TN: 2017 Carlisle Zin Mancini Ranch RRV

What an outstanding bottle of wine. 5 days open, with nothing maintaining the bottle through this time but a cold fridge and the cork as a loose stopper.

Frigging dynamite stuff. I knew when I had the 2016 last year that it caught my attention. There is just something about this plot that captivates me. I’m adding this to my short list for WOTY. Outstanding wine, Mr Officer.

  • 2017 Carlisle Zinfandel Mancini Ranch - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley (9/16/2019)
    I’ll join the passion that Neras posted in his previous note, too. The bottle for my note here was opened on Saturday morning, and it’s now Monday afternoon. We had so much left that I have just been working through it the past few days. The bouquet on this stuff leaps out of the stem. Bramble, floral, reminding me of the aromas that come from a barrel sample, just a joy to take in. The palate starts with crisper red fruits like cranberry and maybe some black cherry, with the latter giving the wine a juicy note. And even after 2 full days open, there is structure remaining here, too. I really do like the Mancini vineyard and like the 2016 that wowed me last year for similar red fruits and structure with acid, the 2017 is not far off from that same profile, which tells me I need to keep buying it. Delicious wine…ah hell, one more update. Day 5 and this stuff keeps going. This is the end of the bottle from this past Saturday and it’s rounded out well. Still some light structure but mostly now just a beautiful, pure red/black fruit with a zippy acidity. Damn straight, one of the best Carlisle zins I have ever had, and I’ve been drinking them for 15 years now. Awesome wine.

Posted from CellarTracker

Frank,

Outstanding notes…I’ll have to check my inventory to see if I have any of these.

I would strongly suggest grabbing some of the Boheme 2013 Old Mancini Ranch Zin. I grabbed a six-pack of this on BD, and it is perhaps the most savory wine I have had. Not as fruity as the Carlisle zin I have had (been on the list since 2004?), but very herbal and really thought-provoking

Amazing that it held for 5 days. I have a large backlog of Carlisle and find that they need more cellar time. We had a 16’ Mourvedre last night and it wasn’t anywhere near ready to be drinking yet.

How come it took you five days “working through it” to finish the bottle? Usually a bottle that’s “friggin dynamite” won’t last half an evening in my household. 3.0L bottle maybe?

Paul, doing a glass per night allowed me to work through the bottle at a good pace, finishing it last night. In my house, it’s just my wife and I and she doesn’t drink all that much, and never red wine.

Are you putting the cork in the bottle after you pour your glass or just leaving the bottle on the counter exposed to air?

Cork back into the bottle after I pour it.

You show remarkable restraint, Frank. Kudos.

Paul, part of it is practicality. I’m damn near 54, the wine was over 15% and my body just doesn’t do multiple glasses of wine well anymore, especially during the week. So, to work it over a few nights was also a practical reaction to things. At 35, yeah probably crush that remainder in 2 nights but being more realistic now, and to my own benefit here, I got to enjoy an amazing bottle of wine for more nights than I would have used to do.

I would agree - especially with Mourvedre in general and Mike’s certainly.

I think zins have a way of showing well right from the get go - with upside potential for a number if years. Too many and, to me, they become less ‘zin-like’ and more ‘claret-like’ . . . But of course, YMMV . . .

Cheers.