We received this wine as a gift from the winery in spring ‘08. It was a treat to receive because Zinfandels are always welcome in our home any time of the year from anywhere.
I am not familiar with this winery, except for that I know it exists in Paso Robles on the Central Coast of California. One of my top 10 favorite regions in the world is Paso. Great Rhone varietals come from this region, but it is also known for robust Zinfandels, especially from the Templeton gap area.
So let’s break down the name and get to work on this wine.… Old Vine and Cuvee.
“Old Vine” refers to the age of the Zinfandel vines. Zinfandel is one varietal that can to be very old, 60 to 100 years or more without any problems with bearing fruit. They become known as “gnarly” because they grow to be very thick and grow in odd shapes. (As a California Native, I love being able to use the word gnarly when I can)
“Cuvee” is a sophisticated word for blend. Not knowing the winery or anything about this wine I can only guess that “Cuvee” is a blend of different Zinfandel vineyards throughout the state.
The Four Vines zin has a California appellation, so I am not exactly sure where the fruit originated. By law, at least 85% of the fruit must come from the region on the bottle. For example, a Napa Cab must have 85% of the fruit from Napa in order for it to be called a Napa Cab. So when a Zin has an appellation of California, or any wine for that matter, the fruit could be coming from anywhere in California (in this case).
The nose on this wine is closed off, or non-existent, basically meaning, I can’t smell any of the wine’s characteristics. With a zin you should expect a huge nose. It could be spicy or fruity, but most will be jammy. This wine has nothing. I asked my fiancée for a second opinion and she agreed….no nose. Boring!
The first sip was filled with lots of pomegranate. I was pleasantly surprised that it made my mouth water but it had a watery to weak mid pallet to the finish. Not a great example of a California Zin. I’d classify this wine as Jammy which is where you’d find it in the zin section in your local wine store.
The alcohol level was high, but not enough for a zin. 14.6% by vol., although I think it is probably lower. I’d hope for a nose, spice, fruit, or something even if it’s a touch of either, but nothing. Even after 30 minutes of decanting… Nada!
Next…
by Wes Kollar
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment