The highest scoring Tanzer zinfandel is the '04 Martinelli Jackass Hill, 96 pts. Highest Josh Raynolds zin is the '10 version, also 96pts.
And they both profess to prefer vibrant, balanced, and lively wines! ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
The āJackassā, widely ridiculed on this board, should absolutely not be discounted. This wine can be tremendous.
In my experience, Martinellli āJackassā is reminiscent of Longfellowās āLittle girl with the little curlā (as, by the way, is Burgundy)!
[Note: Jackass Hill is possibly Jackass+]
Iām sure that there are very good versions of these wines and Iād happily try them without prejudice, but I was equally taken aback at the vintages '04 and '10. Hard to believe that they made better wines in those years than in, say, '07.
I am fascinated by this thread, probably because I donāt know enough to answer the question posed. I am, at least when compared to most of you, fairly new to the wine scene. I used to love Zins, then I didnāt, and then recently I have had a couple that have made me reconsider the grape.
But, from a philosophical perspective, why couldnāt you have a 100 point zinfandel? Would such a wine have to be as good as, for example, a 100 point Syrah, or a 100 point Cabernet? If the answer to that question is āNo,ā then is seems you could/should rate the wine on its own merits as a Zinfandel and only a Zinfandel. But, if the answer to that question is āYes,ā then, at least based on what I hear here, the answer is probably no - because the Zinfandel grape is not as good as some other varietals. It doesnāt age as well, it doesnāt offer the same depth and nuance as others, and other failings. But, at least to me, to get to whether you can have a 100 point Zin, you need to figure out whether you can rate it on its own, or whether you have to compare it to other varietals or other 100 point wines.
But, I used to like Zins when I first started getting into wine, and then I spent a few years where they didnāt interest me at all. However, I have had two in the past couple months that have made me reconsider what is possible with a Zin. Both were from Carlisle, and both were 2009s: Gold Mine and Papera. I popped one because I had a friend who liked Zins, and I popped the other because the first was so good I wanted to give another a try. Both were absolutely delicious - although one was bigger that the other, the both had nuance, depth, wonderful mouthfeel, a long finish, and just about everything else I would want in a wine. Were they 100 point wines? I have no earthly idea. As I said before, there are so many wines I have not tasted, I donāt exactly know how to calibrate my scale. What I do know is that both wines were absolutely delicious, and if someone else told me - āHey, that is a 100 point Zinā, I would l have a hard time disagreeing.
The 2001 Graziano Zinfandel, Bartolomei Vineyard (Mendocino) in itās prime was 10 pts on my 10 pt scale (that is 100 pts on the Parker scale). Beautiful wine that had an intense blueberry and floral profile with impeccable balance of all elements. Greg knows zin.
You can all talk Jackass, but if you havenāt had a Stu Pedasso good Zin, what can I say?
I think that it can literally leap, figuratively speaking.
P Hickner
I give it 100 points on the duodecimal system.
1 Like
If Parker can rate a Cab 100 pts., I see no reason why he or many others canāt do the same for Zinfandel, Grenache, Mourvedre, Chardonnay and even Trousseau Gris.
He canāt because heās said that there can never be a 100 point Zin. He has however, awarded 100 points to Grenache, so we now know that Grenache can achieve perfection. Trousseau Gris is beloved of the AFWE so obviously that canāt make a 100 point wine. Sheesh. Everybody knows that.
Can others rate wine from those grapes as 100 points? Sure. But must we always drink monovarietal wine? We know that Cab can be 100 points, so if you blend Cab and Zin is it possible that the Zin will so taint the blend that it can never achieve perfection?
Eric - you have to set logic aside for a moment when it comes to wine. Itās all subjective but itās not really because there are objective standards but theyāre all filtered through the perception of the individual but we can measure certain parameters but we have individual standards for balance and finesse but those are descriptive so they depend on the describer and so on.
Once you work through all that, you have the question of the wine in front of you. Do you like it? Thatās a pretty good question to start with. Does your wife like it? If the answer to both is yes, youāre on a roll. Now the key question - can you afford to buy it regularly? If the answer to that is yes, then youāre home free. Buy more, keep your wife happy, and enjoy your life.
If you push much beyond that, you get into the shrill and the screaming. Some people hate the whole idea of points in the first place, although oddly enough, those same people often have strong opinions on the wines they like and dislike. Perhaps itās the idea of numbers vs words.
Anyway, if you define the parameters you are using for your assessment, you may in fact decide that according to them, thereās no such thing as a 100 point Zin. Thatās still presumptuous as hell because have you really tasted all the Zins that were ever made or that can ever be made? But since itās all about opinion anyway, and opinions need not be fact-based, what the hell. If you believe something like that, you go ahead and make the pronouncement.
I hope all those $500 Grand Cru Burgs havenāt dulled your sense of humor, Charlie . . .
We seem to be slowly entering friendlier Zin waters as a nation. Good.
2 Likes
ABV or critic score?
Dalla Valle makes a killer Zin!
Who woulda thunk that Rolland would work with such a lowly varietal.
96 Martinelli Jackass Hill. 100 points! I drink a lot of Zin and this was 100 points
1 Like
This one was closeā¦
2 Likes
Adam Frisch wrote:
March 2020 - Zinfandel Chronicles > ā¦ hronicles/We seem to be slowly entering friendlier Zin waters as a nation. Good.
I read this as a note for a 2002 Dalla Valle Cabernet, not a Zin?
You read that correctly.
I agree. That was an awesome bottle!
Seems DV did actually make a zin one year ā¦ would be quite the collectors item.
Five acres of Zinfandel vines were already planted on site which was being sold by the previous owners to Chuck Wagner of Caymus Winery. After making a vintage of Zinfandel in 1986, Dalla Valle then removed the vines, sold their initial parcel and acquired a larger neighboring piece of property.
Maybe , but you will never find out here .
For those who have tasted the old Ridges and Joseph Swan Zinfandels will know that Zin is capable of aging. That being said, we did a tasting a few years ago of older Zins, and with the exception of those two, we were disappointed by how poorly the others had matured.
So how great are those older Zins? They can be excellent, the 1973 Geyserville tasted with a host of equally aged Monte Bellos held its own but was far from the best wine that day. And yet along with the Swan 1976, is probably the best and complex Zin I have ever tasted. I scored it a 96.
Zinfandels should be judged in absolute terms. We are all on limited budgets, so every wine we taste should be looked at in terms of the best way to spend our dollars. 95% of my purchases will be based on value, but occasionally if the wine is sufficiently interesting, I will buy it over a better QPR.
1 Like