Zinfandel of the Month is a regular feature on Zinfandel Chronicles. Keep in mind that although the Zinfandel of the Month might be an older bottle, the current vintage will be one you can find at retail or via the mailing list.
The January Zinfandel of the Month is the 2016 Once & Future Zinfandel Oakley Road Vineyard.
I chose this wine as my Zinfandel of the Month as so far Once & Future just does a single release per year. Last year the mailer landed right at the end of February. If you want to try these wines you’ll need to sign up for the mailing list in the next month or so.
Joel Peterson founded Ravenswood Winery in 1976 with a focus on Single Vineyard Zinfandel. Ravenswood was immensely successful and over time began producing in excess of a million cases per year. Once & Future is the return to the original vision Joel had for Ravenswood so many years ago – a small project specializing in wines from unique older vineyards. At present time Once & Future makes several Zins along with a Merlot, Mataro and Petite Sirah.
Oakley Road Vineyard was planted in 1900 and is situated in Contra Costa County.
Dark crimson in color. 15% ABV. Sublime nose of red fruits, peach, baking spices and pepper. Medium body with exquisite acidity. Exceptionally elegant and refined. Bursting with bright, juicy fruits. Cherry, raspberry liqueur, blood orange and pepper on the palate. Tremendous length on the finish. I can’t be the first to suggest that the Zins from Once & Future are as good or better than any Zins Joel Peterson made at Ravenswood can I? Best over the next 2-4 years.
My rating: 96 points.
I always hesitate to suggest yet another mailing list to my readers but I’ll make an exception here. Sign up soon as I suspect these wines will be hard to come by in the not so distant future. The next release should be in the coming weeks.