Comments on: Freshness, Energy, and Balance: In Pursuit of Zinfandel

By: Christopher Watkins

Christopher Watkins — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 19:10:15 +0000

Thanks for your (re)-comment Mark! And definitely glad that you so enjoyed this wine. In defense of Ridge, it would be a great pleasure to continue making this wine in this style, but the combination of micro-climate and vine age really drives the style, and courtesy of our non-interventionist ethos, there is really only so much we can do to achieve any sort of a specific flavor profile. What we’ve found in general, as the vines have aged and the climate has grown more … shall we say … eccentric, is that the zins from Jimsomare have become somewhat darker and funkier, with firmer tannins and a more muscular architecture. We have also found that a slightly longer hang time, while admittedly making for somewhat higher sugar levels, has also served to draw out a more serious, more complext array of flavors. So while the zin Jims are now in the low 14% ABV range (as opposed to the father notably anamalous 11.6% of the ’82!), we find them to be more weighty, complex, durable, and rewarding. And the acidity that you fondly note is definitely still present!

By: Paul Nielsen

Paul Nielsen — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 15:49:05 +0000

We just enjoyed the 2010 Dusi Ranch Zinfandel last night. I would imagine that the Dusi would have ranked quite high in the tasting, as it has all of the attributes the tasters were seeking!

By: Mark Walberg

Mark Walberg — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 02:04:06 +0000

This discussion leads me to repost something I posted on this blog a few years ago about this very issue about zinfandels. It IS possible to make a beautiful, fruity, higher acid, low alcohol zin with the intensity of fruit and character of an old style claret, without the high alcohol. There is something wonderfully tasty and refreshing about zins like this. Nobody makes them any more though. I’d sure love it if you made some more like that beautiful 1982 Jimsomare.
Here is the old post:

I love some of the old Jimsomare Zinfandels I’ve had. One of my favorites is the 1982 Jimsomare Zinfandel. This was a great wine similar in build to an old fashioned bordeaux (and not one from a big, ripe year – just an average bordeaux year , like 1981). It was only 11.2 alcohol. It did not bowl you over with body on the first taste. However, it was pleasantly tart and FULL of wonderful pine and raspberry fruit and other unspeakable character and it went WONDERFULLY with dinner. I drank about 30 bottles of this wine over 20 years (sharing with friends, of course). No, this wine would not win the competitive tasting, but it was a great wine. I have not been able to find a zinfandel anything like this these days. The high alcohol luscious-on-the-first-sip wines Zins saturate the market today. I pine for the wonderful, packed with character, tart, beautiful wines that are harmonious with an interesting dinner and not the focus of a competitive tasting. What happened to these wines? Where have they gone. I want some more of them. Tell me where I can get them. I bought a case of the last release of Jimsomare Zin. I’m sure it will be good, but it is pretty clear that winemakers don’t set out to make wines like the 82 Jimsomare. It was a truly wonderful wine that drank beautifully over 20 years and was still going strong. Can’t we get some more of these?

-Mark Walberg

By: Peg Champion

Peg Champion — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 21:35:11 +0000

Christopher, I lived in NYC for 15 years and loved it. I, too, kept my NY Times and New Yorker subscriptions when I left New York. I also live in California now – and I’m not leaving!
It’s an honor to be honored by Eric Asimov – congratulations to Ridge! Let’s drink to that, and to power triumphing over violence.
And to peace, at Christmastime …