wines before they're ready to be drunk (holding off five
years or so) but I still think more time will help them.
--
Dick Dunn {hao,ucbvax,allegra}!nbires!rcd (303)444-5710 x3086
...Are you making this up as you go along?