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Klinker Brick 2005 Old Vine Lodi Zinfandel

Let's face it, there is a lot of bad Zinfandel out there. And then there's that white Zinfandel stigma. So, buying Zinfandel can be a bit of a minefield. Here's a word of advice - if the name is a pun on the word 'zin' it's probably worth passing by. Any wine called Zin-cinatti or Zin-ammon. Is really trying too hard. Avoid it.

Based on the above, I haven't been a big buyer of Zinfandel. However, while browsing the wine section of my local gourmet market I ran into the big, gay proprietor of a (different) local wine shop and we got to talking about the selection. He pointed out that the two best things they had on the shelf that day were Klinker Brick's 2005 Zin and a retardedly unaffordable claret. So - zin it is.

The Klinker Brink should not be classed among those lesser zins, for sure. It's a really amazing example of Zinfandel - in fact, after the Klinker, just to see if my tasting was accurate I sipped a few others including the 2005 Terraces Zin. I was right the first time - the Klinker is a stunner.

It's from Lodi, California and harvested from a selection of vines ranging in age from 35-110 years old. One HUNDRED and ten years old! For reference that means the first vines in this bottle were planted in 1898. Other things that happened in 1898: The Spanish-American War started. New York City is divided into 5 bouroughs and the US annexed the Hawaiian islands.

Okay, enough trivia, onto the facts: The Klinker is 100% Zinfandel aged for 15 months in American oak. Harvested late, the 2005 yields were higher than average. It's $17 a bottle directly from Klinker, and if you are crafty (like me) you can find it for $15.

In the glass it's a pale rose purple with a very subtle nose, there's a lot of heat - the alcohol is 15.5% so...

I'd been informed that this would benefit from some decanting and some air, so I poured it and let it sit in the decanter for a good hour before I sipped it. The first sip was pleasant - fruity with a long, long complex chocolatey finish. Very decent. I had a glass and really enjoyed it, it's wonderfully fruity and complex. And, I'm going to break every rule in the wine world by admitting it - this stuff gets you drunk. So I had a couple of glasses left in the decanter, and I went out and did what I do on a weeknight and returned home about 3 hours later. I noticed the decanter and grabbed a glass wondering how it had matured throughout the evening.

Wow. WOW. The wine had matured into an amazing combination of ripe fruits and jammy complexity. The difference a few hours made was pretty stunning. In fact, the first sip I had after letting it air was so good I regretted drinking so much of it initially.

So - bottom line on Klinker Brick's 2005 Old Vine Zinfandel? Good stuff, great for the price, open it it early and let it get some air and you'll be pleased. Klinker Brick says, "Our Klinker Brick 2005 Old Vine Zinfandel may be the very best we have produced to date with full, juicy flavors of cherries and plums coupled with the perfect balance of oak and spice." I agree.

Price: $15 (Out West). Closure: Natural cork. Alcohol content: 15.5%.

Wingnut Amador County Zinfandel 2005

Smart money is looking to Amador County for Zinfandel. East of Sacramento and seemingly away from it all, this unpretentious wine country remains pleasantly off the radar. Here you can drive through golden grassy pastures, pass the past, and find some great Zin off the beaten path.

My first experiences with Zin from Amador were Montevina and Renwood. But now the really big wine marketers are making deals with Amador growers. Now the Three Thieves unit of Trinchero (Sutter Home) brings us Wingnut.

Loaded with fruit and not as over-the-top hot as many Zins these days, this is an easy drinker for anything grilled, especially burgers. Wingnut has that juicy spicy DNA that makes it perfect for Saturday night - or any night that we wish was Saturday. There is a definitive cherry character to it, reverberating between cherry cola and dried cherries. I never get tired of that in my casual quaffs, especially zins. More often that not, I'm not looking for a wine that's over my head, too complicated, or downright odd. This one is easy to get to know, without being monolithic or moronic. The fruit dominates, but it's rounded out by nice spice and some dusty tannins, and then it doesn't kick you in the gentleman's department.

As you contemplate your next burger, you can't go wrong pairing it with this Amador Zin.

Price (Nashville): $14. Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 13.5%.

Biker Zin and The Road to Sturgis

My guess is a lot of bloggers have experienced what I'm going through. I find myself covered up in more lucrative work and the time left over for updating my blog suffers badly. Especially this summer, Winewaves has taken a back seat.

Take this week: I'm in the Sturgis, South Dakota area working for one of my "clients", a family company started by my brother and cousin, Diamond Gusset Jeans. G. Gordon Liddy interviewed me about our motorcycle jean called the Defender, which has Kevlar reinforcement to protect you in case that day comes when (heaven forbid) you hit the pavement. The Sturgis Rally is a spectacle for those not acquainted with it. There are hundreds of thousands of mostly Harley riders commencing on western South Dakota, with the little town of Sturgis being ground zero.

Shameless Promotion: Diamond Gusset Jeans are 100% American made, unlike just about any other jeans out there today, and they have a diamond shaped gusset sewn into the crotch for comfort and freedom of movement. I really like my pair of DG Carpenter jeans.

To get to Sturgis, I flew into Denver and drove up. I spent the night in Torrington Wyoming and discovered the Chicken Hut, which is a refreshing alternative to the national fried chicken chain restaurants. They purport to offer southern fried chicken, but I detected a hint of cumin which I've not come across down south. Still, the Chicken Hut makes truly outstanding fried chicken and it's worth going out of the way for. The crust isn't overly thick or greasy, and the meat is moist, tender and nicely seasoned. Even the typical side dishes: fries, cole slaw and a biscuit were tasty.

There is some wine involved on this trip, too. I brought a bottle of Four Vines Biker Zin 2005 with me. It hails from Paso Robles. I like the 2004 that I picked in Denver on the way to last year's Sturgis Rally, and I like the 2005 at least as much. I drank it in my hotel room with a really good carry-out bacon cheeseburger from the All Star restaurant in Hot Springs, South Dakota.

Very nice value ($23). Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 15%.

Style: Boldly fruit forward, unabashedly lush, with moderate oak spice and polished tannins.

Photo is from 2004 vintage, but the '05 looks the same.

Comment: To heck with the terroir-ists who say they want to do away with all high alcohol fruit bombs. Sturgis is all about freedom of expression and this wine expresses freely.

The other event that has put a damper on my blogging this summer was the passing of Opal, our feline companion who ruled the house for 18 years. She passed July 31st at 1:11 PM with my ear pressed against her chest the moment her heart stopped. She showed up on our door step back in 1989 and I can't believe she left us. Opal is sadly missed.

Four Vines Old Vine Zinfandel 2005

My idea of old is 16 to 50 years old, like the old vines in Four Vines Old Vine Zin. But because I'm approaching 50, I'll have to adjust that soon to include the over 50 vines (which I used to consider ancient vines).

Anyway, the Four Vines people are dedicated to hedonistic principles and you can get in on their more is better approach to life at the under-$15 level with their Old Vine Zinfandel. If you can afford to, by all means, spend a bit more and try out their no-holds barred offerings like Biker Zin and Loco. But if you only have $13 to spend this is a good place to spend it.

Christian Tietje and Company combined some good fruit from all over California with some rather decent small oak barrels before bottling Old Vine Zin '05. Forget about unique terroir, this is a happy-go-lucky mutt of a Zin.

Excellent value ($13). Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 14.6%.

Style: Plump, fruit forward, tart with some oak spice.

Tasting Notes: Appearance: Dark candy apple red with a slight haze. Aromas: Loganberry, framboise, raisins, cola spice and caramelized oak. Medium-bodied and sweet tart on the front of the tongue, the richly layered mature fruit flavors combine with cola spice and the finish kicks out a modicum of caramelized oak.

Comment: Decadent value.

Victor Hugo Paso Robles Zinfandel 2005

Victor Hugo Roberts, proprietor of Victor Hugo Winery, is no relation to THE Victor Hugo, considered perhaps the best French poet, a dramatist, novelist, and a political activist of the 19th century, the author of Les Miserables and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame.

The modern day Roberts' Paso Robles vineyard and winery has grown over the past 20+ years to about 80 acres.

Victor Hugo Paso Robles Zinfandel 2005 is all estate fruit, aged 14 months in American oak. A poetic 799 cases were produced.

Very nice value ($20). Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 15.2%.

Style: Lush, fruit-forward with some oak spice.

Tasting Notes: Appearance: Deep dark cranberry with a purple haze, semi-opaque. Aromas: Loganberry, blackberry, dried cherry, raisin, spice and cocoa. Medium-to-full bodied with lots of backbone and flesh, the lush raspy dark fruit are sweetly flavored but dry and dusty, well integrated with oak, and the finish lingers warmly.

Comment: Paso Robles is for Hedonists. Enjoy with "Chateaubriand or nothing", or with loganberry and brie rolled in pastry, dipped in dark chocolate.

Clos LaChance Buff-Bellied Hummingbird Series Central Coast Zinfandel 2004

There's a gravity-defying movement and flourish of beauty to Clos LaChance Hummingbird Series Buff-Bellied Central Coast Zinfandel that's uncommon in its price range.

Bill and Brenda (LaChance) Murphy began selling their estate grown wine about 15 years ago, and their daughters Cheryl and Kristin have grown up in the company which is symbolized by the Hummingbird logo. Head Winemaker Steven Tebb came to Clos LaChance from Artesa (Napa).

Clos LaChance has a unique way of "paying it forward", donating a portion of the sales of every bottle of the popularly-priced Hummingbird Series to the Hummingbird Society, an organization whose mission is to promote the understanding and conservation of Hummingbirds.

Excellent value ($14). Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 14.5%

Style: Lush, fruit-forward, some oak spice.

Tasting Notes: Appearance: Deep candy apple red, translucent. Aromas: Black raspberry, cherry, raisin, nutmeg/cinnamon spice, and hints of coffee. Masculine, tart, medium-to-full-bodied and lush on the tongue, the complex red-to-black raspy fruit and perfectly balanced oak seasoning leads to a satisfying rich finish.

Comment: Slice some medium-rare New York strip steak on a salad.

Twenty Rows Grappler 2004

Close the deal and come out on top with this intense winner, aptly named for the proprietors' sons' dedication to wrestling.

Twenty Rows is a relatively small négociant operation, a branch of "wine nuts" Brian and Lori Nuss's Mt. Veeder (Napa) Vinoce winery.

Grappler 2004 is a blend of 58% Lake County Zinfandel, 30% Paso Robles Syrah and 12% Calistoga (Napa) Cabernet Sauvignon. Cases produced: 2,500.

Excellent value ($19). Closure: Real cork. Alcohol content: 14.7%.

Style: Lush, fruit forward plus moderate oak spice.

Tasting Notes: Appearance: Deep ruby with a purple tint. Aromas: Cherry, black raspberry, cinnamon/spice, tobacco and toasty oak. Medium-bodied and polished, on the palate the concentrated fruit forward cherry, pomegranate, citrus rind and cedary oak flavors lead to a lush finish.

Comment: Got a chocolate raspberry torte?

ZAP 2007 Photo Album Captions

Ten days later, captions have been added to the ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates and Producer's) 2007 Trade Tasting event photo album. While a picture is worth 1000 words, having a bit more text with the photos is a good thing, as is being able to put faces together with names.

For the pictures and the captions, click here or the picture above, and see who was doing what at ZAP this year.

Asti Winery Cellar No. 8 California Zinfandel 2004

The more things change the more they stay the same. Cellar No. 8 is named after an actual historical cellar at the Asti Winery which is located several miles north of Healdsburg, near Cloverdale. The winery's roots go back to the 1880's when it was founded by an Italian immigrant and Bay area banker.

A century later Beringer bought the winery, then a little over a decade later Beringer was bought by Australian giant, Foster's. Meanwhile in 2006 Francis Coppola bought Beringer's Chateau Souverain Visitor Center and Winery in Healdsburg and according to Winemaker Ed Killian, Souverain is now relocating a few miles north to the Asti Winery and changing its label a bit.

In the midst of all that change, the Cellar No. 8 brand continues to showcase hearty barrel-aged "Cal-Ital" reds at an affordable price. Winemaking at Cellar No. 8 is directed by Paul Rydquist.

Tasting Notes: Appearance: Candy apple red, translucent. Aromas: Sweet cherry, dried cherry, cinnamon, and hints of cocoa and vanilla. The mouthfeel is tart, medium-bodied and possessing moderate chalky tannins. Cedary spicy oak overtones evolve alongside bright cherry and chocolate flavors leading to a dry gravelly finish.

Excellent value ($9).  Closure: Real cork.  Alcohol content: 14.6%.

Viva! ZAP's 16th Annual Zinfandel Festival

Speak easy and carry a big stick (a sourdough baguette that is).  The Zinfandel was pouring freely, baguettes abounded, a moon full of cheese was consumed, and the sun even peered out for this annual Bay area festival of red.

Chris Lynch of Mutt Lynch Winery pours his Portrait of a Mutt. 

Hundreds turned out for the 16th annual ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates and Producers) Zinfandel Tasting on Saturday at Fort Mason in San Francisco.  And that was just the Trade and Media session from 10 AM to 1 PM. A larger public was queued up for their session as we left the buildings.

This was my first trip to ZAP and my first time to cross the Golden Gate Bridge since the mid-1980s. I spent the first 150 minutes of the tasting without a glass in my hand, sizing up the big event with my lens and trying to maintain a clear head. Only in the last half hour did I grab my glass and taste a few excellent values.

Most everyone else went right to the business of tasting, leaving me in the gustatory dust. Suffice it to say that Zinfandel "freaks" are a happy lot, unencumbered by rules and sporting good humor in addition to an infinite capacity for enjoying good Zin.

Look for more thoughts on this event forthright; meanwhile my West Coast trip has already taken me across the Golden Gate Bridge to points north, as I'm now headed for Oregon's Pinot Noir country and Walla Walla Washington before the next week gets away.

Golden Gate Bridge January 27, 2006

You can view my photo album of the ZAP Zinfandel Tasting now on Winewaves.