Please join us in welcoming August Briggs winery to our pages! After years of gently hounding them for one of their brilliant wines, they gave us a doozy to share with our Operatives! Today’s August Briggs Winery 2014 Russian River Valley Zinfandel is a real Zin-lover’s Zin. Juicy, soft, and deeeeeelicious.

The wine is quite dark with a beautiful crimson color that is consistent from core to edge. A great fruit-forward nose that is jammy, while still fresh with notes of bing cherry, vanilla, almonds, cassis and very subtle brambles. After the wine passes your lips, it knocks your socks off with an unparalleled creamy profile of butterscotch and vanilla. A Zinfandel lover will be thrilled with the classic juicy character of red fruit, black fruit, and spice. The wine has an extremely supple and round mouthfeel with soft tannin. The fruit dissipates while the spice lingers for an exceptional finish. This is one of those Zinfandels that stand on its own. Recommended pairing: A good movie.

So, what about their winemaker? Jesse Inman is the nephew of August “Joe” Briggs, the founder and original winemaker of August Briggs Winery. Joe took Jesse under his wing at an early age, teaching Jesse all there was to know about the art of winemaking. in 2006, Jesse joined the winery as assistant winemaker. In 2011, Jesse took over all winemaking duties. Today, Jesse continues to pay tribute to Uncle Joe, by carrying on his uncle’s traditions - while creating traditions of his own.

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Here’s what the wine press has to say.

91 Points - Wine Enthusiast