Rodney Strong are doing some wonderful things. My two favorite Merlots are the Rodney Strong and the Two Tone Merlots! Here we have their Zinf. Zinf’s as I have mentioned a couple of times in California are more often than not field blends. What this means is intermingled in the fields are a variety of different grapes. What this means is that season to season and vineyard to vineyard the Zinf’s can vary significantly. A lot of people only think of the Pink Zinf when they hear Zinfandel and that’s a shame because it means they have yet to experience a Red Zinf. This particular Zinf leans more towards the cab side. It is a lovely wine. Deep red in color with a nice bouquet. On the mid pallet there are some lovely fruit flavors going on with some jammyness and the petite syrah coming through. On the finish there are lots of well under control oak flavors leading to a wine on the higher side of a medium finish. This is a lovely wine. I would give this a 91 or so. I’ve had it since July of last year and it is aging well. I wish I had bought a case! The 2006 is in the LCBO now, I will have to give it a try! As you can see they have kicked the price up a bit …
From the LCBO web site for the 2005 vintage:
RODNEY STRONG KNOTTY VINES ZINFANDEL 2005 Sonoma County This wine won a Gold medal with a score of 95 from the judging panel at the California State Fair Wine Competition 2007. An elegant, well-structured Zin, it features ripe blackberry fruit balanced by a seam of acidity and gentle tannins with spicy white pepper and herb notes. 363358 (D) 750 mL $24.95
Featured 7/19/2008
From the LCBO web site for the 2006 vintage:
RODNEY STRONG KNOTTY VINES ZINFANDEL 2006 VINTAGES 363358 | 750 mL bottle
Price: $ 26.95 Wine, Red Wine, 14.8% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California/Californie, United States By: Rodney Strong Vineyards
Release Date: May 2, 2009
Description
Tony Aspler also gave this wine 4 stars (out of 5). (www.tonyaspler.com, Sept. 1, 2008)
Tasting Note
This is a delicious Zinfandel in a modern and food-friendly style, a style I can imagine fitting well into bistro cuisine. The fruit is forward and generous but restrained and complex, while the refreshing texture is soft with some tanginess. You can drink it with the predictable grilled red meats, but it also goes nicely with chicken or pork. Score – 4 Stars (out of 5). (Rod Phillips, Vines, Jan./Feb. 2009)
