TN: '97 Everett Ridge Zinfandel

[Van The Man]

There is literally a sea of zinfandel from the '97 vintage. And best of all, it's of very good quality for the dough.

1997 Everett Ridge Old Vines Zinfandel; Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma (CA) - $18.00

Pretty ruby color with excellent limpidity and clarity. Nose bristling with plenty of brambly raspberry and fresh cracked white pepper with an undercurrent of blueberry finished with tangerine fraying at the edge. On the palate, plenty of fruit with well balanced note of spice. Not as deep and rich as I imagine it could be, but this wine may pick up a bit of depth with some bottle age. Very good bottle but might be pushing it just a bit at $18.00. On the other hand, this is an excellent demonstration of why vintners often like to add Petite Sirah and other secondary Rhone varietals to their wines....to add depth.

If you like oak driven wines vs. fruit driven wines, you may not like this one.