A Zinfantastic Time at the ZAP Zinfandel Festival

Amy, Carol and I had a zinfantastic (or perhaps "zinfandelic") time at the 17th Annual ZAP Zinfandel Festival in San Francisco. I'd wanted to go to this festival for as long as I can remember (well, at least, as long as I've loved Zinfandel ... which is almost as long as I can remember). The Friday before the festival was my last day at my old job (in Palo Alto), so Amy flew down from Seattle for the weekend, and Carol drove out from Sacramento.

I'm not sure how many wineries were there - probably 200-300 - certainly far more than I could get to during the all-too-brief 3-hour tasting. I probably tasted over 50 wines - and seemed to be one of the relatively few people who were carrying red plastic cups (as spittoons). It was pretty crowded, but we were able to navigate pretty well (though during the last hour, I left Amy and Carol behind as I fully engaged in what my friend, Les, called "wine lust" (when we were together during the Rhone Rangers festival a few years ago) - darting among the tables, using my mouth solely for tasting wines, vs. communicating with other humans). Note for next year: join ZAP (Zinfandel Advocates & Producers) ... the extra cost would be well worth the extra hour (with a smaller crowd) for tasting.

As usual, I am not very good at recalling nuances of smells or taste components, all I remember is what I really liked - and didn't like, so I'm going to list my top choices among the wines I tasted (and the tasting notes provided by the wineries).

1. Edmeades: 2005 2006 Chase Vineyard ($29): Think cherries … loads of ’em. Chocolate-covered cherries, dried Bing cherries, candied cherries, perfumed cherries. Mendocino Zin may be known for cherry and berry flavors, but this bottling is over the top, with cherry bursting out in all directions, topped with a rich toasty oak bouquet with a touch of butterscotch. Bold … and big, with excellent cellaring potential for five to ten years.
   [Interestingly, Robert Parker only rated this wine at 89 points: "The 2005 Zinfandel Chase Vineyard has an intense black cherry and raspberry nose, a dark ruby/purple-tinged color, surprisingly full body and depth, and is quite a complete wine, even in such a difficult vintage." The photo to the right is of the Edmeades tasting booth. (Update: I initially mislabeled the vintage we tasted of the Edmeades and the Hartford at the event; in both cases, it was the 2006. This may explain the highly unusual discrepancy between RP's rating and my subjective impression of a wine. I believe all the other vintages are correctly labeled.)]
2. Hartford: 2005 2006 Fanucchi-Wood Road Vineyard, Russian River Valley ($50): The 2005 Fanucchi-Wood Road Vineyard Zinfandel displays ripe blackberry and black raspberry aromas and flavors along with silky chocolate notes on the finish. Carrying on the tradition of this venerable vineyard, the 2005 Fanucchi-Wood Road Zinfandel has a tremendously dense texture complemented by big fruit and great power.
3. Opolo: 2005 Reserve, Paso Robles ($38)
4. Pezzi King: 2005 Old Vine, Dry Creek Valley ($22)
5. Roshambo: 2005 The Reverend, Dry Creek Valley ($25): Picture-perfect Dry Creek Valley Zin. So lush, so delicious, you just can't get enough. Power-packed with cherry, raspberry, cassis, chocolate, licorice, tobacco, oak and spice flavors, this wine's structure is beautiful, with elegant tannins and brisk acids (Wine Enthusiast, 92 points, Editors' Choice).

Other honorable mentions include:

• Robert Biale: 2006 Old Crane Ranch (N/A), 2006 Old Kraft Vineyard (N/A
• Bogle: 2006 Old Vine ($11); I didn't try this myself, but Amy and Carol said it was very good (especially for the price) ... I did not like the 2005, but for $11, I'll give it a try.
• J. Dusi: 2004 Haute Haute Haute Zin Port, Dante Dusi Vineyard, Paso Robles (listed as a "Late Harvest Zinfandel" on their web site)
• Edmeades: 2005 Perli Vineyard, Mendocino Ridge ($29), 2006 Shamrock Vineyard (N/A), 2006 Mendocino ($18)
• Hartford: 2005 Russian River Valley ($30), 2006 Highwire Vineyard, Russian River Valley ($50)
• Opolo: 2006 Mountain, Paso Robles ($26)
• Paradise Ridge: 2005 The Convict, Rocky Ridge Vineyard, Rockpile ($34)
  
• Pezzi King: 2005 Estate, Dry Creek Valley ($40), 2005 Estate Reserve, Dry Creek Valley ($50)
• Macchia: 2006 Adventurous, Linsteadt Vineyard, Amador County ($26), 2006 Mischievous, Lodi ($18), 2005 Dangerous, Port ($25)
• Portalupi: 2006 Zinfandel, Sonoma Valley ($28)
• Rancho Zabaco: 2004 Stefani Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley ($25)
• Carol Shelton: 2005 Karma Zin, Rue Vineyard, Russian River Valley ($33), 2005 Maple Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley ($33), 2005 Manga Zin, Lopez Vineyard, Cucamonga Valley ($21), 2005 Rocky Reserve, Rockpile Ridge Vineyard, Dry Creek Valley (N/A)
• Sobon Estate: 2006 ReZerve, Amador County ($24); 2006 Old Vines, Amador County ($12)
• Steele: 2004 DuPratt, Mendocino Ridge ($24)
• Trentadue: 2004 La Storia, Geyserville Ranch, Alexander Valley Estate ($28)

Due to time constraints, I explicitly avoided some wineries - Ravenswood, Renwood and Rosenblum, because I've been to their tasting rooms within the past few years, and Turley - because I'm on their mailing list.

The only downsides to the tasting, other than it was too short, and several wineries packed it in before the end of the event, was that someone stole my tasting glass. I set it down on a table for a minute to make some notes as I was tasting my way through the Edmeades' booth, and someone stole it. It wasn't near any other glasses, so I don't think it was an "honest" mistake. Fortunately, it was close to where they were selling replacement glasses for $5, and although they had no more to sell, one of the volunteers there - David Sanchez, shown in the photo to the left - witnessed the theft (a woman with red hair - not my wife), and gave me one of the used glasses, which I washed thoroughly in the men's room, and then used to continue my final stretch of tasting. I also developed a case of severely stained thumb (shown in the photo to the right, taken at Capurro's Restaurant after the festival, in front of a bottle of Four Vines 2005 Old Vine Cuvee, one of the wines I did not taste during the festival), presumably due to wine dribbling down the stem of my glass over the course of the afternoon; fortunately, no wine dribbled onto my clothing.

All in all, I would have to say that this was the best wine tasting event I've ever attended - even better than the Rhone Rangers tasting at Fort Mason I went to three years ago (with Amy, Carol, Elizabeth, Les and Kathy). We had a nice dinner afterward (with Chris joining us) at nearby Capurro's, and spent the night at the nearby Coventry Motor Inn. Since returning home to the Seattle area, I've been able to find some of these wines in local wine shops, but I just may have to join a few more wine clubs.