I have been dying for some good weather so I can fire up the barbecue and do some of the things that people normally do here in Sonoma County this time of the year. However, up until this weekend we’ve been getting soaked by the rain. I”m starting to wonder if this is how people in Seattle feel most of the time. Anyhow, the forecast over the Holiday weekend was outstanding, the clouds parted and the sun shined through! I’ve been keeping up with Seghesio on twitter(@seghesio) and they keep telling me I need to have some of their Zinfandel with my BBQ, so I obliged and grabbed the only bottle offered at Safeway while I was picking up some ingredients for the BBQ.
So here is their 2008 Sonoma County Zinfandel
The nose: Ripe plums simmer up through a fairly hot nose, there is some spice, a touch of toasted oak/vanilla and that standard issue Jammy Zin character.
The Taste: You are greeted with a 50-50 blast of big fruit and black pepper. When I first tried this wine the fruit was a bit over ripe or cooked however as it has opened up that seems to have faded and now is on par with the other big jam fruity Zins.
The Mouth Feel: For being such a big fruit bomb there are not enough tannins to support the wine and it comes off a touch flabby. I would expect more structure for that much fruit. The mid palate through finish is a bit weak.
The Color: The wine is a dark purple thinning at the edges, very clear and pretty in the glass.
The Nitty Gritty:
15.5% ABV
Barrel aged for 10 months in 75% American (20% new) and 25% French oak
89% Zinfandel, 8% Petite Sirah, 3% Syrah
Average Brix at Harvest 26.8°
I paid a little over $20 and have seen it online from $20-$28
The Verdict: I’m not a big fan of the big jammy Zins so this one falls out of my favor a bit due to that, but it’s very typical of many other Zinfandels. There are no major flaws that I could detect and it pairs nicely with the sweet, tart and spicy BBQ sauces I used.
81 Pts. or a C+/B-
Nitty Gritty reference from Seghesio’s Website http://www.seghesio.com/
Norcal Wingman 
A while back I attended a Zinfandel wine party. There was a blind tasting of 16 different bottles. There were 3 of the Seghesio blue label. They took 2nd 3rd and 5th place. Pretty good showing
Wow, yeah Seghesio has a big following here in Sonoma County, it’s many folks favorite Zin. I just had high expectations I guess.
Thanks again for the guest post, really cool stuff!
Cheers
Brian
I do agree with you that too many big, jammy Zins can be a little off-putting (I went to a Lodi Zin tasting and got cold-cocked by a bunch of 16 percenters…and now I’m going to be a dad, but that’s another story). However, I think a jammy, peppery Zin is awesome with BBQ- particularly ribs- if the seasoning is sweet and peppery (but not too spicy with high-alcohol Zins).
I’d like to try Seghesio again, but I think you’re dead on that it’s like many other Zins, and many of those can be found for cheaper. But, I’ll reserve judgement until I try this wine again.
I was a little surprised by this one. When I first opened it I was scarily disappointed, but it did come back around with some redeeming qualities. Seghesio has some Rockpile AVA wines and I love Mauritson’s Rockpile Zin, so I’ll have to see if I can track me down some of that. The volcanic terrior up there above Lake Sonoma has some serious kick!
Anyhow, congrats again on the new baby (when she gets here).
Cheers
Brian