2014 Reserve Zinfandel

91 points, The Wine Advocate

Our reserve Zinfandel features our ripest, most concentrated fruit from our Pocai Ranch. This fabulous Zinfandel is a favorite in our Tasting Room. Warm berry pie on the nose, and scents of blueberries and raspberries mingle with vanilla and clove.

In Stock

Wine Specs

Vintage

2014

Varietal

Zinfandel

Appellation

Napa Valley

Harvest Date

September 17th

Acid

6.2 g/L

3.58

Aging

17 months in American & French oak barrels; 80% New Oak

Alcohol %

16.2

Wine Profile

Tasting Notes

The 2014 Reserve Zinfandel has a great nose that reminds us of a warm berry pie. There are scents of blueberries and raspberries with vanilla and clove. This wine has aromas of roasted hazelnuts and aromas of roses too. There is a concentration of fresh berries about this wine, and a complexity to its spice. The wine explodes on the palate with big flavors of blueberries and boysenberries. There are nice vanilla graham cracker undertones. There is a smooth silky nature to the wine with a voluptuous body. The finish lingers for quite some time with flavors of clove, raspberry and caramel.

Vineyard Notes

Our reserve Zinfandel comes from the Pocai Ranch located at the southern end of Calistoga’s boundaries. This land is where a very old alluvial fan fed out of Dutch Henry Canyon. The soil here is Bale Gravelly Loam, and is a mixture of medium and small rocks in a loose loamy soil. The moisture content is very low, and the drainage excellent. The soil profile is fairly balanced and perfect for viticulture. This vineyard is located in one of the warmest regions in the Napa Valley, and produces rich ripe fruit that tends to be very fruit forward and even jammy in nature.

Winemaker Notes

Our reserve Zinfandel is one of the most concentrated and expressive lots of wine that we produce in a given year. Always the last of our picks of Zinfandel, it is generally one of the ripest lots of the year. In the winery we maintain an early aggressive pump over regime that slowly tapers off to a gentle sprinkle as the alcohol builds and the wine develops. This wine is aged in mostly new French Oak for flavor and body development, and new American oak for a spicy complexity and middle palate.

Other Notes

90% Zinfandel 5.7% Petite Sirah 2.3% Cabernet Franc 1% Syrah 1% Merlot