Maybe 10 years or so ago, WS (Laub, I believe) said the highest they would rate a zinfandel was 95pts. I forget the rationale - maybe it wasn’t a serious grape.
That has changed.
So all of these from that era at 95 are actually 100pts.
Killer Zin drank 16+ years ago!
I would definitely like to try one of those! Well…not for the release price of course. But id like to try em!
How do folks feel about San Lorenzo The Pearl, Pete Seghesio’s project? Just received an offer today suggesting it was All That, and the few CT reviews I see are enthustiastic.
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Just looked them up and I’m in shock with those prices.
Has anyone seen a 100pt Zin crop up since this thread last got updated?
I drink lots of Zin but not the more
Modernized stuff. The highest I’ve been is 95 points, Sky Zin. Hard for me to imagine a better Zinfandel being made. Now that said, even this beauty does not hit the heights of the many fine wines I’ve had in the 95+ point range.
Have had some excellent Bedrocks up to 94, and some old Ravenswoods as well. I bet some Bedrock Oakville Farmhouse have the range to bust 95 when mature.
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Thinking Turley doesn’t make a Black Sears anymore at least I haven’t come across it.
Sattui does and it is pretty nice----100 pts, probably not but easily 90+.
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Oakville Farmhouse isn’t really a Zin.
True. Has Zin in it.
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A Ridge Geyserville 1972 back in 2019 came pretty close. We had it at Le Bernardin in NYC and our sommelier gave it to his head sommelier to taste blind and he guessed it to be a Vosnee Romanee (“probably a Richebourg”) from a top producer with probably 25+ years of age.
So… lacking typicity? Interestingly enough, a nineteen sixty-something Lytton Springs (pre-Ridge) drunk at about 30 years of age was probably my favorite Zin ever, but it too smelled and tasted nothing like I expected from Zin. An aged Burg is a pretty reasonable approximation. Attempts to age more recent versions did not produce the same results.
Can any Zin be 100 points? This goes to the “how do you define 100 points” question, discussed more extensively here:
https://www.wineberserkers.com/t/what-does-100-point-score-mean
https://www.wineberserkers.com/t/how-rare-are-should-100-pt-wines-be
Was that 30 year old Lytton Springs 100 points? I didn’t score it at the time, but maybe. I still remember it, which says something. I’m in the camp that believes in multiple different ways a wine can be 100 points… it’s not limited to a mythical “perfect” wine.
I drank a lot of Zin in my early days while waiting for ageable stuff to mature. Went through a phase where bigger, boozier, oakier was the thing, and drank a fair number of the RP 97-point darlings (1994 Hayne, Martinelli Jackass Hill, etc.). Once I started drinking the old world stuff, the 16% ABV Zins started to taste like rocket fuel, and I turned my back on them. That era passed a while ago, but I’ve only recently started to drink them again.
I’ve had a few contemporary Zins worthy of scores in the low to mid 90s, but haven’t yet encountered anything that has approached 100 points. I just don’t think the style pushes my personal 100-point buttons, which usually get set off by aged complexity. Maybe with 20-30 years of age they might. I don’t think they’re built for that, but I’m too old to find out, so I enjoy them young.
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Has anyone tried a Bedrock Buffalo in Montana yet? Just listened to their Winter release podcast and Chris talks about the 2021 as possibly the best wine they’ve ever made.
Might be good to update this list now-----I mean I think 8 years in passing but I bet a lot of the same wines from newer vintages show up! I can certainly do a CT search but not having the time to write them all down.
There are 7 “100 point” Zinfandels on CT, each with one over zealous poster to rate a wine perfect that 99% of Berserkers would not recognize. !
Carlisle Zinfandel Russian River Valley Papera Ranch 2007 96 $40
Turley Zinfandel Napa Valley Hayne Vineyard 1994 96 $27
Bedrock The Bedrock Heirloom Sonoma Valley 2008 95 $35
Bedrock The Bedrock Heritage Sonoma Valley 2012 95 $42
Bedrock The Bedrock Heritage Sonoma Valley 2011 95 $37
Carlisle Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley 2007 95 $33
Carlisle Zinfandel Russian River Valley Montafi Ranch 2006 95 $40
Carlisle Zinfandel Russian River Valley Papera Ranch 2008 95 $43
Linne Calodo Problem Child Paso Robles 2006 95 $48
Saxum Paderewski Vineyard Paso Robles 2010 95 $89
Seghesio Zinfandel Alexander Valley Home Ranch 2009 95 $38
Turley Zinfandel Howell Mountain Black-Sears Vineyard 1995 95 $26
Turley Zinfandel Napa Valley Hayne Vineyard 1996 95 $40
Turley Zinfandel Napa Valley Hayne Vineyard 1993 95 $22
Turley Zinfandel Oakley Duarte Vineyard 1995 95 $22
Turley Zinfandel Paso Robles Dusi Vineyard 2011 95 $42
Turley Zinfandel Paso Robles Ueberroth Vineyard 2009 95 $48
Valdez Family Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley Simoncini Vineyard 2007 95 $38
Bedrock Zinfandel Lodi Kirschenmann Vineyard 2012 94 $35
Bedrock Zinfandel Sonoma Valley Monte Rosso 2012 94 $45
Bedrock Zinfandel Sonoma Valley Monte Rosso 2010 94 $40
Robert Biale Zinfandel Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley Aldo’s Vineyard 2008 94 $52
Can you explain this list? You mention 7 100 point wines, but list a lot more than 7. And none of those listed have a “100” in the column to the left of the price. I’ve tried to puzzle it out and I’m stuck.
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Yes they are. Sorry it took so long 
96 Martinelli Jackass Hill
Joe,
Obviously, the answer is dependent on the taster I have never seen anyone seriously rate a Zin at 100.
However, about 15 years ago, I attended a small tasting of Ridge Zins from the late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s. Most were sound and all had least 35 years of age.
The really good ones tasted like aged Claret. And a couple (a Geyserville or two, if I recall) tasted like aged first growths from a great vintage.
We weren’t rating anything but I suspect more than one taster thought those were perfect. I surely did.
If “perfect” incudes the notion that Zin tastes like Claret.
Best, Jim
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I felt the same but was able to buy a single bottle of Downstream for 20% off. Good wine but a zin blend at that price isn’t my jam. Their recent mailer said “some critics” gave it 99pts.
2019 blend:
38% Zinfandel, 24% Grenache, 17% Mataro, 11% Syrah, 4% Cinsault, 4% Graciano, and 2% Petite Sirah
Elaine Brown has an article called: “In defense of Zinfandel” in Decanter (behind paywall):
https://www.decanter.com/wine/elaine-chukan-brown-in-defence-of-zinfandel-498328/
Nice to see a little Zin love come back around amongst the washed.
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