Dark clear ruby, non-staining with minuscule pink edges. Dusty danky with the definite overlord of plum-prune Zinfandel fruit. New carpet and thick paint meld with a syrupy oak and maple-BBQ while deep over-ripe orange minerality plays against the somber fruit.
Zinfandel from Oregon. Well, there’s a new one to me. Zinfandels are the ONLY wine I look at the Alcohol before buying, but this one I purposely did not because I want a true guess and nothing to affect my opinion. The flip-side to this is I have no idea what Zinfandel in Oregon is capable of achieving–ripeness-wise. I saw a 14-9 cab from WA the other day, and I know Southern Oregon is doing more Syrahs and such than Pinot, but no clue about Zinfandel. A lone fruit-fly in the house here in the dead of winter found the rim of the glass almost immediately–before I had even tasted. That tells you something. Bugs are smart.
In the mouth, a rich bitter fruit–thick and concentrated–coats everything, crescendoing to explosive blackberry, Comstock pie filling and dried currant. Wet leather adds an acidic sensibility to the concoction, finishing in glorious menthol burn. Tannins glow effervescent under all, slowly picking off the sweet fruit and burying it under a velvety layer of structure for future use.
OK: The Oregon Zinfandel Challenge: I’m going to say a solid 14-oh. If it’s higher than that it carries it EXTREMELY well. Oh man was I way off. Well, a testament to how balanced this thing is.
2015 HUETT Zinfandel The Gold Lot Oregon 14.9
Stephen McConnell 