Community Tasting Notes 122

• barrytaylor wrote: 92 points

  December 30, 2023 - What you expect from a Taf zin, ready

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• barrytaylor Likes this wine: 90 points

  January 15, 2023 - typical Raf Zin, med body, deep color, ready

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• thesternowl wrote: 94 points

  January 11, 2023 - Something quite magical often happens to Rafanelli Zinfandel after 10+ years of bottle age. I can’t explain it…but these wines begin to take on more rustic, Old World feel. It’s as if they shift into an overdrive. The fruit is still big, beautiful and pure (no-doubt a testament to their rigorous selection) and yet they can often display a new energy about them which give them remarkable longevity. This bottle is perfectly representative.
  
  Opened to celebrate my daughter’s 14th birthday, the 2009 Rafanelli Zinfandel pours a deep, practically opaque garnet that becomes more turbid the further we delved into the bottle (in typical fashion, this Rafanelli full of sediment). Medium+ viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, bright cherry and bramble-like fruits, Asian spices, espresso and some black pepper. I do sense a touch of VA. On the palate, the wine is dry and with medium tannin and medium+ acid. The notes from the nose are confirmed…with a bit of added emphasis, it should be noted. There’s almost a Pop Rocks experience too…with the slightest effervescence pricking the tongue. And again, this is something that I would more expect from a non-interventionalist wine from Italy…certainly not from Sonoma. Hot take here…but this bottle reminded me of something from Paolo Bea (San Valentino) more than anything from Sonoma, let alone California. It’s just so wonderful. The finish is long and delivers minutes of pleasure.
  
  As far as I’m concerned, nobody is making Zinfandel with the soul that Rafanelli does and the proof is in the bottle each and every time. Of course, they are delicious when young but with age, these wines become something else. Drink now with a decant (for sediment only) and through 2034.

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• KJLover Likes this wine: 95 points

  June 23, 2022 - this remains remarkable. great color and has mellowed to have incredible notes of gentle dark fruits with dark chocolate supporting cast

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• Tudz Drkl Likes this wine:

  March 26, 2022 - Still delicious. The nose is spicy and cherry fruit with some nice herbaceous notes intertwined. Bright acidity and very silky tannins carry along spicy layers of red and black fruits. The profile is juicy and progressive. The finish is long and juicy.

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Pro Reviews 1

Wine Definition

• Vintage 2009
• Type Red
• Producer A. Rafanelli
• Varietal Zinfandel
• Designation n/a
• Vineyard n/a
• Country USA
• Region California
• SubRegion Sonoma County
• Appellation Dry Creek Valley
• UPC Code 854801001649

Community Holdings

• Pending Delivery 12 (0%)
• In Cellars 1,083 (35%)
• Consumed 2,036 (65%)

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