Neal Rutherford Dust Vineyards Napa Valley 2008 Zinfandel Revisited, $22.09, 92 points, poured a mysterious deep burgundy red with a still crystal-clear wine ring at the leggy glass wall.
The aroma was better than I remembered it (wine evolves); Dusty wild off-the-stem blackberries, floral, and hints of red raspberry were excellent.
Medium-bodied, good acidity, and a mild underlayment of tannin carried balanced wild-berry flavors with a kiss of oak building into more of a hug found in and bound to the long finish of spice, slightly chalky red raspberry, a sweet-spot 14.9% alcohol, and hints of bourbon, all of which impressed.
This is the first of my older Zinfandel wines (tasted more than five years ago) that I liked better than first tasted.
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Might had the small amount of Petite Sirah have aided the longevity of this wine? Well, someone just may have something to say about that.
ReplyDeleteA score of 92, that's the highest out of your revisited Ziins. If the % of PS lends any longevity to this Zin like the old Markham I had (a while back), then this Neal probably has a fair amount of aging still to do.
ReplyDeleteVG: I had to go back and refresh my memory, but I doubt that this Neal has two more years left, but I could easily be wrong. As last night turned into this afternoon, there was a growing vegetative flavor degrading my enjoyment.
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