With broiled lamb loin chops tonight, I opened a bottle of the '96 Geyserville that had been "lost" in the cellar for a while. Reading Paul Draper's notes on the back "should be at its peak at the turn of the century, and for a few years after" I feared that the wine might be tired. The cork, when pulled, gave the first optimistic sign: it was pristine, aside from a purple-stained bottom, and the wine level was mid-neck.
c: red-purple with no sign of brick at the edge n: stewed prunes [!!] and some mineral notes p: soft, velvety, medium-full body, plums, blackberry, good structure, spice, minerals
As usual, Geyserville fails to diasppoint. A lovely wine that was the epitome (to me) of what old Zin is all about: still fruity, but with and elegance and grace that it probably lacked in its youth. It almost seemed -- dare I say it? -- Burgundian in its style. The issue of whether Zin can age has been argued ad nauseam, so I will just add that
-- to whatever extent you think that Zin *can* age -- this wine has, and done it in style.
Mark Lipton (still holding on to the '95 Geyserville down in the cellar)