| Community Tasting Notes (average 91.9 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 56 notes) |
| | Tasted by mflesh on 12/3/2021 & rated 88 points: Starting to develop a savory note in addition to a lot of black fruit that is showing a bit of age. This wine is not too far over the hill by any means but I do feel that it is probably on the back of the hill about to take the plunge. Weedy, dense, complex red wine. Expected a little more balance here but I definitely wouldn't kick this out of bed for eating crackers. I am really impressed with this wine but wouldn't be the first bottle I would reach for on the second round. (1058 views) |
| | Tasted by levinml on 6/1/2016 & rated 89 points: Somehow over the last few years I've gotten to dislike the core flavors of Martinelli zins. Same this time. Hot, weird flavors (compared to the other zin big hitters). Maybe it's just me. (2662 views) |
| | Tasted by peterk on 2/21/2016 & rated 94 points: My last bottle. Decanted for 6 hours, re-bottled, then decanted for another 8 hours. The time in the decanter allowed the wine time to integrate and for the fruit to emerge into a concentrated, fat, sweet, juicy, fruity, spicy, delicious wine with a finish that goes on and on. And not a hint of heat despite its 16.5% alcohol. Next stop the 2004! (2794 views) |
| | Tasted by SMHalps on 6/14/2015 & rated 91 points: I was surprised at how much fruit this had left. Lots of power and fruit. Maybe a little port like. It was a big hit with the wine group that I shared it with. (3203 views) |
| | Tasted by levinml on 1/14/2015 & rated 90 points: A reminder of why I'm not buying Martinelli zins anymore. Matter of personal taste, i think. Wine is still in great shape for 12 years old. Given my like of Turley and Carlisle, this is different in that almost all the Martinellis I've had are jammier, hotter and have a plummy taste. Not a profile I'm enjoying. Just me. (3310 views) |
| | Tasted by FLI on 6/17/2013 & rated 89 points: I normally hate high alcohol wines, and this one definitely qualifies at 16.5%. But somehow it manages to keep it integrated. The fruit is deep and rich. No tannins to speak of, but who cares. A berry bomb, packing a punch, but not too "hot" on the palate. Not my favorite style of wine, but a treat nonetheless. (4061 views) |
| | Tasted by levinml on 6/15/2013 & rated 92 points: Much better second night under pump. First night a little hot, but as earlier taster noted, after a little air the hotness blows away leaving deep, well-balanced fruit. Enjoyed much more than expected, as recent bottles I've drank seemed overly pruney. This was much more along the lines of a high-end zin expected with the Martinelli Jackass name. (2813 views) |
| | Tasted by tsanders on 2/7/2013 & rated 90 points: Pretty good, still maintained more fruit at this point than I would have guessed. Beautiful ruby color with a nose of Strawberry and Raspberry plus a little hint of spice. Can certainly still pick up even more fruit in the taste with a definite Strawberry Jam and a little heat from the alcohol that's building as it ages. The wine has a smooth texture and finishes well, should be drank now if you still have it. (3256 views) |
| | Tasted by peterk on 12/15/2012 & rated 92 points: Initially a little hot; however, after an hour the heat blew off leaving a classic Jackass Zin - fruity, rich, and bold. Drink up. (2896 views) |
| | Tasted by peterk on 10/14/2012 & rated 92 points: Classic Jackass - yum! (2564 views) |
| | Tasted by pattse on 4/8/2012 & rated 90 points: Decanted 50 hours and it was amazing. It could have been decanted even longer. (2018 views) |
| | Tasted by rdsboca on 4/3/2012 & rated 94 points: Zin Tasting @ FRank and Dino's - Deerfield Beach, FL: Softer and more feminine than the 2002. More suited to my palate. Rich red fruit - cheries and some red plum. Acidity comes through nicely, holding it together. (2493 views) |
| | Tasted by peterk on 2/21/2012 & rated 92 points: Deep purple, lovely nose. A little hot at first, but the heat subsided after a half hour when the wine became a big, rich, concentrated, fruit-driven, classic Jackass Zin. On the second day the wine had declined a bit - time to drink up. (1748 views) |
| | Tasted by CRUSHER on 9/4/2011 & rated 86 points: overrated , bit hot , poor balance (2031 views) |
| | Tasted by FLI on 7/2/2011 & rated 90 points: For the first 10 minutes after opening, this wine was hot and volatile. 16.5% alcohol will do that. After that, it settled down, and flavors of cherry juice, brown sugar and spice were dominant. Tasty, but I hate to feel so sleepy after two glasses. (2066 views) |
| | Tasted by Cashious on 12/26/2010 & rated 93 points: Deep purple color. A rich, peppery aroma. Syrupy, dark fruit flavors. Very syrah-like. A little heat, but only a touch. A long fruit burst of a finish. Excellent. (2319 views) |
| | Tasted by 505WineGuy on 11/26/2010 & rated 92 points: We were surprised at how fruity this was. A bit smoky with a long finish. Wish I had another. (2618 views) |
| | Tasted by Pearls_b4Swine on 9/11/2010 & rated 88 points: So extracted, so brutish, so alcoholic. Regret saving it this long. (2737 views) |
| | Tasted by MarkC on 5/9/2010 & rated 92 points: Interesting Zinfandel. Would have had a hard time picking this as Zinfandel at first. Elements of both Pinot (!) and Syrah. Some cola-like elements, a bit of beef blood, but plenty of sweet, brambly berry fruit, cassis, and a mouth-coating texture with a long finish. Bordered on sweet, but also had plenty of tannin (still). Quite tasty. (PE: 92) (3115 views) |
| | Tasted by cnr128 on 2/15/2010 & rated 90 points: It's big and it's bold and it is full of all sorts of stuff. Surpisingly fruity at this age and still has some left to go. Dark berries, kind of smoky and a little bit of Indian spices make this a terrific Zin. A little "hot" but there's so much going on here that it is only one thing you notice. Terrific. (2818 views) |
| | Tasted by shaferguy91 on 11/17/2009 & rated 92 points: Still a wonderful zin. No sign of decline. (3179 views) |
| | Tasted by Amerique on 6/8/2009 & rated 92 points: Very high extracted, over-riped, intense, full-bodied mixed berry fruit with raisiny, plummy, and cassis flavors, little short finish (3039 views) |
| | Tasted by Deb293 on 4/9/2009 & rated 92 points: Some signs of bricking on the pour, but no so much in the glass. Nose of plum compote, vanilla, raspberry jam and spice. On the palate this is rich and spicy, sweet almost. For fans of the full throttle. Finishes a little hot. Don't get me wrong...it'll be a killer with grilled skirt steak. Day two, this is well knit and very berry. Who needs the skirt steak? (3271 views) |
| | Tasted by MarkC on 5/3/2008 & rated 92 points: Not completely "correct" compared to most Zins, but I still enjoy this particular vintage of the Jackass. Plummy, raspberry, underbrush and a very viscous mouthfeel, this is way better (to me) than the two or three preceding vintages. I do think it's started to become a little more varietally correct as some of the baby fat has receded and a bit of spicy/pepper has come through, but definitely not for most people. (3496 views) |
| | Tasted by mghomula on 4/10/2008 & rated 93 points: Big, big Zinfandel as one who is a fan of Martinelli's JA Zins might expect. A very deep and intense purplish blue in color. Powerful and layered aromas of macerated fruit, jammy blackberries, currant, black cherry and hints of spice (black pepper perhaps) on the nose with just a subtle touch of heat. As others have noted, the high alcohol content is masked by the complexity of the fruit and this Zin is well balanced. Jammy blackberries, currant, raisins, soy, clove and smoke on the palate with a lingering finished. Again, very well balanced and smooth. It has a ton of body and mouthfeel and the flavors are intense. This wine is a testament to 100+ year old vines and the mastery of winemaker Helen Turley. Unlike any Zin you will have and that is a good thing! (3785 views) |
| | Tasted by 2loyal on 12/28/2007 & rated 93 points: I almost expected to be overwhelmed by the alcohol, but while it was a stereotypically extracted and ripe (classic "Parker wine"), I was very pleasently surprised by the absense of "heat", as the alcohol was amazingly well hidden. Not your grandmother's Zin (unless you've got a very cool grandma), of course, but I consider this to be a real testiment to Helen Turley's winemaking skill. It actually lived up to the hype! (3654 views) |
| | Tasted by MarkC on 9/5/2007 & rated 92 points: I really enjoy this wine. Ripe plum, juicy berries, a hint of coffee/mocha, with pretty good balance and, for the most part, no indication of the 16.5% alcohol. There were moments when I could either smell or taste the alcohol, but couldn't figure out exactly why it showed through only on occasion. If this wine had more backbone - it's almost got too much fruit - it would warrant more points for sure. A bit soft, but definitely enjoyable IF you like this style of wine. (3904 views) |
| | Tasted by BeavisCC on 8/19/2007 & rated 93 points: Huge, but also surprisingly well balanced in view of alcohol content. Difficult to pair with food, but a great wine to ponder while sipping w/o food. Port-like extraction and intensity, and another success for this sometimes really out-of-balance (in certain prior vintages) bottling. (3844 views) |
| | Tasted by enosnob on 2/5/2007 & rated 95 points: A beauty to look at it is a dark purple/red with bluish plum colors. Big, big nose o(needed to decant as it was muted at first) wiht blueberry, dried fruits.soy, smoke, and barbecue spice. This a full bodied joy of a wine with layers and layers of flavors of multiple red fruits,, smoke and caramel., chocolate and spice. You can enjoy the finish for a minute or more. (3885 views) |
| | Tasted by otisabdul on 8/12/2006 & rated 93 points: Purchased from the winery for $65. Served blind at Haggis' recent offline. The light color of the wine had many fooled, thinking pinot noir or syrah. Pure raspberry liqueur nose leads into a spicy fruit-laden palate that buzzes with intensity. Decent balance, with the 16.5% alcohol marrying well with the tannins. Dynamic energetic finish. A wine that demands attention. It sure had mine. I loved it. (4120 views) |
| | Tasted by MarkC on 6/27/2006 & rated 93 points: If you're looking for typicity, this is not the wine. Thankfully, I'm not always burdened by the need for a wine to be "correct," and tonight is one of those times. This smells and tastes more like a full-throttle Syrah than a Zin. Dark fruits and meat on the nose. On the palate, more of the same - strawberry, blackberry, some sweet plum, along with meaty, gamey notes, and some cocoa and clove. Has more backbone/acidity than I remember from last fall. Showed some heat with the sauce on the meat tonight, but on its own was pretty docile, despite the 16.5% alcohol. (4243 views) |
| | Tasted by EricBe on 5/30/2006 & rated 83 points: Like drinking cherry cough syrup soaked with tea & tobacco, this had so much fruit & alcohol. I know that Zin is a big wine, but c'mon, that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to give it at least some sense of balance. (4169 views) |
| | Tasted by lshantz on 5/23/2006 & rated 94 points: Great hearty Zin, but smooth & polished. (4129 views) |
| | Tasted by buckeye76 on 2/12/2006 & rated 92 points: BLACK CHERRIES AND RASPBERRIES IN THE NOSE AND FLAOVR WITH HINTS OF SPICE. MEDIUM TO LONG FINISH. (701 views) |
| | Tasted by MarkC on 9/14/2005 & rated 95 points: Drank at Savory with Boeuf Bourgignon. Dark red/purple color. Nose was a touch muted at first but came around after a few minutes. In the mouth this was a thick, rich wine. Fairly typical of Martinelli, but with oodles of flavor and gobs of plum and chocolate. The best Jackass I've had. (4533 views) |
| | Tasted by mdstenner on 4/23/2005: 16.5% alcohol. I cannot rate this wine. It is simply not what I expect from a Zinfandel. Maybe a dessert Zinfandel! It was almost port-like, and like a poorly made sweet Port at that. The color of the wine was the first distraction – almost akin to dried blood according to Jeff. Maybe it was the light in the kitchen but I couldn’t top that. The nose was a wave of oak, giving way to sweet blueberries. The wine is quite sweet on the palate with blackberry and blueberry. If syrup is your thing, a good way to spend $65. For me, I’ll stick to the nice and simple Zinfandel I bought to compare to the Jackass (Renwood Fiddletown 02). (4023 views) |
