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Mission Codename: ¡Viva la Revolución!

Operative: Agent Red

Objective: Secure a limited allocation of the Wine Guerrilla’s Clopton Vineyard Old Vine Zinfandel, for our Zin-loving operatives.

Mission Status: Accomplished!

Current Winery: Wine Guerrilla

Wine Subject: 2009 Clopton Vineyard Old Vine Zinfandel – Russian River Valley

Winemaker:

Backgrounder: Zinfandel is often aptly named California’s grape. Its history and lore and the wines that result are often the makings of legend. In this case, Starry Night’s winemaker selected the best old-vine grapes from a number of the Russian River’s best vineyards, many of which have been planted for nearly a century. The Russian River Valley is ideally suited for growing red grape varietals. Its early morning fog and coastal breezes result in a cooler climate than the neighboring wine growing regions. At 100+ years, today’s wine springs forth from some of oldest noted vines in the region.

Wine Spies Tasting Profile:

Look – From its dark cherry core, the wine lightens slightly toward the edges, where a thin band of lighter magenta rings the glass. When swirled, the wine shows springy surface that settles quickly, leaving behind crooked, wine-stained legs

Smell – Perfumed and lush, with crush violets, black plum, black cherry, blueberry and blackberry. These deep fruit aromatics mingle with old vine black pepper, and earthen bramble. After some hearty swirling, aromas of toasty oak, soft cedar and brown spice join in.

Feel – Cool and fast on the initial attack. Then, the wine settles on the mid-palate, where it adds a soft and slightly grippy dryness that spreads all around the mouth. Very fine tannins and a bright acidity both support the old vine flavors of the wine, while allowing the fruit to really shine through.

Taste – Delicious and balanced, with black and red fruit in equal proportion. Big black cherry, juicy blackberry, tart black plum skin, stewed plum and blueberry mix with red cherry, raspberry, cassis and tart red cherry. On the tail end, dusty bramble, dried mushroom, brown spice and softly toasted oak add old vine character.

Finish – Long and very flavorful, with bold dark fruit that gradually yields to bright cherry, earth and bramble. At the very end, soft spice and black pepper punctuate the delicious flavors of the wine.

Conclusion – A juicy and delicious wine with great of red and black fruit, balanced against the earthy character of a traditional Old Vine Zinfandel. Great aromatics had our tasting panel swirling and sniffing, long before sipping. When we did finally taste the wine, there were smiles all around. With juicy and jammy flavors, earthiness and soft spice, this is a wine that is as great a solo-sipper as it is paired with your favorite BBQ or bold pasta dish. Be sure to join the revolution, dear Operative. This is one rebellion we Wine Spies can really get behind!

Mission Report:

We were unable to secure an interview with Bruce Patch, today. Please be sure to subscribe to our Daily Distatch (at the top of this page), so that we can inform you of the next time we feature another fantastic Wine Guerrilla wine.