Marietta Cellars = Great QPR Recently, we’ve taken a closer look at the fine (and affordable) wines from Marietta Cellars. We’ve enjoyed the Old Vine Red Lots and Zinfandels from this underrated Geyserville producer for several years now, but not as much as we should have, given the quality price ratio. With that in mind, we picked up all of the bottlings currently available in the Day-twah area to see just how they are drinking. Here’s a rundown on our findings:
1995 Marietta Cellars Sonoma Zinfandel Geyserville $15.99; 13.5 % alc.: When I described the nose on this dark garnet as spicy black raspberry, rich and deep, Alan punctuated that with, "Big way!" There’s some maple syrup as well, and maybe just a wee hint of sea air. It shows some heat on the palate, with good acidity and a few years worth of tannins still. The flavors show a big multi-berry spectrum with a lot of pepper; and if it could be a little deeper, for $16, we’ll forgive. }8^)> 1996 Marietta Cellars Sonoma Zinfandel Geyserville $15.99; 14.4 % alc.: A slightly darker garnet than the ’95, Alan described this as, "More cream soda-ish, initially; a huge difference, so much deeper currant and more oak than the ’95." Kim and I noted a camphor quality to the aromas; she described a certain "Band-Aid" nuance to boot. I found the flavors to be all currant and berry, with more tannins, acidity and guts than the earlier model, and perhaps a little more heat as well. At one point, CZ went on a roll, with a stream of conscious descriptor spew of, "walnut shell/slate/mineral/green moss/flint/ink/chalky dusty tannin and blueberry." Despite being younger, we found this to be friendlier than the ’95, which is good, because there’s more of it around! (According to the labels, the grapes that went into these came predominantly from older mature vines and dry farmed hillside vineyards in the Dry Creek and Alexander Valleys in northern Sonoma County.) 1996 Marietta Cellars California Syrah $16.99; approximately 80 % Syrah and 20 % Petite Sirah, 14.0 % alc.: The fruit in this dark garnet beauty is "predominantly from older plantings in Sonoma and Mendicino Counties," and as nice as the first two selections were, it rocked our boat bigtime! Alan commented, "There’s a lotta heat there, George," and Kim said "it burns," but it leveled out enough to leave it more balanced and harmonious than the Zins. I noted lovely plum, currant and berry flavors and aromas, along with a little bramble/ briar/underbrush as well; at the time, I wrote "round, rich and dee-lish!" Kerr was even more exuberant, adding, "So fleshy, so round; I just can’t get away from this white pepper!" He went on to add impressions of "coriander seed/huge ink/blueberry and lavender." This is easily the best of the three wines, and if one argues that they’re different varietals, there’s a very consistent style signature to them all. It has the fullest body and the best finish, and I shall be buying more of this for the cellar. And here are notes on the other three bottlings available in Day-twah: Marietta Cellars Old Vine Red Lot 23 $10.99; a blend of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Carignane and Gamay, 13.5 % alc.: Pinky purple dark garnet, with a pretty sweet oak raspberry/blackberry/blueberry bouquet, this one is also slightly hot. The flavors generally echo with added black cherry/plum and a little less oak, on a medium full-bodied frame. It shows good intensity with a nice finish, and is just a pleasure to drink. 1995 Marietta Cellars Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon $18.99; 13.5 % alc.:
According to the label, this dark garnet has small amounts of Merlot and
Cabernet Franc, but it tastes and smells more like a Gigondas with sweet
oak. There’s nice sea air/slight barnyard/plum/ cola and a little white
chocolate on the nose, with added notes of licorice and cedar in the
flavors. Tannins are discreet and the acidity is low, making this creamy
smooth; the only detraction might be the fact that, like the rest of the
Marietta lineup, there’s some heat here, but not enough to bother this
taster. This may not be a "typical" Cabernet, but it certainly
is a tasty one. 1995 Marietta Cellars Angeli Cuvee $23.99; a blend of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah and Carignane, 14.5 % alc.: Wow! This dark garnet shows a big intense perfumed bouquet featuring spicy raspberry/black raspberry/black cherry/blueberry nuances and toasty oak adds to the charm. The wine is full-bodied and somewhat dense; flavors are heavy on the raspberry spectrum, with a slight medicinal quality. Winemaker Chris Bilbro says this is built to age ten years, and it seems to have the tannins and acidity to go the distance. Not really sweet, but rich and luscious, again, there is some heat on the finish, which could also last a little longer. Still, this is a very nice wine that we’ve enjoyed on more than one occasion, and we’re likely to enjoy it again, as there’re a few in the cellar.
Winemaker Bilbro manages to maintain a remarkably consistent house style vintage after vintage, from the entry level Old Vine Red all the way up through the flagship Angeli Cuvee. These all showed some heat, but that never proved to be intrusive. And considering the relative price range, they all get our unhesitant recommendation. Marietta is one of the best kept secrets in California, and they’re all available in Day-twah! Great stuff!
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1995 Marietta Cellars Sonoma Zinfandel Geyserville 1996 Marietta Cellars Sonoma Zinfandel Geyserville 1996 Marietta Cellars California Syrah Marietta Cellars Old Vine Red Lot 23 1995 Marietta Cellars Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon 1995 Marietta Cellars Angeli Cuvee
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Alan
Kerr, AKA Canadian Zinfan, stopped in at Gang Central recently,
bound for a tasting of Canadian wines in Windsor the following day. As
always, Chef Kerr’s observations were particularly insightful, and it
proved to be the perfect opportunity to try these three wines that Kim and
I had enjoyed on separate occasions in the past several months.
