bottle variation

It could be that they packed a late harvest Zinfandel by mistake. I say that because you said it tasted like Port.

There are many possible contributors to this phenomenon. You say that there was no taint, but TCA (2,4,6-Trichloroanisole) can be present in such small quantities that the amount of taint can vary.

It is also possible that the bottle was not properly gassed at bottling. Introducing oxygen, as you know, can really affect a wine.

I have no idea why there would be a bottle variation within the case. Sounds like a nice surprise! But I am curious about Klick Zinfandel. Googled and Wine Searchered, but nothing. Can you tell me a bit more about Klick? I was intrigued by your description "elegant style like some Bordeaux".

Well, I like the flavour of zin, but I get tired of the "huge-er than thou" style, and I was introduced to Klick by the restaurant "Zin" in Healdsburg. What I'm drinking now is the 2005 Hamilton vinyard, Dry Creek Valley. The label says Nice, CA, (on the North shore of Clearlake, just NW of Healdsburg. Bottle Barn in Santa Rosa got it for me.

So Klick is the winemaker and Hamilton is the producer? The link to the restaurant (Zin) times out. Thanks for the reference to the Bottle Barn. On a mission for a case. I used to like the 14%+ Zins, but looking for something with a little less body but still that brambly fruit.

Thanks....

Evan

Klick is the winemaker, and he got his grapes from the Hamilton vinyard in Dry Creek Valley, which is around Lake Sonoma, just West of Geyeserville, CA (Just North of Healdsburg, CA)

You are quite welcome.

JB

Very interesting post/thread, thanks for starting. I am not among the cognoscenti - I'm cognizant of my limitations :) - but have opinions about a lot of things vinuous. I read your first sentence and began preparing thoughts. But when I read your full post, most of my possibilities (brett, TCA, other faulty cork issues such as oxidative notes, heat, etc) were not real options.

Several bottles lighter and elegant, one richer and fuller is puzzling (other way around might be slightly less so). My only thought then was batch or barrel variation- it's possible that if they bottled barrel by barrel or from different batches one could end up with a case with an outlier from another barrel/batch. But your subsequent response that this seems to be a small producer with a single vineyard bottling makes that a lot less likely.

The only remaining possibility I see is some kind of food matching or enviromental reason. You didn't have artichokes last night did you? :)

I look forward to others' ideas.

Dale, I had to same thoughts about the bottling. The only other variable I can think of is some kind of volatile acidity. VA occurs in varying degrees like TCA. The most extreme example actually fizzes when poured.

Mark

Apart from all the factors mentioned by other posters, transport conditions can also play a role: If a truck filled with cardboard boxes of wines stays parked in the summer sun for a couple of hours, part of the load can be exposed to uncomfortable temperatures.

Decades ago, when we still had cold winters in Europe, there have also been rumors about wines "on the edges" of a lorry that had been spoiled by temperatures below freezing...

Yves

Yves wrote: > Decades ago, when we still had cold winters in Europe, there have also been

Yves, I have been in southern France for almost exactly 20 years, our bougainvillea and our lemon tree got frost damage for the first time in the last 3 years.

Good post Mark. VA is the more likely culprit than TCA IMHO. I am very TCA sensitive so even coming near an open bottle makes me slightly nauseous but VA can be subtle.