Dry Creek -style Zin?

[Smithy]

A couple of years ago my husband and I were given a bottle of Davis Bynum Zinfandel, 1996. I'd never been much on zins, but what the heck - it was free, and I've rarely met a free wine I didn't like. Eventually we got around to opening it, and had a genuine WOW moment: so THIS was what all the fuss was about! I'm still learning the terms, so I can't say specifically that there were tobacco or soap or old leather or old shoelaces. Jammy, probably; full and fruity but with a darker, deeper, fuzzier note to it, definitely. (Don't ask me what "fuzzy" means, but to my palate some wines are clear and some are fuzzy. Maybe it's blackberry brambles.) We thought that Davis Bynum Zinfandel was a wonderful wine, and we were sorry to find we can't get it in Minnesota.

That episode started us on a search for zinfandels we loved as we had that one. We began with wines from around Healdsburg since that's the home of Davis Bynum winery, and moved out from there. Alderbrook OVOC is a reliable winner. Seghesio is another, although they have - or had - multiple grades. (Our wine group was split on whether the Seghesio Sonoma or the Seghesio Old Vines (Ancient Vines?) was the better; I of course chose the most expensive in a blind test, and I haven't been able to find anything other than their Sonoma lately.) Once I had a Quivera Dry Creek Zin that hit the mark, but I've never found it again. Ditto for a Saugus. The quest continues, and it's a lot of fun, but now I'd like to learn more about what I'm looking for. Not all zins from the Dry Creek area hit the mark, and I think we've had a few that suited our tastes but came from someplace else entirely.

Andrea Immer referred in one of her wine guides to a "Dry Creek-style Zinfandel" and cited one of the above loved wines as an example. She didn't define that style. She hasn't listed other zins with the same style so we can know what to look for. I have no idea whether she made that term up or it's an accepted term among wine makers...so, I turn to you experts to tell me.

Is there such a thing as a "Dry Creek-style" zinfandel? If so, how would one characterize it? (Help me with this terminology, please!) Finally, how can I know before buying whether a zinfandel will be of that style?

Edited for spelling

Edited October 4, 2004 by Smithy (log)

[mike volker]

Just down the road from Dry Creek is Yoakim Bridge winery which I like very much. Its just yoakimbridge.com for there web site so go there and look. The good news is that they will ship to you. Have them ship you a bottle of zin and a bottle of syrah (its better than the zin and the zin is wonderful).

Best,

Mike

[Brad Ballinger]

This natural bench of gravelly loam combined with the Valley's heat provide a steady source for the cocoa, chocolate, spice and ripe berry qualities that are so often noted in Dry Creek Zins.

You can read more in this article.

I think if you still look hard enough in Minnesota, you can find Quivira. But I, too, remember being able to find it more readily available. You can most definitely find Nalle, one of my personal favorites from the Dry Creek Valley, and also a favorite because it is still produced in a balanced style and hasn't flirted with the "over the top" style that ruin many other zinfandels of late.

[KatieLoeb]

The Ridge Lytton Springs is still the gold standard for me of this style of dark berries/chocolate/dessert spice flavored zin that is so luscious.

Running about $30 (depending what state you're in) this wine is the textbook example of which they speak, IMO.

[melkor]

Toss in the A. Rafanelli Zinfandel as my pick for the area. The Ridge Lytton is also excellent, as are the David Coffaro wines.

[russ parsons]

i've got to say that hte most amazing zinfandel i had last year was made by hartford court. it was their "dina's Vineyard", a russian river valley wine. supposedly 100-year-old vines, very small production. extremely elegant with a structure more like a old-style bordeaux ... very well-knit, round tannins, not at all over-the-top, little bit of chocolate, leather, blueberry, you know the drill. if anyone can find any of this stuff, be sure to try it. and i have to give all credit to my buddy rod smith, a wonderful wine writer, who turned me on to it; i'd never even heard of hte winery before.

[Brad Ballinger]

Toss in the A. Rafanelli Zinfandel as my pick for the area.  The Ridge Lytton is also excellent, as are the David Coffaro wines.

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A. Rafanelli was the first wine that popped into my head as well. But I know we can't find it in Minnesota, so I didn't even bother. I remember also having one of their Cabernet Sauvignon wines and writing in my note that it's a Zin-lover's Cab.

[winesonoma]

A. Rafanelli was the first wine that popped into my head as well.  But I know we can't find it in Minnesota, so I didn't even bother.  I remember also having one of their Cabernet Sauvignon wines and writing in my note that it's a Zin-lover's Cab.

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A. Rafanelli is only available at the winery or in a resturant. You can buy a limited amount at barrel tasting weekend or if your on his list and that may take a few years since they have a waiting list for the list.

[RobInAustin]

Forget finding Rafanelli, and if you did the price is way too much money.

You guys all forget another great producer, Dry Creek Vineyards. Their Old Vines and single vineyard Zins all define that style.

My good bud Don Wallace loves his zins, and they really define Dry Creek style. Even better, they are not hard to find and reasonably priced.

Cheers,

Rob

[melkor]

Forget finding Rafanelli, and if you did the price is way too much money.

You guys all forget another great producer, Dry Creek Vineyards. Their Old Vines and single vineyard Zins all define that style.

My good bud Don Wallace loves his zins, and they really define Dry Creek style. Even better, they are not hard to find and reasonably priced.

Cheers,

Rob

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The Rafanelli in my cellar cost all of $28/bottle - hardly a reason to dismiss them as a producer. I agree they are scarce, but they also best define the region. Amphora also does a good job with their Dry Creek zins.

[RobInAustin]

As a Texas retailer, I can tell you that outside of California, Rafanelli literally REFUSES to release their wines to the retail trade beyond literally a few bottles, as a result, here in Tx, the only way to taste Rafanelli Zin is at the three or four restaurants in town with it on the list, the least expensive offering can be had for $85 a bottle...hardly reasonable in my book.

California is not like the rest of the country in terms of availability.

[melkor]

As a Texas retailer, I can tell you that outside of California, Rafanelli literally REFUSES to release their wines to the retail trade beyond literally a few bottles, as a result, here in Tx, the only way to taste Rafanelli Zin is at the three or four restaurants in town with it on the list, the least expensive offering can be had for $85 a bottle...hardly reasonable in my book.

California is not like the rest of the country in terms of availability.

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Yick. It's available for around $50 in restaurants here and if you visit the winery they will sell you some for retail ($28). I suppose Turley is likely to be the same way.

[ludja]

Another nice producer is Alderbrook.

I also like Quivira and A. Raffanelli. J. Fritz sometimes has nice Zins as well (I think they do have some Dry Creek Vineyards).

Have been disappointed with Preston's offerings the last 5 years.

edit to add: oops, I see you mentioned Alderbrook in the first post!

Edited October 5, 2004 by ludja (log)

[RobInAustin]

Turley is even worse. The winery personally must "approve" every single account in advance before they get any. The entire allocation for the state for RETAIL is something less than three cases. Turley Zin starts at $100 in the restaurants and goes northward rapidly. Pretty much, those wines are jokes in our market, and we rarely think of them. All thanks to the managment of the winery. Quite literally, I was at a tasting where ONE single bottle of Turley was opened by the distributor. I tasted it and asked what kind of allocation I could get, the distributor poured another 2 ounces in my glass and said "There it is"...They belong to the "more money than taste" crowd in Texas.

Give me Thurow Zinfandel at $20 a bottle any day over Turley or Rafanelli.

[melkor]

Turley is even worse. The winery personally must "approve" every single account in advance before they get any. The entire allocation for the state for RETAIL is something less than three cases. Turley Zin starts at $100 in the restaurants and goes northward rapidly. Pretty much, those wines are jokes in our market, and we rarely think of them. All thanks to the managment of the winery. Quite literally, I was at a tasting where ONE single bottle of Turley was opened by the distributor. I tasted it and asked what kind of allocation I could get, the distributor poured another 2 ounces in my glass and said "There it is"...They belong to the "more money than taste" crowd in Texas.

Give me Thurow Zinfandel at $20 a bottle any day over Turley or Rafanelli.

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Wow. The Turley Zinfandels start at $20/bottle on the mailing list and at the winery with the vast majority being $20-$35/bottle.

[fyfas]

You might find these two articles in today's San Francisco Chronicle (Thursday Wine Section) interesting...

Dry Creek Valley Tasting Panel Notes/Choices

A related article discusses food with Dry Creek Valley zinfandels and has comments on the style and flavor characteristics of these wines...

Israeli Couscous With Roasted Beets