Fallon Place Winery Landa Vineyard Zinfandel 2015 Chalk Hill, Sonoma County, California

A beautiful color of ruby with a wide reddish rim.

Pretty nose of blueberries, currants, oak, light vanilla, wood, black licorice, light vegetables, pencil lead, dust, alcohol, black pepper, leather, earth and spices.

Medium plus in body with medium plus acidity. Elegant with long legs.

Dry on the palate with plums, blueberries, currants, vanilla, wood, spices, peppercorn, chocolates, tobacco, herbs, light vegetables and red candy.

Long finish with soft tannins and tangy raspberries.

This Zinfandel from Sonoma County, is drinking very nicely now, as a 4 year old. Showing great elegance with nice complexity and a beautiful nose. Great complexity on the nose.

Not a typical California Zinfandel at all. Much lighter than I expected from one.

Needs 3 hours to open up properly, and I would really recommend doing that, as it is a completely different wine, once open. I had this vintage a year ago and it was not there at all. So nice to see that it came back so nicely.

Will be better with age, and would be nice to revisit it in the next 3 to 5 years.

Aged for 18 months in French Oak barrels. Only 55 cases produced. (this is bottle number 600).

Good by itself or with food. I paired it with meats, cheeses, nuts and olives.

14.1% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$32.

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Mauritson Wines Zinfandel 2016 Sonoma County, California

A very enjoyable Zinfandel from Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County.

Well balanced and fruit forward with black fruits, chocolates, earth, wood, light vanilla, spices, figs, peppercorn, light vegetables, dark coffee, herbs and tobacco leaf.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate and easy drinking.This one has high alcohol so watch out.

Good right out of the bottle and better as it opens up. Good by itself or with food like a nice burger.

I paired it with skirt steak with chimichurri sauce, potatoes and asparagus.

Will drink nicely in the next 5 years and already delicious.

A blend of 95% Zinfandel and 5% Petite Sirah. Aged for 14 months in 100% French oak barrels.

14.75% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$40.

Seebass Family Wines Old Vine Zinfandel 2013 Mendocino County, California

Light ruby in color with a wide reddish/ brick/ orange rim.

On the nose cherries, blueberries, barnyard, earth, wood, light vanilla, licorice, spices, vegetables, leather and black pepper.

Medium plus in body with medium plus acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with cherries, strawberries, red currants, oak, smoke, tobacco leaf, spices, graphites, herbs, bell pepper, dark coffee and peppercorn.

Medium finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cranberries.

This Old Vine Zinfandel from over 100 year old vines is nicely balanced with nice complexity and a very elegant mouthfeel.

Needs a couple of hours to open up properly and remove some of the acidity.

This 6 year old, is a gentle wine to drink by itself with good friends, or with food.

Not a typical California Zinfandel.

I paired it with light appetizers.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

89 points.

$45.

Pestoni Family Estate Winery 1892 Field Blend 2017 Lake County, California

Dark ruby in color with a reddish rim.

Fruity nose with blackberries, blueberries, sweet cherries, dried figs, dust, vanilla, spices, oak, earth, black pepper, milk chocolates and light alcohol.

Full-bodied and bold with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry and fruity on the palate with blackberries, plums, cherries, currants, oak, vanilla, licorice, spices, chocolates, tobacco, light vegetables, pencil lead and peppercorn.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cranberries.

This fruity Zinfandel blend from Lake County in California is drinking very nicely now. Young and fruity with a nice mouthfeel. Enjoyable by itself or with food.

Good right out of the bottle and better as it opens up and gets some tannins. After 45 minutes of airtime, more chocolate notes come in, with mocha and carmel.

Could probably be better in the next year or two, when the alcohol integrates better.

A blend of 83% Zinfandel, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petite Sirah.

14.7% alcohol by volume.

88 points.

$32.

Seghesio Family Vineyards Sonoma County Zinfandel 2010, California

To celebrate my 2000th post on Instagram here is a nicely aged Zinfandel from Sonoma.

Dark ruby in color with a wide reddish rim.

Very soft nose of blueberries, sweet strawberries, cherries, vanilla, oak, vinaigrette, spices, chocolates and black pepper.

Medium plus in body and elegant, with medium plus acidity and long legs.

Dry and fruity on the palate with blueberries, black plums, red currants, wood, sweet raspberries, earth, light vegetables, leather, pencil lead, orange peel, spices and peppercorn.

Medium plus on the finish with very soft tannins and tangy cranberries.

This Is a very nice Zinfandel from Sonoma County. Showing nice complexity with an elegant mouthfeel.

This 9 year old is drinking completely differently than the three-year-old that I had not too long ago.
More red fruits than black fruits, with some earth notes, vinaigrette and vegetables which were not there when fresh.

Not as tasty until fully open (90 minutes), so be patient and you will not regret it.

Good by itself as a sipping wine or with food. I paired it with T-bone steak and baked potatoes.

14.8% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$25.

Federalist Vineyards Lodi Zinfandel 2014 Lodi, California

Dark ruby in color with a wide reddish rim.

Fruity nose of cherries, strawberry jam, blueberries, tobacco, spices, light barnyard, wood, cloves, cola and black pepper.

Full bodied and smooth with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry and fruity on the palate with cherries, sweet raspberries, blueberries, wood, light vanilla, tobacco, light earth and peppercorn.

Nice length on the finish with very soft tannins and tangy raspberries.

This 4 year old Zinfandel is still very fruity. Well balanced with a smooth mouthfeel, but not very complex.

Good right out of the bottle and doesn’t change much with air time.

Good by itself or with food. I paired it with a charcuterie board of meats, cheeses, dried fruits and crackers.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

87 Points.

$15.

Ingelnook Vineyards Napa Valley Zinfandel 1977, California

A beautiful color of ruby with a wide brick/ orange rim.

Still very fruity on the nose with blackberries, blueberries, sweet cherries, figs, spices, cedar, vanilla, earth, leather, licorice, eucalyptus, pencil lead, black olives, dark chocolates, coffee, coke, spices and black pepper. What a great nose.

Medium plus in body, and elegant, with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with blackberries, black currants, plums, cooked cherries, oak, vanilla, earth, licorice, cloves, herbs, wet leaves, vinaigrette, vegetables, dark chocolates, graphites, dark coffee, Indian spices and black pepper.

Medium plus on the finish with very little tannins and tangy strawberries.

This is a great experience. A very interesting Zinfandel from an iconic Winery in Napa Valley. Well balanced and enjoyable by itself or with food.

This 41 year old is still showing lots of fruits with great complexity. Very gentle and soft on the palate. Great mouthfeel.

Good right out of the bottle and died after 2.5 hours of airtime, so drink up. Soft tannins came out after 2 hours of airtime.

13% (unbelievable) alcohol by volume.

93 points.