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 February Zinfandel of the Month is the 2016 Turley Zinfandel Ueberroth Vineyard.
Turley Wine Cellars was founded in 1993 by Larry Turley and specializes in small lots of Zinfandel and Petite Sirah from some of California’s most historic and treasured vineyards. Turley now makes right around 50 separate wines from 47 different vineyards, some with vines that date back to the late 1800’s. Tegan Passalacqua is the Director of Winemaking at Turley and has been instrumental in revitalizing the brand.
I chose this wine as my Zinfandel of the Month widely voted for in last month’s installment of Pick My Next Bottle. Ueberroth is one of my favorite Zins in the Turley lineup.
Owned by the ex-commissioner of baseball Peter Ueberroth, the limestone vineyard is situated on the west side of Paso Robles. Ueberroth is the oldest vineyard in the appelation having been planted in 1885. Turley has made an Ueberroth Vineyard Zinfandel since 2002.
Crimson in color. 15.9% ABV. Heady nose of red fruits, anise and pepper. Medium to full bodied with ample acidity. Notably well balanced. Tremendous purity of fruit. Cherry liqueur, raspberry compote, strawberry and pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Delicious Zinfandel that will be best over the next year.
My rating: 93 points.
With all due respect to Carlisle, Turley is arguably the best Zinfandel producer in California. Certainly the scale of the operation is second to none. Exceptional vineyards sources throughout the state of California and no detail spared in the winemaking process. The wines are simply better than ever.
Turley wines are available via the mailing list and periodically at retail. Turley has tasting rooms in both Amador and Paso Robles. If you are not on the mailing list, this is an easy way to secure bottles. Both are not to be missed if you are in the area.