Mrs CWG was tasked with getting something from our local LCBO vintages section last night. With a planned dinner grilled rib-eye and truffle infused garlic mashed potatoes she came back with this Mendocino County red. Edmeades is a small producer from the Sonoma region. As I like good Zin’s (well who does not like good wine, maybe better put I really like zinfandel’s) I was excited by this wine for it’s possibilities and the $21.95 price tag. Not since the 2003 Rabbit Ridge have I found a Zin under $25 that I was truly happy with. Zinfandel‘s are so uniquely Californian if I were to be asked what I equate Napa/Sonoma too it would not be the Cab Sauv, Merlot or Chardonnay’s but this bold grape and the love reds that come from it. With that little preamble let’s jump into the tasting!
The deep purple colour and strong cherry nose I noticed as I decanted this automatically got me worried that this red was simply going to be too young. Being a 2006 vintage that is not hard to imagine as well crafted Zinfandel’s can definitely be aged for years/decades. Once the sniffing began there was no doubt that black cherry was evident, what kinda of crept on us was a distinct chocolate scent that we were not expecting. With a couple good swirls of the glass and the mouth we dove into this wine. The wine is young, it’s bite is early and often but the flavours are outstanding. Despite the medium-large tannins we were getting a nice peppery spice, the obvious cherry and chocolate, but as well a hint of earthiness and something flowery (such an odd mix of aromas by this time I could not say what sort of flower…). I think with the tannins, the solid body/weight and very good fruit this wine is ideal for cellaring between 2 to 4 years, after that you will just get more of the same, but I’d buy a few, squirrel them away and be pleasantly surprised in a few years when you stumble on them. With a low price but a big feel I think you are hard priced to find a Zinfandel from California that give you the same “bang for the buck”, I am impressed with the wine-makers work here.
The subjective rating for this little gem is 89 out of 100 (I think we will snag two bottles and revisit this in 2011).
LCBO listing here.
Mrs CWG
I love chocolate covered cherries, so what is not to like about a wine with similar properties?
Edmeades 2006 Zinfandel
