1998 Zinfandel – Talmage Bench
Tasting Notes
Dark, rich color. Fragrance of wild ripe forest berries and pumpkin-pie spice heighten the flavors of sweet, rich, ripe concentrated raspberry. Acid and tannins are well-matched. Big mouthfeel, with a long, late, mouth-watering finish. From Mendocino County comes this dark, fruity, hedonistic California Classic. Ultra-ripe, ultra rich with true varietal Zinberry and brambly tones, this wine is drinking well now. Lay a bottle down if you can – though the hedonistic qualities are here now, we feel the best of complexity is yet to come.
Facts
- Clones: Aldine - old Dry Creek clone, origin unknown. Young - origin unknown. Both are about 45 year old plantings
- Yeast/ML: Bordeaux Red yeast induction followed by native ML in barrel
- Cooperage: 5% new oak (Seguin-Moreau Chassagne Montrachet), 75% once-used oak: majority François Freres Troçais high toast/toasted heads with dollups of Remond, Cadus, Marsannay, Billon, Gillet, Chene Colbert and Latour coopers.
- Harvest: Mid-October
- Yield: 2.4 tons/acre average
- Vineyard locations: Talmage Bench, overlooking the Russian River and the town of Ukiah in Mendocino County
- Vineyard terroir: Hot Summer days and cold nights make this site perfect for Zinfandel. The soil is a cobbled benchland loam with ancient sedimentary and gravel deposits from the Russian River, now some 3 miles distant from its once active course. Terrific drainage and the deep exploratory nature of the St. George rootstock give the vines the water, in perfect measure, needed to maintain a great natural tannin/acid balance and long hang-time for late flavor development.
- Plantings: Generally 5x8 spacing on St. George rootstock, with row orientation following the flow of the Russian River and its morning/afternoon breezes
Final bottling technical information
- pH: 3.44
- TA: 6.5 g/L
- 14.8% alcohol
- Residual sugar: 0.15% (dry)
Bottled unfined and unfiltered in September 1999; 290 cases produced.