Community Tasting Notes 105

• SAND Likes this wine: 90 points

  June 30, 2020 - (Old vine Zinfandel with minor amounts of Petite Sirah and Carignane. Aged in new and one year old American oak. 14.5% vol. The cork was intact with only a minor portion soaked with wine but broke as it came out).
  APPEARANCE: Medium deep black-reddish colour with a wide, lighter rim with a reddish brown tint.
  NOSE: Mature and jammy fruit with dark plums, strawberry marmalade; moderate oaky notes with hints of charring, tar, wood smoke, milk chocolate and leather. Some earthy and dusty notes as well. With more air come red gooseberries, liquorice and hints of mint.(91p)
  TASTE: The arrival is sweet with ripe, plum fruit and blackberries. On the mid palate it has an almost oily texture, with some milk chocolate and hints of mint, while the fruit is more sweet & sour (albeit less sour than sweet). The fruit carries on into the finish where it mixes with rather soft, rounded tannins, culminating in a lingering finish. (90-91p)
  OVERALL: Obviously a very mature Zinfandel, which may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but this really appeals to me. This typically ages better than most Zins. It may now be more for drinking than keeping although I think it will survive another few years of cellaring, possibly longer. TOTAL SCORE 90 (91) points.

  1 person found this helpful Comment

• Vandiner Likes this wine: 92 points

  June 20, 2020 - A mature Zin at the end of its plateau. No rush, it has the stuff to stay where it is for a couple of years but will not improve. Even so, this still needs some air to open up. Decant gently and enjoy. Yumm.

  Comment

• gharter Likes this wine: 90 points

  October 3, 2019 - Last bottle. The cork had not leaked at all, but broke as it came out. Still a beautiful wine. Loaded with fruit, blackberry, black pepper, spice, cedar and mint. Great balance with a long finish. Lots of depth.
  Comes across more as an aged claret than a zinfandel.

  2 people found this helpful Comment

• SMHalps Likes this wine: 92 points

  June 16, 2019 - This was a surprise. A bottle lost in my cellar, not even on my inventory! WA has 2 reviews for this, one from 2000, 90 points, with a drinking window that ends in 2009, and one from 2015, for 92 points with a drinking window that ends in 2024. 70% Zin, and a completely different wine than it was in its youth. But still very enjoyable. How much you like this, would depend on how you feel about Zins that have lost much of their fruit.

  1 person found this helpful Comment

• Rieslingfan wrote:

  June 16, 2019 - From the day it was released, this has been an outstanding rendition of Lytton Springs. From the first sip, to now, two hours after opening, it’s still outstanding. It still has plenty of fruit, and a mature complex backdrop of spice, cedar and mint. It’s perfectly balanced, and very long. Lots of depth, so it may even have upside, though I cannot imagine it being better than it is now. No rush though. There’s plenty of runway for this version of Lytton Springs.

  2 people found this helpful Comment

Pro Reviews 5

Wine Definition

• Vintage 1999
• Type Red
• Producer Ridge
• Varietal Zinfandel Blend
• Designation n/a
• Vineyard Lytton Springs
• Country USA
• Region California
• SubRegion Sonoma County
• Appellation Dry Creek Valley
• UPC Codes 744442901005, 744442901999

Community Holdings

• Pending Delivery 4 (1%)
• In Cellars 351 (45%)
• Consumed 423 (54%)

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