Green with Envy: Frey Vineyards 2004 Organic Zinfandel Surprises Friday, December 29, 2006
Posted by Conaway B. Haskins III in Uncategorized.trackback
Wine and holiday season seem like natural fits. Sipping a nice glass of quality vino can be a joyful way to spend time with loved ones, or it can be an absolute necessity to coping with them. Or both, depending on the family member(s) in question. Well, this Christmas happened to trend more toward the former, and during one of the Christmas events that I went to, I spied an interesting bottle of wine sitting on a rack. The label indicated that it had been produced “organically,” and the owner of said bottle encouraged me to pop the cork and try it out.
Now, I’ve always been a sucker for learning about how wine is produced, and thanks to Virginia’s own wineries, the plethora of good wine books, and researchers who put good information on the Web, it’s pretty easy to bone up on the complexity of viticulture and enology. But, when it comes to organic wines, I know much, much less. As a result, I nursed a healthy skepticism about whether high-quality wine could be made organically. Well, let’s just say that Santa brought a little education my way this Christmas.
The wine in question - Frey Vineyard’s 2004 Organic Zinfandel - is produced in a burgeoning organic wine and food hotbed, Mendocino County, California. Frey is regarded as the nation’s oldest organic winery, and the organic status is blasted all over the bottle. The labels also note that the wine “contains no detectable sulfites” and “no sulfites added,” which is terribly important to those who are really sensitive to the chemicals. For good measure, the 2004 Zin was certified organic by both USDA and the California Certified Organic Farmers, thus it’s legit.
This particular Zinfandel has a dark ruby color and a fruity taste which the label describes as hints of blackberries and raspberries. Personally, I tasted cherries, plums and prunes, and an interesting aftertaste of apples. but to each his/her own. The Zinfandel will probably pair well with Italian dishes, pork tenderloin, prime rib, and maybe even a piece of salmon cooked medium to well done. It does have a rather high alcohol content (14.3%), and probably should be aerated in the bottle for about 20-30 minutes for full enjoyment.
It rated in the mid-high 80’s by several reviewers (I’d concur with that assessment) and it’s won several medals in competition. From the looks of things on-line, you can probably snag a bottle of the 2004 Organic Zinfandel for between $15-18. That’s not bad for good wine. Maybe I’ll use that Total Wine gift card that I got for Christmas and pick up a few bottles. What a great way to ring in 2007 - stepping back in time to 2004.
I’ve always had a problem with the Frey wines. When I first tasted through them a couple of years ago, I found them a bit too earthy, I actually thought the first bottle was corked. There are Brunellos or that get a solid earthy feel to them, hints of leather on the nose only reinforce the power of them, like a truffle. There are wines in which that can be a high enjoyment, someting of the land itself and deeply pleasing on the palate. The Frey wines struck me as rough-hewn, and I attributed it to the winemaking. You really do taste the earth in the reds, and that’s a good thing, but don’t for the love of all that’s decent drink the last sip out of the bottle… that’s pure sand.
You know, I thought this wouldn’t be a good experience but I was surprised. I usually go for the better California Zins or Washington/Oregon Pinot Noirs, and the whole “organic” thing was really not on my radar. But, this was surprisingly good, especially in this price range. I’m not a big fan of Cabs or Merlots for the simple reason that most down-market ones taste like dirt.
Re-reading my previous post, it’s much more negative than I intended. I’ve enjoyed the Frey wines, and I truly appreciate their process and devotion to organic production and farming. Best of all, the vintner’s are some of the most decent people you’ll ever meet.