Wilson Winery

I am not generally a fan of “Reserve” wines because the term is not regulated and therefore open to every kind of marketing spin you can imagine. The folks at Wilson take the concept seriously, however. They keep the prices of most of their wines moderate and put more money (in terms of winegrowing labor, new barrels, and aging time) only into the bottlings that deserve it. They call these “reserve” wines in the original sense: they were held back for special care and extra polish. You’re going to pay a little more for them, and that’s good because they’re worth it.

This 2004 Dry Creek Zinfandel has about 10% Petite Sirah in it, which is a time-tested combination for both California Zin and Dry Creek. The wine also got hand punch-downs during fermentation and more than 40% of the barrels were the expensive new French kind. The barrels impart the oak and vanilla they are supposed to, but it's the berry aromas that well out of the glass. The wine is super-smooth and luxuriously laden with caramel and chocolate, and it’ll fill your mouth in a hurry. The finish is expansive and long, with the oak nicely melded into the blueberry and blackberry flavors so that the vanilla just seems another dimension of fruity sweetness. Not much Zin is made for long aging these days, but I bet this one is still gorgeous in 10 years.

Reviewed March 21, 2007 by Thom Elkjer.