Brassfield Estate Zinfandel, Monte Sereno Vineyard 2004

Last night I met my friends Sarah and Efrain at temple for our usual Tuesday night libations. For fun I bought along a bottle of Brassfield Estate Zinfandel, Monte Sereno Vineyard. The High Valley region of Lake County was declared an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in 2005 and is home to some of the oldest Zinfandel vines in California. Brassfield has produced a great little Zin that contrary to the trend isn't super hot (14.8% alcohol) but rather very balanced. The nose is greeted by blackberries, cedar, and a touch of peppery mint. The wine is medium-full bodied with supple tannins and good acidity combining with the jammy fruit created a lingering finish that was a great experience.

Number of wines reviewed in 2010: 33

A Bit Of This, A Bit Of That

Went wine tasting at the San Diego Wine Company. This week it was a selection of wines new to the shop. There were some definite hits but a few misses as well:

Luna 2007 "Freakout": Quite an interesting blend of white wine grapes - 7% Ribolla Gialla, 25% Sauvignon Blanc, 33% Pinot Grigio, 35% Chardonnay (wow). Light straw in color, I felt that the Chardonnay over shadowed the other, somewhat lighter grapes. Smokey, toasty and melon were what I picked up most. Not bad, not impressed.

Kunde 2006 "Sonoma Valley" Chardonnay: Again light straw in color, blend of apples, pears, and butter on the nose with decent fruit delivery. Good acid, medium finish. Good everyday kind of Chard and at the price ($9.95) it really could be.

Manu 2008 "Marlborough" Sauvignon Blanc: Nice stone fruits and citrus, hints of herbaceousness, good acidity. A tad tight but nice.

Mont Gras 2007 "Quatro": A Chilean blend of 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Malbec, 25% Syrah and 15% Carmenere, this is a lovely little wine. Deep ruby shading to purple. Nice black currant, cherries, hint of "gaminess" on the nose. A medium bodied wine delivering good fruit and a hint of oak along with balanced acidity and tannins leading to a medium length enjoyable finish.

Eberle 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon: Solid offering by a Paso Robles mainstay (gotta love the pig logo). Nice deep garnet, excellent black fruits and berries on the nose, hints of tobacco and chocolate. Nice mouthfeel and acid/tannin balance. Longish finish, a fine product.

Brassfield 2004 "High Valley" Monte Sereno Zinfandel: From the High Valley appellation just north of Napa comes a nice Zin (currently on sale at SD Wine Company). Deep rich color, fruit-forward nose and nice, good mouthfeel, decent acid/tannin/fruit balance.

Wines reviewed in 2009: 150