Distinctly opaque and a youthful plum color. Scents of plum, rhubarb, and bramble berry initially (and on the attack as well), followed by notes of coffee and cinnamon. The cinnamon note continues and carries the finish along with more brambles. The precision of the flavors kept us coming back and enjoying sip after sip. This 100% Zin remains youthful and inviting. 14.6% alc. A bit of sediment. With grilled beef hanger steak. 06.05.22. Recommended.
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this wine was electric and fresh despite its years in the bottle. there was some complexity but still definitely a fruit forward effort. lovely captivating bottle.
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A wine just entering its “ready to drink stage” with just barely resolved tannins. While not claret-like yet the way its 2008 sister is, it nevertheless delivers plum, brown sugar, rhubarb, and black fruits. Some coffee on the finish. 71% Zinfandel, 23% Petite Sirah and 6% Carignane. Sediment coats the entire neck and a portion of a side of the bottle. 14.5% alc. With homemade pork barbeque (day two). Recommended.
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When the 20212 went down in a flash, I returned from the cellar with this, which is what I originally wanted to pull, but couldn’t find it. While casting a similar ox blood red and equally opaque, the color is not as bright. No Draper perfume fills the nose. Brown sugar and molasses around sweet cherry and rhubarb wash across the palate with a softness, but lacking the refinement of the 2012. The tannins appear fully integrated. The mouthfeel is surprisingly thin next to the 2012. A finish of coffee closes out the show. If I drank this by itself, I’d likely be satisfied, but next to the 2012, its deficiencies are magnified. A fair amount of sediment clings to the bottle’s side. 14.6% alc. With mushroom, pepperoni and sausage pizza. Recommended.
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The wine looks crimson colored. The legs are medium. There is light sediment in the bottle. It smells like fig, strawberry jam, plum, forest floor and violet. The body is medium/full. The wine has juicy texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity.
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This wine is in a great spot right now. Vivid, rich and lively, with tannin receding. Unfortunately this was my last bottle, but I could see this drinking well for another 3-4 years before declining. Probably my favorite East Bench of the past 6 vintages. 2011 was a special year for Sonoma zins!
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Pours a brill black red color with very appealing and aromatic dark berry, briary, peppery spice and a hint of eucalyptus aromas. On the palate it's very fresh with mouth watering acidity, round and intensely delicious with blackberry, black raspberry, and baking spice flavors and a giving finish 100% Zinfandel
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If 2011 was a challenging vintage, you'd never know it from this zinfandel, which is one of my absolute faves from this decade so far. I inadvertently let it breathe for 90 minutes, but right out of the bottle and into the decanter it was very fragrant. For me, it has reached the window of optimum drinkability, the earlier tannic grip having loosened a bit. The wine is rich and bright with high-toned cherry fruit and orange spice. It has a certain elegance to it that is not found as often in warmer vintages. I'd say it easily has 4-5 years in it, but I probably won't be able to keep my hands off my remaining bottle nearly that long.
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This was a phenomenal wine. Just really opened up after one hour to a really rich, but not at all "jammy" flavor (which I do not like), but elegant wine. It was so balanced and elegant that I would have not thought it to be a Zin.
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Would put in top quartile of ridge zins. Distinct ripe fruits that have room to mellow but great for those who like "real" zins. Would recommend even if it were more expensive.
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Started off pretty closed, but after about 45 minutes of swirling in the glass, the wine started to give up classic aromas of bright zin fruit and spice. (As usual, the last glass was the best.) While not nearly as gregarious as the 2012 at this time, this 2011 seems to have a longer life ahead of it and is, to me, the superior wine. It is rich, with good tannic structure and mouth-watering acidity. An excellent example of a ripe but firm, cool vintage zinfandel from the Dry Creek Valley, one that I think will age beautifully for a good 6-8 years. I only wish I had bought more. (91-92)
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A bit more forward and ready to go than some other Ridge offerings but this iso right in line with the Ridge house style. Blackberry, red fruit, black pepper, and briar. Really doesn't need to age - delicious now. Sweet but not jammy with nicely balanced acidity.
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This zin is another excellent wine from Ridge. It is a bit different from others i've tried from Ridge in that is is very big on red fruit. The nose is of red cherry and herbs. The taste is of red fruit, specifically red cherry, unripe strawberry and a little cranberry bitterness. It has the tannins up front with the red fruit coming through and lingering for the long finish. This one, like its other Ridge stablemates, really comes alive with time in the glass to open up. I have no doubt that this one would age nicely, but is very drinkable right now with a little air. Like others have mentioned, it is a little young, but not at all too young to enjoy right now. Cheers!
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This wine's main attribute might be viewed by some as a shortcoming. I had this 100% zinfandel alongside the 2011 Ridge Carmichael zinfandel, which is a field blend that includes petite sirah, carignane, and alicante bouschet. The East Bench came across as more brooding and structured, but less complex than the more nuanced and feminine Carmichael. Still, it is a super-pure expression of Dry Creek Valley zinfandel. Like all Ridge zins, it is beautiful to look at and smell, and it has all the goods to go 5-7 years. It's pretty tannic right now, so I will wait a year before opening another.
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Smells fantastic! Perfectly ripe blueberries and black plums, damp earth, black pepper campfire meat, and some herbal/bramble notes. The entry is quite silky for a zin. Pure, rich red and blue zinberry flavors. The the tannins attack, coating the entire mouth and drying out the long finish. Tannins are relatively well-integrated, but will need a couple years to fully resolve. Great Dry Creek Valley zin!
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Oh yes. Day 1, nice little wine, faint oak and berries but kind of muted and a tad hot. Day 3, this is what I'm talking about. Ripe berries, lingering feel, very well integrated oak. This stuff is wonderful!
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Really enjoyed this wine. A little simple on opening, this became much more enjoyable with air. Excellent structure, pleasant combination of fruit, spice, and earth notes, with the fruit becoming slightly sweeter with time. This seems like it would benefit from a few years in bottle.
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I am usually a big fan of Ridge Zinfandels, but this one was just too fruity for my taste. Obviously it is a very young wine, so maybe it will gain complexity with age. Right now, I had trouble distinguishing it from three-buck chuck. All jammy fruit with a high-alcohol mouthfeel.
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Medium dark garnet color. Aromas of dark fruit, apple vinegar and mild leather. Flavors of tart red fruit supporting a full mouth feel and moderate finish. A little open time helps this young Zin.
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Very nice zin. 100% zin fruit from 12 year old vines. Easy drinking, good fruit, nice on a hot day slightly chilled. Not a complex wine but not a simple one either. Balanced.
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Smooth, pleasing. Very subtle for such a young wine. Berries, a tad oaky. Looking forward to see how this will age. Will need to retry shortly as it was a bit too warm. Was a crowd pleaser nonetheless.
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Deep brick red, clear and luminescent, beginning to get brown tonality, showing its young age. Intense, woody, vinous, smokey nose, suggesting high acidity which the palate confirms. Medium body, lean texture, high acidity but much fruitiness to balance. Complex, lingering. Enjoyable now but probably much better in 2-3 years, when the acidity has been tamed allowing the complex flavors to show.
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The 6th vintage of East Bench Zinfandel, from grapes grown on the eastern benchland above Dry Creek Valley. Aromas of violets, purple and black fruit, pepper and boysenberry. Shows ore floral notes as it opens. Has an elegance to it, as one expects in a cooler vintage like 2011. Balanced, with red fruit and nice acidity. Long finish.
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Enjoyed this one more than Geyserville 2011. Had week of release at winery. Nice flavors, mostly fruit, but not "light/fruity" more of a rich, but not sweet berry.
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clear, ruby, in color. dark tart fruit, blueberry, cherry, earth, spice, pepper, oak, on the nose. medium acid, low tannins, on this lingering delicious finish.
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Rich nose of blackberry tart with hints of cinnamon and cedar. Rich and fruity at the start on the palate, then turning a bit lighter in body with brightening berry flavors and moderate acidity. Moderate spice and low tannic grip. An early drinker.
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6/5/2022 - timewithwine Likes this wine:
Distinctly opaque and a youthful plum color. Scents of plum, rhubarb, and bramble berry initially (and on the attack as well), followed by notes of coffee and cinnamon. The cinnamon note continues and carries the finish along with more brambles. The precision of the flavors kept us coming back and enjoying sip after sip. This 100% Zin remains youthful and inviting. 14.6% alc. A bit of sediment. With grilled beef hanger steak. 06.05.22. Recommended.
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4/30/2021 - IAmVintage wrote: 92 Points
10 years young we enjoyed the age on this bottle of wonderful Zin fruit.
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3/26/2021 - mike l. Likes this wine: 92 Points
this wine was electric and fresh despite its years in the bottle. there was some complexity but still definitely a fruit forward effort. lovely captivating bottle.
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7/4/2019 - timewithwine wrote:
A wine just entering its “ready to drink stage” with just barely resolved tannins. While not claret-like yet the way its 2008 sister is, it nevertheless delivers plum, brown sugar, rhubarb, and black fruits. Some coffee on the finish. 71% Zinfandel, 23% Petite Sirah and 6% Carignane. Sediment coats the entire neck and a portion of a side of the bottle. 14.5% alc. With homemade pork barbeque (day two). Recommended.
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1/13/2019 - txtiebreaker wrote:
Victor for helping undecorate.
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8/12/2018 - timewithwine wrote:
When the 20212 went down in a flash, I returned from the cellar with this, which is what I originally wanted to pull, but couldn’t find it. While casting a similar ox blood red and equally opaque, the color is not as bright. No Draper perfume fills the nose. Brown sugar and molasses around sweet cherry and rhubarb wash across the palate with a softness, but lacking the refinement of the 2012. The tannins appear fully integrated. The mouthfeel is surprisingly thin next to the 2012. A finish of coffee closes out the show. If I drank this by itself, I’d likely be satisfied, but next to the 2012, its deficiencies are magnified. A fair amount of sediment clings to the bottle’s side. 14.6% alc. With mushroom, pepperoni and sausage pizza. Recommended.
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9/16/2017 - nowine4u Likes this wine: 91 Points
Wonderful. Drink now, don't wait any longer..
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4/17/2017 - AlexB70 wrote: 92 Points
Delicious with ribs!
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1/27/2017 - jshearer wrote: 91 Points
Purple bramble fruit. Integrated but less complex than first time around. Finishes with some tannin.
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8/10/2016 - SLOFred Likes this wine: 91 Points
Very nice Zin. Fruity, not very spicy or is there much cherry in it, something I really like in a good zin. But still, high quality.
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8/3/2016 - sbfern Likes this wine: 90 Points
The wine looks crimson colored. The legs are medium. There is light sediment in the bottle. It smells like fig, strawberry jam, plum, forest floor and violet. The body is medium/full. The wine has juicy texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity.
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7/17/2016 - diananm wrote: flawed
Corked
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6/25/2016 - PNIELSEN Likes this wine: 92 Points
This wine is in a great spot right now. Vivid, rich and lively, with tannin receding. Unfortunately this was my last bottle, but I could see this drinking well for another 3-4 years before declining. Probably my favorite East Bench of the past 6 vintages. 2011 was a special year for Sonoma zins!
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6/10/2016 - dpolivy wrote:
Vindredi (Ridge Cellar Night) (Bellevue, WA): Starts with sweet fruit and spice. Lush and lovely, with dark purple and black fruit. Finishes softly and well balanced.
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5/23/2016 - Martin Redmond wrote: 91 Points
Pours a brill black red color with very appealing and aromatic dark berry, briary, peppery spice and a hint of eucalyptus aromas. On the palate it's very fresh with mouth watering acidity, round and intensely delicious with blackberry, black raspberry, and baking spice flavors and a giving finish 100% Zinfandel
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4/11/2016 - twoamps Likes this wine: 89 Points
dark red, some fine hard sediment coating the bottle. Decanted. Nice enough, but more earth than fruit, and not much of the typical zin spice.
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3/5/2016 - PNIELSEN Likes this wine: 91 Points
If 2011 was a challenging vintage, you'd never know it from this zinfandel, which is one of my absolute faves from this decade so far. I inadvertently let it breathe for 90 minutes, but right out of the bottle and into the decanter it was very fragrant. For me, it has reached the window of optimum drinkability, the earlier tannic grip having loosened a bit. The wine is rich and bright with high-toned cherry fruit and orange spice. It has a certain elegance to it that is not found as often in warmer vintages. I'd say it easily has 4-5 years in it, but I probably won't be able to keep my hands off my remaining bottle nearly that long.
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8/16/2015 - SLOFred Likes this wine: 91 Points
This was a phenomenal wine. Just really opened up after one hour to a really rich, but not at all "jammy" flavor (which I do not like), but elegant wine. It was so balanced and elegant that I would have not thought it to be a Zin.
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5/15/2015 - tjchapman wrote: 89 Points
Fruity without being overly jammy. Very deep ruby color and great legs. Light pepper. Very full bodied. Nice wine!
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4/12/2015 - adamb95 wrote: 87 Points
Okay, but not as rich and flavorful as I had hoped. Perhaps an off bottle. Below most other Ridge Zins I've enjoyed in the past.
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3/21/2015 - ogres3 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Would put in top quartile of ridge zins. Distinct ripe fruits that have room to mellow but great for those who like "real" zins. Would recommend even if it were more expensive.
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1/13/2015 - PNIELSEN Likes this wine: 91 Points
Started off pretty closed, but after about 45 minutes of swirling in the glass, the wine started to give up classic aromas of bright zin fruit and spice. (As usual, the last glass was the best.) While not nearly as gregarious as the 2012 at this time, this 2011 seems to have a longer life ahead of it and is, to me, the superior wine. It is rich, with good tannic structure and mouth-watering acidity. An excellent example of a ripe but firm, cool vintage zinfandel from the Dry Creek Valley, one that I think will age beautifully for a good 6-8 years. I only wish I had bought more. (91-92)
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11/21/2014 - Woodbridge Brad Likes this wine: 89 Points
Good but not dense color, tons of spice, particularly black pepper. Great with food but a bit hot without. Nice balance with little or no sweetness.
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11/11/2014 - Twinkles wrote: 89 Points
A tad hot this time around. Should have read my previous notes. Will decant and drink the next day for next time.
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9/13/2014 - mgstull Likes this wine: 91 Points
A bit more forward and ready to go than some other Ridge offerings but this iso right in line with the Ridge house style. Blackberry, red fruit, black pepper, and briar. Really doesn't need to age - delicious now. Sweet but not jammy with nicely balanced acidity.
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6/5/2014 - alfaverde Likes this wine: 91 Points
This zin is another excellent wine from Ridge. It is a bit different from others i've tried from Ridge in that is is very big on red fruit. The nose is of red cherry and herbs. The taste is of red fruit, specifically red cherry, unripe strawberry and a little cranberry bitterness. It has the tannins up front with the red fruit coming through and lingering for the long finish. This one, like its other Ridge stablemates, really comes alive with time in the glass to open up. I have no doubt that this one would age nicely, but is very drinkable right now with a little air. Like others have mentioned, it is a little young, but not at all too young to enjoy right now. Cheers!
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5/3/2014 - typ993 wrote: 90 Points
Another nice zin from Ridge. Drinking nicely, lots of dark fruit, tannins not too evident.
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4/13/2014 - ddahl Likes this wine: 95 Points
Excellent zin. Despite only being a 2011, showed character and balance o much older vintage. Would buy by the case next time.
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3/23/2014 - Twinkles wrote: 90 Points
Same as previous notes. Always a pleasure.
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3/22/2014 - PNIELSEN Likes this wine: 90 Points
This wine's main attribute might be viewed by some as a shortcoming. I had this 100% zinfandel alongside the 2011 Ridge Carmichael zinfandel, which is a field blend that includes petite sirah, carignane, and alicante bouschet. The East Bench came across as more brooding and structured, but less complex than the more nuanced and feminine Carmichael. Still, it is a super-pure expression of Dry Creek Valley zinfandel. Like all Ridge zins, it is beautiful to look at and smell, and it has all the goods to go 5-7 years. It's pretty tannic right now, so I will wait a year before opening another.
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12/20/2013 - jjou wrote: 88 Points
Tasted at winery. Long on red fruit, with some minerality on finish. Still young.
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12/8/2013 - jshearer Likes this wine: 92 Points
Smells fantastic! Perfectly ripe blueberries and black plums, damp earth, black pepper campfire meat, and some herbal/bramble notes. The entry is quite silky for a zin. Pure, rich red and blue zinberry flavors. The the tannins attack, coating the entire mouth and drying out the long finish. Tannins are relatively well-integrated, but will need a couple years to fully resolve. Great Dry Creek Valley zin!
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11/30/2013 - NapaInBaltimore Likes this wine: 92 Points
A really great zin, for all you zin lovers!
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11/3/2013 - Twinkles wrote: 91 Points
Oh yes. Day 1, nice little wine, faint oak and berries but kind of muted and a tad hot. Day 3, this is what I'm talking about. Ripe berries, lingering feel, very well integrated oak. This stuff is wonderful!
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10/8/2013 - rwstorer wrote: 91 Points
Similar note to previous
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9/23/2013 - kstoddard wrote: 88 Points
100% Zinfandel. Ruby color. Red fruit aromatics. Tastes of blackberry, earth and spice. Chewy mid palate with an earthy finish.
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9/18/2013 - topher2411 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Really enjoyed this wine. A little simple on opening, this became much more enjoyable with air. Excellent structure, pleasant combination of fruit, spice, and earth notes, with the fruit becoming slightly sweeter with time. This seems like it would benefit from a few years in bottle.
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9/15/2013 - MRichman wrote:
Tasting at Ridge Lytton (Ridge Lytton Springs): Softer than the Geyserville. Dark tannins, espresso, black tight berry.
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9/10/2013 - chughes wrote: 86 Points
I am usually a big fan of Ridge Zinfandels, but this one was just too fruity for my taste. Obviously it is a very young wine, so maybe it will gain complexity with age. Right now, I had trouble distinguishing it from three-buck chuck. All jammy fruit with a high-alcohol mouthfeel.
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9/3/2013 - wiscgrad wrote: 90 Points
just ok. Have enjoyed other ridge zins more. nice and smooth but not overly complex
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8/20/2013 - Lee Fining Likes this wine: 90 Points
Medium dark garnet color. Aromas of dark fruit, apple vinegar and mild leather. Flavors of tart red fruit supporting a full mouth feel and moderate finish. A little open time helps this young Zin.
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8/1/2013 - Birorganic Likes this wine: 91 Points
Very nice zin. 100% zin fruit from 12 year old vines. Easy drinking, good fruit, nice on a hot day slightly chilled. Not a complex wine but not a simple one either. Balanced.
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6/15/2013 - Twinkles wrote: 90 Points
Smooth, pleasing. Very subtle for such a young wine. Berries, a tad oaky. Looking forward to see how this will age. Will need to retry shortly as it was a bit too warm. Was a crowd pleaser nonetheless.
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5/26/2013 - Bebum wrote: 90 Points
Deep brick red, clear and luminescent, beginning to get brown tonality, showing its young age.
Intense, woody, vinous, smokey nose, suggesting high acidity which the palate confirms.
Medium body, lean texture, high acidity but much fruitiness to balance. Complex, lingering.
Enjoyable now but probably much better in 2-3 years, when the acidity has been tamed allowing the complex flavors to show.
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4/12/2013 - AllRed wrote: 92 Points
The 6th vintage of East Bench Zinfandel, from grapes grown on the eastern benchland above Dry Creek Valley. Aromas of violets, purple and black fruit, pepper and boysenberry. Shows ore floral notes as it opens. Has an elegance to it, as one expects in a cooler vintage like 2011. Balanced, with red fruit and nice acidity. Long finish.
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4/12/2013 - JM_IS wrote: 90 Points
Enjoyed this one more than Geyserville 2011. Had week of release at winery. Nice flavors, mostly fruit, but not "light/fruity" more of a rich, but not sweet berry.
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4/6/2013 - Griffin5416 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Good but drank alongside the Geyserville and it does not have the same complexity.
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3/1/2013 - affordableCollector wrote: 92 Points
clear, ruby, in color. dark tart fruit, blueberry, cherry, earth, spice, pepper, oak, on the nose. medium acid, low tannins, on this lingering delicious finish.
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3/1/2013 - kosinski wrote:
Rich nose of blackberry tart with hints of cinnamon and cedar. Rich and fruity at the start on the palate, then turning a bit lighter in body with brightening berry flavors and moderate acidity. Moderate spice and low tannic grip. An early drinker.
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