Truscott - Old Vine Zinfandel

Price: $15
Region: Mendocino, CA
Year: 2007

This review is a couple of weeks old, so not as fresh in my mind, but wanted to get to some that I had missed. I especially wanted to get to this wine this wine because I just don't seem to pick up a Zin very often. I think it is a shame too, because when I find a good one, they are a tough wine to beat. Anyway, this particular wine I didn't even pick out myself. My wife has really been picking out some good wines for me lately, so I've left well enough alone. This particular Friday I came home to three new bottles of wine to choose from, and when I saw she had picked out a Zinfandel, I couldn't wait to pop it open.

My usual MO when it comes to Zinfandel is that I go looking specifically for a bottle based on the food we are having. Lots of times I'll pick one up during the summer if we are cooking bar-b-q on the grill. In this case, we were just having hamburgers, but it really sounded good over the Malbec and Merlot she had bought as well. So, I sat down with a glass before dinner to give it a go. This wine was really nice and dark. It had a very good ruby color. It also had a big, bold Zinfandel smell. I find a good Zinfandel is fairly easy to pick out from the distinct aroma. This one definitely had some good earthy smells. So far I was liking my choice. I have definitely gotten this far with a Zinfandel before just have have the taste disappoint. Luckily for me, that was not the case here. This wine was solid upfront, and very consistent throughout. It didn't have a heavy tobacco taste like you get with some Zinfandels, but did have a noticeable cherry-vanilla flavor. This wine was very consistent, with just the right amount of boldness & spiciness. It wasn't an overpowering Zin, but those aren't usually my favorite anyway. This was definitely a solid wine, and is on my repeat purchase list for that first summertime bar-b-q

Rating: 3.25 corks (Solid)