To me, there is no better wine on a snow filled winter day than a good zinfandel. Fall seems to be zinfandel season for us, and there is something about the cold weather that makes us really enjoy a big, spicy, jammy zin! I find that we don't drink zinfandels nearly as much during the summer months, as it just doesn't seem as refreshing as drinking a nice white, or a good pinot noir or rose.
It seems that zinfandel is sometimes still considered the red headed step child, and the whipping boy so to say. I think that zin gets a bad rap for no good reason, but there definitely are some good ones out there.
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Gorgeous dark jamminess in the glass. On the nose, this wine is definitely young and tight. A lot of alcohol is prevalent on the nose, but I don't think this wine has been in the bottle all that long. Some jammy raspberry, currants, and dark cherry shine through, but the alcohol overwhelms all of this. Secondary nuances of vanilla and caramel that I attribute to the oak come through as well.
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On the palate, there is some nice raspberry jam, a bit of strawberry, and black fruit. This is a tannic monster right now, so a double decant was necessary through the Vinturi, and then through another aeratng funnel. Plenty of jam on the palate, but again, the alcohol, oak, an tannins cover up the fruit. After a glass each, we are heading out to brave the storm and walk into town to one of the local watering holes. I left the decanter in the kitchen next to the cold window, and don't feel that this needs to be vacuumed and put into the cellar, but we'll see.
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On day two, after a 18 hour decant, this wine has evolved very nicely. The alcohol and tannins have definitely settled and integrated, and the fruit is finally the star on the nose. The same raspberry and currants shine through, with some blueberry and blackberry. The oak has mellow, but is still showing nice caramel and vanilla tones, and there are secondary characteristics of grilled meats, and smoke.
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On the palate, the tannins and alcohol integrated very nicely, but a bit of the thick jamminess is gone. The same fruit profile is there, and this is drinking very easily. All in all, i would hold this wine for at least another year, or give it a 4-6 hour decant before drinking. All in all, a nice zin from Chateau Montelena, and we'll have to search this one out again. 90 points.
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