1976 Chateau Montelena Zinfandel showing well

S

SteveTimko

Steve Timko
1976 Chateau Montelena Zinfandel North Coast - USA, California, North Coast (10/3/2013)

This is showing well. Still plenty of fruit. It has at least a few more years of life left in it.
The best part is the nose. Very old world in that it tickles the deepest part of your olfactory senses. Some nice spices. Not loud, very subtle.
On the palate, velvety smooth. It slides over your tongue from the attack through the midpalate and the finish. The taste is darker fruits and maybe a little bit of blueberry. A good finish.
This is not a profound wine, but it's very nice. It has aged nicely. Ironically, if you read the winemaker's note on the web site, they talk about this coming from a drought year. They say the wine is more concentrated with higher sugars and lower acid and recommend drinking it within four years of release. It's almost like they apologize for the elevated 13.2 percent alcohol. But it has aged well.
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I don't think it would surprise many that a cab or petite sirah is holding up. The fact that a zin lasted so long seems unusual.
 
Steve, Probably the best Zin I have ever had is the Ridge Jimsomare '74.

I served my last bottle not long ago to a fellow Zin enthusiast and some other folks. It was every bit as good as expected.

. . . . Pete
 
originally posted by Peter Creasey:

Steve, Probably the best Zin I have ever had is the Ridge Jimsomare '74.
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Pete, that's kind of like saying that they made decent violins in Cremona. The '74 Jomsomsre Zin is a legendary wine.

Mark Lipton
 
Mark, I didn't know the Ridge Jimsomaire Zin '74 had that kind of reputation. Such notoriety escaped my knowledge.

Even so, it is deserved.

. . . . Pete
 
I'd hazard a guess that all the Joe Swan Zins from 1968-74 are holding up just fine.

I never knew '74 Jimsomare had legendary status. '70 Jimsomare and '73 Geyserville are in that exalted realm.
 
1970 Ridge Zinfandel Jimsomare - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (9/3/2011)

Yeah, this was definitely over the hill. It was still drinkable, but obviously it was largely dead. The fruit that remained seemed more like plum. Some molasses. I wanted this to be my special wine for my 50th birthday, but alas it just wasn't up to task. Would have been wonderful for my 40th birthday.
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originally posted by SteveTimko:
1970 Ridge Zinfandel Jimsomare - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (9/3/2011)

Yeah, this was definitely over the hill. It was still drinkable, but obviously it was largely dead. The fruit that remained seemed more like plum. Some molasses. I wanted this to be my special wine for my 50th birthday, but alas it just wasn't up to task. Would have been wonderful for my 40th birthday.
175963.jpg
Click to expand...
Can't help but wonder if that 15.8% alcohol I see on the label had something to do with that outcome?
 
originally posted by SteveTimko:
1970 Ridge Zinfandel Jimsomare - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (9/3/2011)

Yeah, this was definitely over the hill. It was still drinkable, but obviously it was largely dead. The fruit that remained seemed more like plum. Some molasses. I wanted this to be my special wine for my 50th birthday, but alas it just wasn't up to task. Would have been wonderful for my 40th birthday.
175963.jpg
Click to expand...
Can't help but wonder if that 15.8% alcohol I see on the label had something to do with that outcome?
 
Everett, bottle variation. I have had that wine a few times, most recently a couple of years ago. It was excellent as were the bottles previous to that.
 
My first jeebus was Allan Bree's 10 vintages each of Jimsomare Cab and Zin at the Redbird Brewing Co. in downtown San Mateo (restaurant is no longer in existence). That evening defined way too much fun. I'm still amazed that I didn't wake up with a hangover.
 
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