Mayo 2007 Zin­fan­del Ricci Vineyard

Ever thought about wine tast­ing on New Year’s Day?  I did, fully expect­ing most Sonoma winer­ies to be open that day.  Well, most were closed (what was I think­ing?!) so fate took me to Mayo Fam­ily Win­ery, which was open and keep­ing it real on New Year’s Day!

Their 2007 Old Vines Zin boasts 15.2% alco­hol, so recruit a friend to help you drink it.  Which shouldn’t be hard.

It looks dark and brood­ing, yet has a crisp ele­gance to it, kind of like The Rock in a suit.  One sniff and I can tell it has an atti­tude.  Okay, let’s tango.

First sip and it goes eas­ier on me than I expected.  It hits my palate pretty softly.  Another sip and the pep­per and alco­hol punch through.  Third sip and I’m on the mat.  This is what a Zin should taste like.  Jammy, but not over-the-top obnox­ious jammy like other Zins.  Fourth sip and sad­ness sinks in as I real­ize this is my only bottle.

This spar­ring part­ner will cost you about $35, but it’s worth every penny.  Good thing I also have their 2007 Zin­fan­del PORT which I will be shar­ing with fam­ily at Thanks­giv­ing this year.  One thing about col­lect­ing wine is you always have some­thing amaz­ing to look for­ward to…

Date Tasted: Novem­ber 2, 2011
Vin­tage: 2007
Vari­etal: Zin­fan­del
Win­ery: Mayo Fam­ily Win­ery
Region: Russ­ian River Val­ley (Ricci Vine­yard)
Alco­hol: 15.2%

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• Alysian 2010 Chardon­nay – West­side Farms, Clone 4
• Alysian 2010 Chardon­nay – Russ­ian River Selection
• Straight Line 2009 Men­do­cino County Pinot Noir