The Federalist Zinfandel: A Triad of Styles and Regions

We have written about The Federalist Wines in the past and now their portfolio includes three Zinfandel wines from popular California appellations - AVA's mostly dominated by old-vine zinfandel.  And with Halloween approaching, we sampled these wines with three versions of the popular Snickers bars.

The Federalist 2016 Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel ($17.99)
According to the Winegrowers of Dry Creek Valley, "though Dry Creek Valley grows more than than 30 different grape varieties, at the heart of our appellation is zinfandel. Dry Creek Valley’s AVA, just 16 miles long and two miles wide, is home to one of the densest concentrations of old vine zinfandel in the world". The vineyard for these grapes resides in the southern edge of Dry Creek Valley just a mile from the Russian River. The river provides cooling morning fog which extends the growing season by slowly maturing the grapes.  The wine provides toasted chewy fruit, firm tannins, slight white pepper and a tad of heat from the 15.5% abv. The standard Snickers bar provided a nice companion taming the tannins.

The Federalist 2016 Lodi Zinfandel ($17.99)
The Lodi AVA provides some of the oldest Zinfandel plantings with some considered to be Ancient Vineyards. Within this appellation, there is also an interesting east-west dichotomy within the Mokelumne River sub-AVA. The east side contains lower water tables which along with the sandier soils equate to smaller berries and clusters. On the other hand, west of Hwy. 99 the vineyards are sandy loam with generous amounts of finely crushed granite washed down from the Sierra Nevadas. This translates to darker, firmer, zestier, flavorful east side red wines in contrast to the softer, rounder, less aggressively flavored west side wines. I'm not sure from what side the grapes for this wine were grown, but its character suggests the west side as it is creamy and round with firm but very approachable tannins. The peanut butter Snickers complements the wine by providing a little more texture.


The Federalist 2016 Bourbon Barrel Aged Zinfandel ($21.99)
The Mendocino County appellation is located due north of Sonoma and is part of the larger North Coast AVA that spreads northward from San Francisco Bay. According to Mendocino Winegrowers, "Mendocino's Zinfandels are known for their rich, dark color scheme, medium to high tannin levels and a higher alcohol content...". The grapes in this wine were aged six months in American Oak barrels then an additional six months in used bourbon barrels. This process provides just a subtle hint of bourbon and heat - slight vanilla and caramel that blends nicely with an almond Snickers. The finish is tannin structure is solid yet very approachable.




Disclosure: We received samples from Terlato Wines in order to share our opinion about their products, but this isn’t a sponsored post.

A Trio of Hess Select White Wine

Last month we experienced a delicious wine lunch with representatives of the Hess Family Wine Estates where we focused primarily on their Napa Valley estate wines released under the Hess Collection label. Our party was also introduced to the winery's super market brand, the Hess Select, but in name only. But soon afterwards I received a trio of samples that showcase these value wines made from grapes sourced from throughout the Golden State and Argentina. In general, these are well made wines, reasonably priced per quality, and should be widely available. Cheers.


California Pinot Gris 2017 ($13) - This is a new entry into the Hess Select portfolio sourced from vineyards throughout California to achieve, according to wine maker Dave Guffy, a "fruit forward expression of Pinot Gris". Guffy continues that the grapes are fermented at cold temperatures which accentuates the fruit expression further. This was my favorite of the three, a light wine with lemons and stone fruit from start to finish with refreshing acidity. Nicely done.

Monterey Chardonnay 2016 ($13) - Hess has been producing this wine since the early 1990s using fruit harvested from Monterey County. Dave Guffy relates that the ocean breezes from the Pacific Ocean allow the grapes to "retain their tropical and fruit forward edge" and to add weight 25% of the wine is aged in new French oak. This is one I enjoyed more as the wine warmed; too cold and the wine feels over extracted with the oak dominating the flavor. However, as the wine opens and warms, the oak starts to dissipate allowing the green apple, lemon, and tropical notes to appear.

North Coast, Sauvignon Blanc 2016 ($13) - The North Coast AVA encompasses several sub-AVAs and grape-growing regions in six counties located north of San Francisco: Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Sonoma, and Solano. Lake and Mendocino counties were the sources for this wine and Duffy says the later provides Sauvignon Blanc grapes with grassy notes and the inland Lake county more tropical and ripe flavors. This is another one that benefits from warming as the tropical aromas and flavors are overpowering when cold. As the wine warms the grassy and lemon characters begin to add balance to this light and very refreshing summer sipper.

A Tale of Two Zins for National Zinfandel Day

Wednesday November 15th was National Zinfandel Day and we received two Zinfandel wines for the occasion. They are from two different geographic locations in California, Mendocino in the coastal north and Lodi in the Central Valley. Both share a Mediterranean climate with warm days and cool nights associated with breezes that provide both regions with a "reliable, natural air conditioning throughout the growing season". They both also share a large preponderance of small family vineyards, in many cases multi-generational.

In Lodi, the 2013 D'Art Lodi Zinfandel ($26, 14% abv) is sourced from grapes grown in the Mokelumne River sub-AVA on an 86 year old vineyard that was planted in sandy loam soils. This soil type helps provide a boldness to the wine that accompanies the jammy berry and fig flavors. The nose seems a tad hot, but the peppery finish is very smooth with enough tannins to lift the palate off the fruit characters.

On the other hand, the 2016 Artezin Mendocino Zinfandel ($18, 14.5% abv) is a blend of 85% Zinfandel, 10% Petite Sirah, & 5% Carignan, This is a Hess Collection brand intended to "honor the art of making Zinfandel from old vine plantings and work with family owned farms throughout Mendocino and Sonoma Counties". Many of these family farms are featured in the website's Meet the Farmers section which includes Paul Dolan and his bio-dynamic The Dark Horse Ranch. And the blend composition is reminiscent of the early Italian immigrants who grew grapes for home wine-making and blended these varietal wines to achieve robustness. The Artezin is robust as well with a dried cherry aroma, a pleasant peppery and fig palate, and a subtle peppery but smooth finish. Plenty of acids too. Nicely done for both of these wines and cheers to National Zinfandel Day.

Exploring Bonterra, Organics, and Mendocino with ThirstyGirl & Leslie Sbrocco

Last night was another #TGTaste with Leslie Sbrocco featuring wines from Bonterra Vineyards, a California winery located in Mendocino County - just north of Sonoma. Specifically we sampled their 2011 Mendocino County Chardonnay and 2010 Mendocino County Merlot, both produced from certified organically grown grapes. Organic and Biodynamic® farming seems to be the culture in the county as a large percentage of vineyard practice those techniques or philosophies - 25% says wiki. Apparently, according to Bonterra, this "goes back to the history..young people moving here in the 60s to get back to the land". And nice farm land they found.

I also learned that the Russian River originates in Mendocino so in reality the Russian River valley is not inclusive to Sonoma - well maybe the AVA - but not the nutrients in the soil. The Chardonnay grapes were harvested along the river in the Sanel Valley whereas the Merlot grapes were grown in the warmer McNab ranch in Hopland.

We started with the Chardonnay ($14) which was produced using a combination of oak and stainless steel. 70% of the juice was fermented in a combination of French and American oak - also undergoing malolactic fermentation - whereas the remaining 30% was fermented in stainless steel. The wine was then aged in a different combination of neutral and new oak barrels. The result is a very good - I mean VERY GOOD - wine. The non-Chardonnay drinkers in our immediate group loved it as it started with a vibrant green apple flavor, followed by a creamy vanilla mid, ending in a balanced acidic-lemon finish. The bottle was empty rather quickly as we all enjoyed this one. Going to look to restock today.

Moving to the Merlot ($16), each lot was fermented separately and then blended together with small amounts of Petite Sirah, Syrah, and Carignane. Ms. Sbrocco informed me that the addition of these three grapes added "complexity and spicy notes" to the final product. This wine was also a big hit with the #TGTaste community, as @MyVineSpot tweeted "Delightfully approachable w/ aromas/flavors of dk cherry, raspberry, spice accents & cedar". But we had to wait awhile to allow the wine to breathe - the initial taste was quite mundane. However, after decanting the dark cherry flavors sprang forth, followed by some spice, and a very smooth, soft finish. Another lesson learned - decant as often as possible.

Overall, a very good night. I definitely plan on revisiting these wines (love the QPR) and spend more time researching the wines from Mendocino. Cheers.