February 10, 2018 - After drinking four bottles I am extremely disappointed in this wine. To me it is not at all up to the hype I have seen. It seems tired and thin. There is flowery fruit and ok briariness with a dry mild tannin on the finish. I am sure glad I got the wine for sixty percent of the going retail, but I would not buy it again for half of what I did
September 20, 2017 - Maybe my source for this wine was not up to par but none of my bottles so far have been up to my expectations. This bottle was the best so far but still it seemed a bit tired and just past its prime. There was a good bit of fruit but flavors just muddled together. I need to do a physical inventory and pull out any bottles left over and drink them right away
August 15, 2015 - notes same as last; went great with the Greek pizza last night
July 24, 2015 - Classic easy drinking Zin. Stewed stone fruits, soy sauce and spice/pepper. Just the thing to share with friends during dinner on the back porch.
June 28, 2015 - 89 going on 90... A solid wine that has put on plenty of weight with just a few years of age. Stewed plum, cherry and stone fruits. Earthiness, dust and dry loam. Some candied tones left over from the youth of this wine but not as much as I'd like. Tannins are mostly evolved but some steminess remains. Copious sediment that lingers in suspension for a long time. Stood the bottle up for two days, did a careful decant, and still I had big scab like flakes making their way into the glasses... Thus, the texure was indeed a bit grainy, though with more patience and care, I believe all that sediment could get dropped out, or use a sieve. Overall the wine seems aged to a point long past what its years would suggest. I know the storage conditions on this bottle have been flawless, so attributing that profile to the wine itself. Fruit is starting to fade a little too far. Acid is pretty much dropping out from the palette. I find myself contemplating if the profile is a result of zinfandel itself, something Michael and co. are doing with their methods, endemic to Dry Creek Valley? either way, this wine was a treat to be able to deconstruct and was rated excellent by all 6 people who shared in it. Cheers to hesnctrl for this trade bottle.
February 13, 2015 - PnP. Brought to a restaurant, so no formal notes. Med crimson in color with baked berries and toasty oak on the nose. Fruit seems to start to take a backseat on the palate. Good texture. Given where the fruit is and considering the 2008 Dwight Vineyard is past prime, I would drink up.
Enjoyed in a Riedel Vinum Chianti Classico glass.
August 19, 2014 - Tuesday Night Double Blind <$30 (Bin 75): Dark core with medium extraction and lighter maroon rim; cassis, cedar, green pepper, green, spice, sweeter fruit, clove; spicy, sweet fruit, tart and red, sweet cranberry, green note is subdued on the palate, cinnamon, deep, rich though good acid gives crispness, juicy, almost blueberry; very good; called it.
August 15, 2014 - This was our second bottle. With the first bottle we noted a very strong cherry pinot flavor but with grippy tannins. Tonight we paired with Chinese (general tsao's chicken etc) and it was a great match - the cherry faded and the selection held up to the varying flavors. Nice.
July 20, 2014 - Decanted for an hour. This was more like a bad Pinot than a Zin. Total Cranberry fruit over and over. It was like Ocean Spray in a wine glass. Sadly I still have one more bottle. Not even worth scoring.
June 21, 2014 - - Garnet color. It's somewhat balanced with a medium body. Narrow texture with a medium finish.