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Wine Details
Price:
$40.00 per bottle
Description:
The 2003 vintage and growing season was not normal. In fact, there has not been a normal vintage for many years. A late budbreak, followed by late spring rains, delayed the flowering and set of the fruit. A moderately cool summer foretold of a late harvest. However, a few late August and early September “blasts” of heat, coupled with extremely unseasonable thunder and lightning storms, brought the crop in on average of the same time as 2002. Winemaking: This wine represents the finest Zinfandel we produce at Benessere from our Estate vineyards. We carefully thin each vine in the vineyard from a potential of 5+ tons per acre down to less than 2.4, thereby maximizing the flavors developed by the remaining fruit. Harvesting at maximum ripeness, without developing port-like characteristics is crucial. Concentration is the hallmark of this vineyard. Gentle handling into our open-topped fermentors and hand-punching the skins into the juice allow the intensity of flavor in the skins to slowly release into the wine. After 31 days on the skins, we pressed the wine into a combination of new, tight-grained American oak and once-used French oak barrels. Decanted twice from the barrel, this wine was bottled unfined and unfiltered on June 1, 2005. Tasting notes: Dark ruby/purple in color, the seductive aromatics of raspberries and cherry jam, mingle with a creamy vanilla-custard. Distinctively rich and pure in aroma and flavor, the ripe cherry/raspberry and chocolate malt flavors integrate well with toasty oak and spice. Pair this wine with aged beef and dry jack cheese. The substantial structure will allow this wine to age well for the next ten-plus years.
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Varietal Definition
Zinfandel:
Zinfandel is a variety of red grape planted in over 10 percent of California wine vineyards. DNA fingerprinting revealed that it is genetically equivalent to the Croatian grape Crljenak Kaštelanski, and also the Primitivo variety traditionally grown in the 'heel' of Italy. It is typically made into a robust red wine. Its taste depends on the ripeness of the grapes from which it is made. Red berry fruits like raspberry predominate in wines from cooler areas such as the Napa Valley, whereas blackberry, anise and pepper notes are more common in wines made in warmer areas such as Sonoma County. Many Zinfandels come from head pruned ‘Old Vines’. ‘Old Vine’ is generally understood to mean a vine that is more than 50 years old and that produces less than three tons per acre. ‘Head Pruning’ is an old European style of pruning that trains the vine into the shape of a goblet. It requires no wires or other complex trellis systems. Head pruning spreads the fruit uniformly along the vine and allows light penetration.In the USA a semi-sweet Rosé (blush-style) wine called ‘White Zinfandel’ has achieved widespread popularity. In fact, this popularity has so outstripped all other forms that many fans think there is actually a grape called “White Zinfandel” (there isn’t)!
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