Gang of Pour - School's Out

Double J’s Old Hill Ranch Roundup

Intro

Portland, Oregon:
Double J's Old Hill Ranch Roundup

Cristom Vineyards

Ann Arbor, Michigan
MoCool 2001

Ogier Tasting

Cleveland, Ohio
Larry & Mary Meehan

North Carolina:
Greg Ellis, High Point

Jim Cowan, Banner Elk

Detroit, Michigan:
Back at Gang Central

Epilogue

List of Wines

Before I left for Portland, I gave our friend John Jenness (left) a virtual holler to let him know I’d be in the neighborhood, and wondered if he had time to get together and pull a few corks. He replied to the affirmative, adding that he and Marshall Manning had been threatening to put together a vertical tasting of Ravenswood Old Hill Ranch Zinfandels, and this might provide just the opportunity. I liked that idea just fine, and arrangements were made to conduct the affair during my last night in town, on Wednesday, August 22^nd.

Rosie and I, along with her housemate Mara Hamilton, arrived just before 7 PM, and John greeted us with a glass of delicious German white. We were followed shortly afterwards by Marshall (top right) and Carolyn Manning, Vincent (bottom right) and Jennifer Fritzsche, with daughter Dolores, and Doug and Michelle Ackerman. We all dished up some gourmet pizza and then took seats around John’s expansive dining room table (made from old bubbly racks), and began to see what the Old Hill had to offer.

My experience with these wines is limited to only one previous taste, so I took a gander at the Ravenswood website for some background information. I found that the "vineyard in Sonoma Valley is an extension of the Oak Hill Organic Farm, owned and operated for many years by the now deceased Otto Teller, a sage octogenarian who employed no pesticides or irrigation. The 110-year-old vines are situated on a gravelly, well-drained hill that receive a full share of summer sun as well as cooling breezes. The crop level is seldom higher than one and a half tons per acre, and this scant tonnage - combined with the ideal growing conditions - produces exceptionally intense, spicy fruit."

This sounded like my kind of Zinfandel, so I attacked them enthusiastically. Here’re my snapshot-notes of everything we tasted.

1998 Schloss Lieser Riesling Neiderberg Helden Auslese, 8% alc.: Rosie and Mara really liked this pale straw, but then, so did everyone else. The dry green apple/mineral/hint o’ petrol bouquet takes on somewhat sweet peachy notes on the palate, with a viscous mouthfeel, just enough acidity and a nice long finish. Dee-lish!

1985 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 14% alc.: A slightly rusty dark garnet, this exuded a beautiful perfumed raspberry/blackberry bouquet that reminded me of a bowl of flowers and berries, and seems to be a hallmark of the series, if many of the other vintages are any indication. The full bodied flavors take on darker notes with a harder edge; there’re still considerable tannins to resolve, and good acidity. More than one taster wondered if the fruit would outlast the tannins, and while I wouldn’t hazard a guess one way or the other, I will say that it’s a damned good pizza wine!

1988 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 13.5% alc.: Another dark garnet with just a hint of rust, this revealed a blackberry/black currant/barnyard nose with a little perfume; it’s tannic and acidic, with rather dried out fruit on the palate. Marshall compared this to a dried out Barbaresco, which is no doubt the result of the poor vintage.

1992 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 14.5% alc.: Another dark garnet with a slight tinge of rust, and more flowers and dark berries on the nose. The sweet flavors generally echo with significant tannins, good acidity and a somewhat astringent finish. Marshall mentioned a peppery note, which was right on. This is one chewy mutha that still needs some cellar time.

1993 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 14.8% alc.: About this dark garnet, Carolyn said, "Fruity and jammy and just what you expect a Zin to be, spicy!" I couldn’t agree more, as this was generally acknowledged to be the most accessible and showing the best of the bunch on this particular occasion. Another one with flowers and sweet dark berries on the nose, which follow through on the palate with good (but not excessive) tannins and acidity. Very nice indeed!

1994 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 14.4% alc.: This dark garnet shows even jammier black raspberries on the nose than the preceding selections, echoing in the flavors with good tannins and acidity; a little less dense than the ’93, but still better than any of the ones to follow.

1995 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 15% alc.: Marshall remarked that there seemed to be a style change around the middle of the decade, and it was readily apparent in this dark garnet. While it showed a somewhat similar flavor/aroma profile to the earlier models, it was less effusive on the nose and less substantial on the palate. Noticeably less tannic than those previously tasted, with nothing to compensate for it.

1996 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 14.8% alc.: The black zinberry bouquet of this dark garnet is even more sub-dude than the ’95, which is reflected in the flavors; again, it is less tannic and shows a certain vacancy on the midpalate.

1997 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 14.5% alc.: The pretty, jammy, perfumed blackberry/black raspberry flavors and aromas of this dark garnet kick things up a notch from the previous two vintages; it’s still not that tannic compared to the first four selections tasted, but it has good acidity and a nice finish. I was reminded somewhat of a late model Ridge.

1998 Ravenswood Sonoma Valley Zinfandel Old Hill Ranch, 14.8% alc.: Dark garnet, with a big perfumed raspberry/blackberry/black raspberry bouquet that promises charms the flavors don’t quite deliver. Probably the least tannic of the bunch, with decent acidity, this seems to reflect the same kind of problematic vintage as the ’88 does.

1985 Fonseca Vintage Porto: This inky dark garnet Port was poured from a decanter, and I didn’t search out the alcohol content, but these generally run in the neighborhood of 18%. It has big, bold black cherry/walnut/chocolate flavors and aromas that are still primary, with a good byte to them. Although very refined and already very tasty, it really needs many years to develop.

1972 Bodegas Toro Albala Don Pedro Ximenez Gran Reserva, 375 ML., 17% alc: JJ opened this up for Rosie and me after everyone else had left, and neither of us have ever had anything quite like it before. Dense, almost the color of soy sauce, it smells a little like soy sauce too, according to the darling daughter. She added notes of organic raisins/maple syrup/molasses, while John mentioned orange/nutmeg. We all liked it quite well, and oddly enough, Florida Jim would open another of these a few weeks later for Cuozzi and the Gang, which only increased my appreciation for it. Wild, weird and wonderful.

It’s always a pleasure to reconvene with any contingent of the Gang of Portland, and we’re especially appreciative of Double J’s gracious hospitality in opening his home to us on a school, er… work night. It was edifying and enjoyable to taste through this lineup of Old Hill Zins from Ravenswood, but I have to admit that based on the impressions above, I would opt for a Ridge Geyserville or Lytton Springs from a corresponding vintage without hesitation.

Anyway, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

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