A little winery tucked away on Olivet Lane I visited on several occasions throughout the 90’s and early 2000’s–not sure when it became JCB, but that name is prominent on the rear label of this bottle. Of course, “JCB” casts a bit of an asterisk on ANYTHING, but perusing their site shows DOZENS of vineyard-specific pinots, chards and zinfandels from RRV to this day. So it’s not all watered-down supermarked plonk, for sure. The last time I visited they had just recently brought out their OFS bottling–if that grants some reference to historical perspective. Finding this bottle lingering on retail at deep discount brought back many memories, and I had to have it.
Ruddy maroon in the glass–a bit grainy in visibility but otherwise bright out to the rim. Funky, skunky nose–something often found in RRV Zinfandels as opposed to their brash cousins in neighboring DCV and Alex. It’s all bruised bile in bouquet, with deep fruit presenting on a deeper level requiring some search. And it doesn’t seem to blow off–as bottle-funk typically will.
In the mouth, the burn of alcohol hits early and continues throughout, casting a heated pang on all palatal decisions. Though only a year younger, nowher NEAR as tired as last night’s offering, and if you can possibly ignore the pointed heat, is rather well-defined on the tongue. But that’s a stong ask, and shallow palates will defer to ignorance of buried treasure because of its omnipresence.And… I am a huge fan of NOT having to search for beauty in a wine unless austerity is a factor–a word probably NEVER attached to a zinfandel produced since 1990. This wine–honestly–can probably go another decade: such is the fortification of combined balance and even-ness contained beneath the heat. It’s generous and shows glimpses of classic varietal chubbiness in a package not terribly awry. Blackberry briar and etching acidity and tannin frame the middle and finish, and while this wine was probably gorgeously plump on release and will defect to classic aged zin in posterity, right now it is not showing super-complex, and continued cellaring would be a crap-shoot. One I would be willing to take: truthfully.
2014 DELOACH Zinfandel RRV Sonoma Co. 15.0
Stephen McConnell 