Four Vines The Maverick Zinfandel 2012
-
Panel
Tasting -
Enthusiast
Wine
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
A key signature of Amador County Zins is a brambly, wild berry character. Four Vines Maverick Zin packs plenty of bramble with notes of of tobacco, leather and black pepper. Tannins are well integrated and the wine is nicely balanced. It's full-bodied with enough acidity to pair well with food. Think big flavors and rich meats when serving this wine. Pour alongside smoked ribs, lamb or a juicy grilled steak.
Professional Ratings
-
Tasting Panel
Silky and juicy with generous red fruit and spice; rich, fresh and lively with bright, fresh tangy flavors; long and balanced.
-
Wine Enthusiast
This is tasty in a ripe, extravagantly fruity way. Raspberry and strawberry aromas seem as sweet as syrup. The full body and alcoholic strength give it a strong texture, but without too much tannic grip. Barbecued ribs or a cheese plate could be great matches.
Editors' Choice
Other Vintages
2010-
Spectator
Wine
-
Spectator
Wine
-
Spectator
Wine
-
Spectator
Wine
California’s Central Coast is a vast, rugged landscape stretching from Santa Barbara north to Monterey Bay. It’s wild country with a gorgeous coastline and few towns. Wide open with fertile farming soil and abundant ranchland, this place attracted more than just farmers and cowboys it also attracted artists, rebels, seekers and bon vivants from the Bay Area and the Los Angeles sprawl. The confluence of their unique personalities put a stamp on the burgeoning wine region and today, rule-breaking and non-conformity are celebrated values.
Four Vines honors the anti-establishment views of the Central Coast’s eccentric personalities. We make interesting wine, for interesting people.
Unapologetically bold, spice-driven and jammy, Zinfandel has secured its title as the darling of California vintners by adapting well to the state's diverse microclimates and landscapes. Born in Croatia, it later made its way to southern Italy where it was named Primitivo. Fortunately, the imperial nursery of Vienna catalogued specimens of the vine, and it later made its way to New England in 1829. Parading the true American spirit, Zinfandel found a new home in California during the Gold Rush of 1849. Somm Secret—California's ancient vines of Zinfandel are those that survived the neglect of Prohibition; today these vines produce the most concentrated, ethereal and complex examples.
As the lower part of the greater Sierra Foothills appellation, Amador is roughly a plateau whose vineyards grow at 1,200 to 2,000 feet in elevation. It is 100 miles east of both San Francisco and Napa Valley. Most of its wineries are in the oak-studded rolling hillsides of Shenandoah Valley or east in Fiddletown, where elevations are slightly higher.
The Sierra Foothills growing area was among the largest wine producers in the state during the gold rush of the late 1800s. The local wine industry enjoyed great success until just after the turn of the century when fortune-seekers moved elsewhere and its population diminished. With Prohibition, winemaking was totally abandoned, along with its vineyards. But some of these, especially Zinfandel, still remain and are the treasure chest of the Sierra Foothills as we know them.
Most Amador vines are planted in volcanic soils derived primarily from sandy clay loam and decomposed granite. Summer days are hot but nighttime temperatures typically drop 30 degrees and the humidity is low, making this an ideal environment for grape growing. Because there is adequate rain throughout the year and even snow in the winter, dry farming is possible.