A Tale of Two Mountain Wines
One of the many things that intrigue me about wine is how the geography and environmental conditions of grapes can influence its “personality” so greatly – even within the same region. Mountain-sourced wines are especially known for their structure and ageability due to the stress the vines endure during the growing process. In higher elevations, rainfall drains to the valley below, making these grapes much more concentrated. To our benefit, this produces truly unique and complex wines.
Heading into New Year’s Eve, we opened two drastically different Napa Valley mountain icons.
Wine Reviews and Ratings
- Vieux-OS 2009 Old Vine Zinfandel (Black Sears Vineyard) – Schrader Cellars produces this full-bodied wine from 35-year-old Howell
Mountain vines. Zinfandel is known for its spice and bright fruit but this one really stood out for its pepper notes. Wine tasting can be a fairly subjective experience, but everyone in my group paused and commented on the pepper domination. I also noticed subtle hints of blackberry and oak. I have to call out that this wine is available by invitation from Schrader or through specialty channels, but figured some of my readers may be cellaring this and curious to know how it’s drinking currently. Rating: 3.5. Continue reading Napa Valley Wine Reviews and Ratings