Scott Harvey is an overnight success in the wine business. If you believe that I've got a bridge to sell you. After 20+ years in the business, after achieving partnership in Folie à Deux, he championed the brand known as Ménage à Trois, which was since purchased by Sutter Home parent Trinchero. That fateful launch was some 10 +/- years ago, and now Scott, along with Jana (his wife, an industry "veteran" as well), have their own labels.
I didn't know this history of Scott Harvey Zinfandel until after I opened a few bottles of Amador Mountain Selection 2004. Actually it was a comment on a Winewaves post about Wingnut Amador Zin that revealed the connection to Ménage à Trois. But every label has a story, don't it? You think you're just drinking something you've never heard of, but that's almost never the reality once you awaken to the truth.
Scott Harvey is a pioneer in Amador, having traveled back and forth between the gold hills of California and Rhineland Pfalz in Germany in the mid-1970's. Over the course of three decades he has gilded his relationships with top Amador growers, and some people even credit Scott Harvey with putting the region on the map. He cut his teeth at Montevina and achieved early general manager status at Santino Winery (now Renwood).
Buying a bottle of Zinfandel you don't know, just because it's from Amador County, and expressly because you don't know it, and then having it turn out to be a real find - that's the thrill of the hunt. Especially if your find turns out to be made at a small local "liquor store" in your own neighborhood.
Scott Harvey Amador Mountain Selection Zinfandel 2004 has a nice piercing nose (I didn't say nose piercing!). It's plummy, raspby, lightly cedary, and there's a bit of forest floor earthiness to it, like a walk through Yosemite. The flavor is jammy but the character is deeper than jam, in fact it's deeper than you expect for about $15-20. You get a little of that all-spicy character joining the ample fruit on the tongue, and the finish is dusty, sturdy and yet ready for action right now. (The 2005 is the current vintage in release.)
Once we got around to pairing it with food, the wine was spot on for a natural pork loin chop with an heirloom tomato, sage, and vidalia onion reduction sauce and summer vegetable sauté. The rich natural sweet tart balance of the home grown tomatoes combined seamlessly with the wine.
Price: $15 (Nashville). Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 14.5%.
We've come to know Ménage à Trois as a best seller at retail over the years, especially the red. Without apologies, it is now positioned as a red wine for people who normally don't drink much red wine. I must admit it seems to have become a little "watered down" over the past decade. Like many brands that come out of the gate and establish themselves behind a strong marketing premise and an over delivering execution, this one appears to have transitioned to resting squarely on its laurels. Yes, it's quite pleasant, but not as fit as it must have been in years past. The people want soft, and that's what they get. The blend of three, as it were, is dominated by Zinfandel (a la Scott Harvey's invisible hand), plus Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. There is a sweet jam character, plus herbal undertones. The body and backbone are rather light, a good wine to make the transition into drinking dry reds. It has its place in the market to be sure, but there are red blends on much firmer footing for the same price.
Price: $9 (Nashville). Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 13.5%.
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