• SD: Nose and sour bite proclaim a wine over the hill. Strong chemsitry lab kit character. D

• Date Consumed: 1/1/97
• Price: $17.50
• Alcohol 14.9%

• BW: What a wonderfully sumptuous bouquet! Smells of pepper and licorice. The color is an inky purple red, very lovely. This is an intense wine, more pleasing with cheese and crackers than alone. Extremely dense and satisfying. A-
• SD: The color is dark, rich and mysterious, and it comes with a matching nose. The first sip brings a wonderful complexity of burnt oak and soft wine... but almost immediately, I worry that the charred barrel essence will overpower the more restrained and elegant zin character. I with I had the Lytton Springs '91 here for a direct comparison, for I detect (or imagine) a large difference: '91, rich and chocolately; 92, dry and oaky. After several sips my worries abate somewhat: this is a good wine, not overly flawed and quite smooth and tasty. But there is still this firewood note that leaves definite ash on the tongue. B

• Date Purchased: California Wine Club selection
• Date Consumed: 2/3/95
• Price:

• BW: Soft, mature, well-behaved. B
• SD: Medium body, soft, tasty but not as rich as one might hope. B-

• Date Purchased: 8/94 (at Davis Bynum Tasting Room)
• Date Consumed: 3/23/95
• Price: ~ $18?

• BW: Love the fragrance. You can smell the oak. Very mature; very buttery for a zin. A
• SD: Rich purple color. Smooth, like polished oak. Tasty! Except possibly for the Ridge York Creek, the best zin I have tasted to date! Perfectly balanced and rounded. A

• Date Purchased: 4/27/95 (local liquor store)
• Date Consumed: 4/28/95
• Price: $9

• BW: Wonderful bouquet, strongly aromatic. Color is a medium raspberry. It's sharp and lively on the tongue, and explodes in your mouth! Cries out for a cheese and crackers accompaniment. A bit harsh alone. I'm guessing a few more years in the bottle would improve its manners, but its very enjoyable now if you're in the mood for a hearty red. B+
• SD: Rich, warm, satisfying. Simple but forthright, bold and honest -- a Forrest Gump of wines. I wish it had more to say, but hey, a great deal at nine bucks. Would go great with a meal, or maybe aging would entice some complexity. B+

• Date Purchased: 5/95 from wine store
• Date Consumed: 5/29/95
• Price: $8
• Alcohol 13.2%

• BW: The 1990 zin from Pedroncelli is bright and sharp at first sip, then full and warm in the back of the throat. The bouquet is exuberent, the color a lovely cranberry shading to a pale salmon at the edge. A satisfying medium-bodied zin, I give it a B+. B+
• SD: Clear purple-brown color; rich redwood forest bouquet -- looks and smells like it should taste great. Medium body; kind of woody in flavor, a little off. Loud, not quite obnoxious but pushing it. Still, a strong taste that's not bad, just a little harsh and a tad unbalanced. Hint of paprika. B-

• Date Purchased: 4/95 from wine store
• Date Consumed: 7/19/95
• Price: $13
• Alcohol 14.0%

• BW: Alluring dark berry color. Smells like Corinthian leather and alcohol. Ultra smooth and rich. Satisfying. I'm grooving on it! A-
• SD: Dark, lovely color. Rich, full bouquet: wine-soaked Australian (Pennsylvannian?) barrels. Dry, warm, tasty and smooth. Intriguing flavor: greens, ham and pineapple, with a smidgen of crushed red pepper -- a Hawaiian pizza, with a garden salad on the side. Nicely balanced! B+

• Date Consumed: 8/24/95
• Price: $10
• Alcohol 14%

• BW: The color is a beautiful dark raspberry. In the nose I find vanilla and cedar. It's got a sharp but enjoyable flavor, somewhat strong alone but would be excellent with food. Very nice! B+
• SD: Crystal red color. Aromas of oak and espresso. A medium-bodied zin that tastes of coffee and red onion. At first it seems a bit acrid, but then it softens up with an excellent finish. If you give it a chance to breath, it will reward you with tales of chocolate and blackberries from faraway lands. If it were just a bit richer and heartier, an evening spent with this wine would be a very memorable experience. B+

• Date Consumed: 9/27/95
• Price: $18
• Alcohol 13.7%

• BW: This wine looks delicious -- has a lovely dark ruby color. It's very fragrant, with anise and cherry coming through clearly. It's smooth without being boring and flavorful enough to need some food for accompaniment (we chose brie). Very nice! A-
• SD: Crystal ruby in appearance. Nose: strong, solid red -- nothing fancy, but also nothing mousy. Body is dry, firm, smooth, tasty. I like it -- no holds barred on the flavor, a steady grip. This is a confident wine that goes down easy. A zin treat with maybe just a subtle hint of apple glaze. At this price it had better be good... and it is. B+

• Date Consumed: 10/28/95
• Price: $11
• Alcohol 14.5%

• BW: This wine has an enticing sharp bouquet, bursting with berries and vanilla. On the tongue it's bright, tasty, but finishes a bit too soon (contrary to the claim on the bottle). Overall, very pleasing. B+
• SD: Toasty zin bouquet. A robust zin that's spent a little too much time barreling in American oak -- the grainy finish is slightly overwhelming. Still, it would be an excellent complement to a hearty meal... a nice Greek supper would soften the edges of this wine. B-

• Date Consumed: 3/9/96

• BW: The Clos Du Bois zin has an inviting aroma followed up with a bright, sharp, distinctively zinfandel flavor. Very lovely! Could be heftier, but I'm really enjoying its cheerful personality. A-
• SD: A little thinner in color and first sipping than my ideal red, but first impressions are deceiving. Yes, there is a hint of rainy undertexture, but still this wine manages to come across as wonderful, rich and lucious. This is a fine, hearty zinfandel. No pretention, just a good solid dry zin. I can still taste the oak, but six months aging has softened the edges. Drink now for a smashing good time, or put off for two years for something a little more relaxed and refined. B+

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• Date Consumed: 11/17/95
• Price: California Wine Club Selection
• Alcohol 13.8%

• BW: It's bright and zinny, licorice in the nose, very enjoyable. B+
• SD: Fragrant. Warm and informal, a friendly simple wine. Goes down easy. Basically, a good one-trick zin. Give it another year and it could become a real gem. B-

• Date Consumed: 3/13/96

• BW: B
• SD: Fresh, spicy zin. Fruity with black pepper-- rather sirahlike. Still a bit young and uncouth but quite tasty. A great wine to drink with a spicy sausage dinner. B

• 85% Zinfandel, 8% Petite Sirah, 3% Carignan, 2% Alicante, 2% Grenache
• Date Consumed: 1/3/96
• Price: $22
• Alcohol 14.5%

• BW: The color is an attractive dark cranberry, and the nose promises big bold zin flavor. It's a lush fruity wine, not overly complex but wonderfully satisfying and delicious. A-
• SD: Cork pops nicely! Enticing bouquet and dark purple clarity bode well. A nice blend! A hint of strawberry with a kick of oregano. I predict this wine will peak in 2-5 years and then fade away. B+

• Date Consumed: 3/28/95
• Price: $9
• Alcohol 13.8%

• BW: Alluring with its sharp zin nose and burgundy hue, the Pedroncelli is a medium-bodied dry red. It has lively acid and assertive zin flavor; it's simple yet satisfying. Would complement a lasagna dinner or spaghetti and meatballs very nicely. B
• SD: Pinot red color. Medium-bodied, leaning towards light for a Sonoma zinfandel, but surprisingly full of flavor. Look for citrus in the harmonics (is that a pretentious enough way to say I taste a little orange?) B

• Date Consumed: 7/11/96
• Price: $13 ($9 at End-O-Bin)
• Alcohol 14.5%

• SD: Wonderful bouquet of red wine and barrels of german oak. Warm and smooth, a little flat on the back of the tongue. Very cab-like in nature (sauvignon, not the yellow taxi). Could use a few more years to mellow those tannins. B-

• Date Consumed: 9/25/96
• Price: $15
• Alcohol 13.3%

• SD: This is a warm, dry, fuzzy wine. Medium bodied and not too outspoken, it nevertheless tickles the palate in a free-spirited, whimsical manner. A little hollow, you can't take it too seriously. Still, it's fun drinking. This is a great $9 wine. Unfortunately, it sells for $15. Fortunately, Cliff paid for it. Now that's great wine! B-
• CF: Visiting Scott and Barbara, I resolved to purchase the finest zinfandel available in Madison, Indiana. Ken-Del Liquors had but four, and this was clearly my wine (the others? Talus, Turning Leaf, Gallo). Upon opening, I discovered a gentle, careful wine. But too careful for my taste -- the right flavors are all there, but -- they are hiding, as if afraid to uncover themselves and engage me in zinfandelus delecti, in mortal winebat. This is unfortunate, as this could be a fine wine if its spirit had not been broken. Or perhaps the problem is me; perhaps I am too unsophisticated for this wine. In any case, this is a wine you could take anywhere, drink with anything, but for me, a mild disappointment. C+

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