We tried these older Calif Zins at our Pig+Fig Tasting ystrday:
1. LatchamVnyds Zin ElDorado SpecialReserve (13.7%) LatchamVnyds/Somerset 1991: Med.color w/ some browning; rather cedary/pencilly/old Zin slight earthy/raspberry/Zin somewhat tired nose; rather tired/dried-out little fruit flavor w/ light tannins; a rather tired/dried-out Zin w/ not much left to it.
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2. SaucelitoCanyon Zin ArroyoGrandeVlly/SLO Cnty (14.5%; EB) ArroyoGrande 1993: Dark color w/ light bricking; fairly strong blackberry/Zin/licorice/spicy light vanilla/Am.oak fairly youthful/attractive complex nose; somewhat soft fairly rich/plummy blackberry/spicy Zin light vanilla/oak flavor w/ light getle tannins; very long spicy/youthful finish that mimics flavor; still plenty of youthful ripe Zin fruit but not showing a lot of evolution.
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3. Sausal Zin AlexVlly PrivateReserve (14%) SausalWnry/Healdsburg 1991: Med.color w/ some browning; rather cedary/pencilly/old Zin bit dusty/OV slight raspberry bit complex nose; soft bit tangy/metallic some vanilla/oak fairly smooth flavor w/ light tannins; med.long some cedary/pencilly/earthy finish that tracks flavor; a fully mature Zin just fading away into the sunset.
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4. MariettaCllrs Zin SonomaCnty (13.7%) ChrsBilbro/Geyserville 1992: Med.dark color w/ some browning; some rustic/dusty/OV strong blackberry/Zin/spicy/raspberry bit vanilla/oak rather old-timey Zin bit complex nose; strong raspberry/rustic/Zin some vanilla/oak bit earthy/pencilly/oak fairly complex flavor w/ light tart tannins; very long pencilly/cedary finish that follows flavor; still in pretty good shape but starting to show some age & starting to fade; a rather old-timy fully mature Zin that shows some of the rustic style that showed in Chris's Zins. $10.00
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5. Ridge Geyserville SonomaCnty (13.9%; 65% Zin/20% Carignan/15% PetiteSirah; bttld Feb 94; Drk: 1/94-1/04-1/??: PD) 1992: Very dark color w/ slight bricking; very strong blackberry/boysenberry/Zin/licorice fairly dusty/OV some vanilla/Ridge oak bit peppery quite complex lovely nose w/ no signs of tired, slight cedary/pencilly nose; lightly tart/tangy light vanilla/Ridge oak fairly strong blackberry/boysenberry/licorice/spicy/peppery fairly complex flavor w/ light ripe tannins; very long/lingering finish that tracks flavor; a classic Geyserville still on the young side w/ no signs of falling apart; probably close to full maturity.
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6. Truchard Zin Carneros/NapaVlly (13.2%) TruchardVnyds/Napa 1993: Dark color w/ ample browing; rather cedary/pecilly/old Zin little fruit rather tired/oxidized fairly aged nose; rather oxidized/tired/dried-out no fruit flavor w/ light drying/astringent tannins; pretty much dead & gone from the oxidation.
From a 2'nd btl the following night:
Truchard Zin Carneros/NapaVlly (13.2%) TruchardVnyds/Napa 1993: Cork not very tight but removed intact; strong very spicy/blackberry/Zin/raspberry light cedary/pencilly bit c-c/peppery fairly lush/youthful some complex nose; lightly tart strong spicy/raspberry/blackberry/Zin some youthful bit pencilly/Am.oak rather complex flavor w/ light brisk tannins; very long/lingering finish that mimics flavor; no signs of oxidation whatsoever & no tired/dried-out character; quite a lovely fully-mature Zin probably right at its peak or a bit beyond.
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8. SobonEstate Zin LubenkoVnyd Fiddletown (14.5%; EB; Plntd in 1910; U/U; 240 cs) 1992: Dark color w/ some browning; light cedary/pencilly/oldZin some blackberry/Zin bit black cherry Fiddletown Zin some vanilla/oak rather complex bit rustic nose; fairly tart/tangy some black cherry/Fiddletown Zin/very spicy some dusty/OV Zin bit vanilla/oak flavor w/ light tangy tannins; very long finish that follows flavor; in pretty good shape w/ lots of Fiddletown black cherry character; reminds a lot of some older EschenVnyd Zins.
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9. SobonEstate Zin RockyTop ShenandoahVlly (14.5%; EB; Plntd by D'Agostini Bros; U/U; 290 cs) 1992 : Med.dark color w/ some browning; strong blackberry/boysenberry/briary classic ShenandoahVlly/briary rather vanilla/oak some complex nose; bit softer strong briary/SV Zin blackberry/boysenberry/ripe some vanilla/oak bit complex flavor w/ light brisk tannins; showing some age but speaks distinctly of briary SV Zin.
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10. EdmundsStJohn Zin HowellMtn/NapaVlly (16.1%) Emeryville 1992: Med.color w/ som browning; fairly classic HowellMtn/earthy/mushroomy bit rustic light cedary/pencilly oaked fairly complex nose; fairly tart/tangy slightly dried-out rather pencilly/cedary/old Zin rather rustic/HM earthy/mushroomy some blackberry/spicy slightly tired/old Zin some complex bit ripe/alcoholic flavor w/ light brisk tannins; very long/lingering bit earthy/rustic finish that tracks flavor; the alcohol really starts to show thru; lots of rustic/earthy HM Zin character that reminds some of the Ridge HM Zins; a pretty interesting fully-mature Zin.
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More fistakuff from TheBloodyPulpit:
1. I was pretty disappointed in the Truchard Zin that I liked quite a lot in its youth when it was loaded w/ spicy Zin fruit. When I pulled the wine from its box, lying on its side, I stood it upright on the counter. That previous evening when I stripped the capsule from the btl, I noticed there was no cork there. It had plopped down into the wine. The oxidation really showed thru. I have another intact btl that I will try tonight & report back tomorrow w/ hopefully better results. As indicated above, this 2'nd btl was in much better condition and more what I expected of this wine.
Truchard is on the North edge of the Carneros district, but still one of the colder vnyds in the NapaVlly.
I thought the two Sobon Estate Zins were holding up pretty good. Both showing a bit of age but both hanging in there pretty well.
Of these zins, the EStJ was my favorite one. Showing some age but speaking strongly of HM Zin. On 2'nd take, the Geyserville was my favorite Zin of these wines.
Tom