Bottle Notes, Zinfandel

Marietta Cellars Old Vine Red Lot #68 – Bottle Notes

The history of Marietta Cellars goes back almost 40 years. It is a true American success story that merits the attention of every red wine drinker who wants to drink exceptional wines at fair prices. Marietta Cellars was founded by Chris Bilbro in 1978. In recent years Chris’s son, Scot, has taken over most of the responsibilities. Scot’s brother Jake is running the show at Limerick Lane Wines while his brother Sam is running Idlewild Wines.

Old Vine Red (OVR) is a proprietary red wine made to replicate the field blends of many of the old vineyards in Sonoma and Mendocino counties. Predominantly comprised of Zinfandel, OVR is a multi vintage blend. The lot # represents the current version of this wine.

Opaque purple in color. 13.5% ABV. Big nose of brambly red and black fruits, anise and black pepper. Full bodied with ample acidity. Really big and juicy. Raspberry liqueur, black cherry, earth and pepper on the palate. Solid length on the finish. I slightly prefer Lot #67 that is still widely available but that is splitting hairs. As always, tremendous value at around $13 a bottle. A wine to buy by the case. Best over the next year or so.

My rating: 89 points.

Marietta Cellars makes several other wines that are noteworthy. Look for the Angeli in particular.

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