By the sandy shores of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River delta, the agricultural town of Lodi is home to a lot of old Zinfandel vines. It's considered a warm region, but its location, directly in line with the Golden Gate, brings daily afternoon breezes that soften the summer temperatures. Combine this with ancient vines in alluvial soil where roots grow very deep, and you've got a formula for ripe, lush Zin that's also concentrated and intense. Soft, round, spicy and jammy with voluptuous overtones of plums and blueberries, this wine lives large.

Deep ruby. Jammy raspberry and blackberry on the nose, with notes of fresh rose and baking spices adding complexity. Sappy dark berry flavors show liqueur-like intensity and depth but are also enlivened by juicy acidity. Impressively fresh, focused zinfandel with excellent finishing lift and thrust, leaving behind floral pastilles and smoky minerals.

8% Syrah. The sole claim to varietal character that this frontal, fairly lifeless and underfilled wine makes is its undisguised back-palate tannin, and in all other regards it is simply a shallow and indistinct red that ultimately tastes a bit too much like the cheap wine that it is.

Community Tasting Notes (average 84.7 pts. and median of 85 pts. in 51 notes)

Rating for United States-California: 79 (slightly worse than average year)<br/><br/>Drinkability: unpredictable<br/>

Best deal for $7.00! On sale @ safeway.Quite Decent.

Nicole had at wedding 11-2008

Good price for a decent Zin.

I like ironstone better

recommended to decant