Limerick Lane Winery is in the Russian River Valley just south of the town of Healdsburg. The Del Fava family planted the oldest currently producing vineyard at Limerick Lane in 1910, a field blend consisting mostly of Zinfandel. In 1977, the Del Favas sold their thirty acre property to brothers Michael and Tom Collins. The two brothers began by selling some of the grapes to local wineries including De Loach, Ravenswood and Gary Farrell. In 1985, Limerick Lane Cellars was created. By 2009, Mike Collins was ready to sell and asked his neighbor Jake Bilbro if he would like to buy Limerick Lane and the Collins Vineyard. For two years Jake pitched nearly every bank in California before a local bank in Healdsburg finally agreed to give him the loan.
The property is just south of Healdsburg at the end of Limerick Lane. The vineyard was planted around 1910 by Mario Del Fava and has only been farmed by 3 families in the last 100 years. The fruit goes to Limerick Lane, Carlisle, AldenAlli, Matthiasson and Bedrock.
Purple in color. 15.1% ABV. Fantastic nose of red fruits, citrus and baking spices. Medium body with mouth watering acidity. Rich, plush and exceptionally well balanced. Delightful and charming with a unique earthy quality. Raspberry liqueur, blood orange, cocoa and pepper on the palate. Tremendous length on the finish. Awesome Zin that is drinking beautifully. Best over the next several years.
My rating: 93 points.
The 2018 version of Block 1910 was released earlier this month.
I’ve been following Limerick Lane since the early 90’s. Consistently delicious Zins and the vineyard could not be in better hands right now. The mailing list here is highly recommended.
I blogged about Limerick Lane Vineyard previously in Top 10 Old Vine Zinfandel Vineyards and A Visit to Limerick Lane.