Mayo Family Winery
2009 The Barnstormer Zinfandel
Zinfandel
Russian River Valley
Mission Briefing
No shrinking violet
Juicy, dark and packed with flavor, today’s 2009 Mayo Family Winery Barnstormer Zinfandel is a must-have for any fan of fantastic Zinfandel.
A true Zinfandel-lover’s wine, today’s offering comes to you with our heartiest recommendation. While the Russian River Valley is known for producing outstanding Pinot and Chardonnay, the valley does possess a handful of ‘sweet spots’ for Zinfandel. Today’s wine was crafted from grapes from small, selected lots in the RRV - to make one heck of a Zin.
This wine is drinking beautifully now, and we’d suggest that you enjoy some now - but hold on to a few bottles for the next couple of years.
Please be sure to decant this wine for maximum enjoyment. 30 minutes should do the trick, rendering the wine softer and more juicy than on opening.
Tasting Profile
| Look: | Dark and beautiful, with gorgeous strawberry juice hues from core to edge. |
|---|---|
| Smell: | Full and sweet on the nose with pronounced candied cherry, sweet plum, sweet spice, ripe raspberry, and pomegranate at first. As the wine breathes, it releases some of the heat from the alcohol, ushering in more subtle notes of dark berry compote, stewed cherry and a hint of dried mission fig. |
| Taste: | Flavors of chocolate covered cherries, blackberry and blueberry compote, dark baker’s chocolate and dried cassis take the lead. As the wine breathes and opens up, it unveils more subtle flavors of bramble, molasses and toasty oak. |
| Finish: | Decant this wine, and you’ll be rewarded with a supple, long and flavorful finish. Berry and plum shine through for a very long time. |
| Pairing: | Lamb shank with rosemary, moroccan spices and fresh cracked pepper. |
What the Winery Says
2009 The Barnstormer Zinfandel - Russian River Valley
A gorgeous, balanced, fruit-driven Zinfandel made from a selection of Russian River Valley vineyards. From the fantastic 2009 vintage, this wine delivers a brambly, berry-laden experience that roars “Russian River Valley”. It’s a wine that reminds us that this appellation, known primarily for its Pinot Noir, produces spectacular Zins and has for decades.
Wine Specs
- Vintage
- 2009
- Varietal
- Zinfandel
- Appellation
- Russian River Valley
- ABV
- 14.9%
About the Winery
We are a small family owned winery located in the heart of the Sonoma Valley. We believe that single vineyard wines make for the most interesting and satisfying drinking. Since the early 1990’s we’ve constantly looked for those vineyards that provide a great match between terroir and varietal. The result is an array of small batch, single-vineyard wines that meet our criteria. Whether the vineyard is in Sonoma or Napa, or our own estate, our pledge to you is that we will produce a collection of wines that are always interesting, always compelling and always delicious.
Winemaker Michel Berthoud
Born and raised in Sonoma Valley, Michel oversees all the winemaking at Mayo Family and works closely with the winery’s many grower partners. Ask him how he became interested in making wine, and he’ll tell you that he was ‘born in a vat.’
Formerly Winemaker for Arrowood Vineyards just down the road, Michel joined the Mayo Family Winery just prior to the start of the 2004 harvest. The many awards and accolades his Arrowood wines won and the following he created for himself were a result of the lessons he learned from Dick Arrowood and his own well-developed sense that winemaking is an artisan process that demands a feel for the land as well as an artist’s well honed technique.
Vineyard Notes
Laurel Hill Vineyard is in the Sonoma Valley appellation. Planted on the Mayo family estate at the foot of Sonoma Mountain, this vineyard is the source for grapes that are used to produce the Mayo Family Estate Chardonnay. In 2000 we planted two additional acres of Pinot Noir. The vineyard itself incorporates a variety of terrain including a sunnier hillside plateau and a valley element. The vineyard is exposed to sunlight from mid morning though the early evening with the hillside receiving longer exposure.
The old vine Ricci Vineyard sits on a 10-acre block south of the town of Healdsburg on Limerick Lane, next to the Collins vineyard in the Russian River Valley appellation. It is the backbone of the winery’s zinfandel commitment. The vineyard produces grapes that consistently create a distinctive wine that has developed a following among zin fanatics.