Wine Aficionado

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Wayno

Big Wall climber

Seattle, WA

Dec 1, 2011 - 02:13am PT

Fritz has been drinking his fair share of some kinda old vine Zinfandel they call the Seven Deadly Zinns and he seems to like it and he is kinda funny when he's whetting his whistle. Costco has it for ten something, so I bought a bottle and I am drinking it now with my wife, a bowl of spaghetti and a couple of dogs. And now, you people too. Here is my Robert Parker:

7 Deadly Zinns? Seven different growers lent grapes and passion to this wine. Why so many? Are only four not good enough? These are the top growers in Lodi. Didn't someone bury a busload of kids around there somewhere? Maybe that was Chowchilla.

On a more serious note, for me, the wine was good for what it cost. Seven vines made for very complex fruit and at 15% alc. it was dry but very well concentrated. The oak was a bit too much so I think it was an addition rather than length of aging as it seemed too artificial. The mature fruit and the oak is very discernible on the nose along with some graphite and red peppercorns. Well rounded body leads into that classic peppery Zinn finish which is longer than expected.

Overall, I would say...

The wife really likes it.

I drank it fine, but where is the acidity? I like a little more bite, but that's because I drink mostly Italian Wines. For a Cali wine it is a good buy.

Fritz, when we finally hook up, I will open an Amarone. You would really like it.

pyro

Big Wall climber

Calabasas

Dec 1, 2011 - 11:57am PT

I drink only local home grown wines.

Ghost

climber

A long way from where I started

Dec 1, 2011 - 02:16pm PT

so I bought a bottle and I am drinking it now with my wife, a bowl of spaghetti and a couple of dogs.

You ate your dogs? Boris and Joe are gone? Man, how could you?

Here is my Robert Parker:

Robert Parker has almost single-handedly ruined wine.

Mtnmun

Trad climber

Top of the Mountain Mun

Dec 1, 2011 - 02:40pm PT

Robert Parker has almost single-handedly ruined wine.

How So?

mrtropy

Trad climber

Nor Cal

Dec 1, 2011 - 03:02pm PT

Wayno,

On a more serious note, for me, the wine was good for what it cost. Seven vines made for very complex fruit and at 15% alc. it was dry but very well concentrated. The oak was a bit too much so I think it was an addition rather than length of aging as it seemed too artificial. The mature fruit and the oak is very discernible on the nose along with some graphite and red peppercorns. Well rounded body leads into that classic peppery Zinn finish which is longer than expected.

I"ll tell the wine maker next time I see him. His wife is my daughter's math tutor. (you are correct about the oak) I will also let the owner know as he is one of my best friends. The first year they used 7 vineyards now the use whatever they need. I helped plant one of the original 7 vineyards(my uncle's) back in highschool. Small town here and everyone knows everyone.

Cheers jeff

Ghost

climber

A long way from where I started

Dec 1, 2011 - 03:10pm PT

How So?

It'll take more than a sentence to answer, and I'm on deadline today, so I'll try tomorrow. In the meantime, Wayno may choose to answer -- I believe his view of this is similar to mine.

Fritz

Trad climber

Choss Creek, ID

Dec 1, 2011 - 04:49pm PT

Wayno: Thanks for giving the 7 Deadly Zins a try & a review. I really can't claim to be a wine aficionado.

Maybe an addict: would be a more appropriate description.

However! I won't drink the cheap crap!

I just hate two day hangovers after 3 glasses of cheap wine.

Wayno

Big Wall climber

Seattle, WA

Dec 3, 2011 - 01:44am PT

Jeff, that is so cool that you know the winemaker of some wine we just happen to be talking about. I love that "small world" stuff. My hat goes off to your buddy. He seems to have a popular wine. I really enjoyed his label.

I don't want to start on trashing Parker and his ilk. When the corporate model of doing business infects the wine industry, they need guys like Parker to make it all work and seem warm and fuzzy.

I am totally biased in my personal opinions about wine, but because my job involves a lot of wine tasting I understand how to be fair in my comparisons and descriptions. Price is always a big consideration even though it says little about the wine. I drink mostly Italian wines that I have discovered to be good deals. When I drink a wine like the 7 deadly zinns and put it up against a similarly priced wine from Italy that I know to be good, I think that either the Italians aren't getting enough or the Cali Boys are getting too much.

Fritz, how often to you get to Seattle?

steveA

Trad climber

bedford,massachusetts

Dec 3, 2011 - 07:40am PT

Christie's in London, recently sold 12 bottles of wine for $178,595, from the Sir Evelyn de Rothschild's collection.

Only for the VERY rich!

Go too Christie's auction results-London, Dec 1

Can't seem to post the link-sorry

selfish man

Gym climber

Austin, TX

Dec 3, 2011 - 09:33am PT

Robert Parker is the Supertopo for wine drinkers. Nothing wrong with supertopo.

Robert Parker has almost single-handedly ruined wine.

Tony Bird

climber

Northridge, CA

Dec 3, 2011 - 09:59am PT

well, some personal notes here.

we like going to silver lake wine company every little once in awhile--nice tastings, gourmet food trucks on the sidewalk. they are, shall we say, both insightful and reasonable. you learn more about wine there. they put us onto a winery called derosa, located a little south of gilmore somewhere, which grows without irrigating.

otherwise, like others here, we've gotten onto central coast zins, interesting and affordable. i've also taken an interest in sierra foothills--connected nicely one afternoon with the compari at mt. brow near sonora.

just a word about italian wine, from someone whose mother helped with relatives' chianti grape harvests when she was growing up. italians have done wine for a long time, but they didn't get snobbish about it until the past 20 years, when they realized how much money could be made doing that. before that it was just wine, and maybe, once in awhile, "good wine". and they've always produced more wine than the french.

french wine being marketed in california, i never trust. there's always an angle. if you want it good, be prepared to pay, pay, pay. pierre's revenge. i just stick to california wineries i've gotten to know and love, and occasionally enjoy good things coming from australia, africa and south south america without that marketing attitude.

pyro

Big Wall climber

Calabasas

Dec 3, 2011 - 12:06pm PT

wine snobbs suck! just say'n

Fritz

Trad climber

Choss Creek, ID

Dec 3, 2011 - 02:40pm PT

Wayno: Seattle trips are pretty rare for me these days. First in 5 years: was fly in for a sales meeting, and fly out on the same day, last July. You need to come visit Choss Creek during the summer for fishing & adventure.

Wayno

Big Wall climber

Seattle, WA

Dec 3, 2011 - 02:50pm PT

That sounds way better than Seattle. I have a cousin in Boise I have been meaning to visit. Is Choss Creek far from Boise?

Ksolem

Trad climber

Monrovia, California

Dec 3, 2011 - 03:21pm PT

french wine being marketed in california, i never trust. there's always an angle. if you want it good, be prepared to pay, pay, pay. pierre's revenge.

My brother who is French now came to visit recently. We went to BevMo to get some wine. He checked out their French reds, and was amused to see a wine that winos drink on the street in his town of St Etienne priced at over $40. But then he picked out a 2007 Grandes Serre Lirac ($14) which was very good and a 2007 Cotes Du Rhone from E. Guigal which was also quite good.

From the French I'm a fan of the Dry Loire Valley whites. Puille Fume especially. I know, some folks think that oaking Sauvignon Blanc should be a capital crime, but I love that combination of dry and pungent. To the nose there is a hint of catpiss on gravel...

Fritz

Trad climber

Choss Creek, ID

Dec 3, 2011 - 05:19pm PT

Lots of wineries near Boise.

Some of them are turning out some pretty good stuff.

Further evidence that Idaho’s wine industry has arrived: Gem State winemakers took home a record 47 medals at the prestigious Pacific Northwest Wine Summit held last week at Timberline Lodge in Oregon. It's the largest wine competition in the Northwest.

The Idaho Gold Medal Winners:

Cinder Winery's Melanie Krause won gold and Best Rosé for her 2008 Cinder Rosé ($14.99);

Veteran Winemaker Greg Koenig won big, taking a total of 9 medals, including gold for his Koenig Cuvee Amelia Reserve Syrah ($50) and the Bitner Vineyard's Riesling ($12) which he also makes.

John Danielson of Vale Wine Co. also took gold for his first vintage 2008 Riesling ($14).

Sawtooth winemaker Bill Murray won gold for his Reserve Cabernet ($24.99).

Choss Creek is 90 miles SE of Boise. Fishing near here is best in the fall, but a local slogan is: "the fish are always biting."

Another nearby community hosts The Rockchuck Derby, complete with a Miss Rockchuck contest.
Luckily, no local vintners have thought of making "Rockchuck Rose" from the rockchucks offed in the Derby.

selfish man

Gym climber

Austin, TX

Dec 3, 2011 - 07:41pm PT

When eating in restaurants in France, I've never ordered anything but the house wine. Tend to be excellent, cheaper than water, and go with the food perfectly. As for the big names (classified Medoc chateaus, Chateauneuf du Pape etc.) they are often cheaper and easier to find in the US. It's not true that they are overpriced, as compared to, say, Napa Valley. In fact, with some judicious shopping (Costco!) they are often better buys (not to mention better wines).