WineDay: The King of Zin?

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by Fred McMillin
for August 18, 2000

Winery of the Week
The King of Zin?

Prologue

"Friends kept telling us we had to find a Rosenblum Cellars Zin—and they were right. After tasting it we wrote, serious wine, with lots of life, zest and heft."

...Gaiter and Brecher, Wall St. Journal Guide To Wine, 1999

"Veternarian Kent Rosenblum, (pictured), shifted his attention from small animals to small plants in 1978... [he] is among the leading Zinfandel specialists in California."

... Stephen Brook, The Wines of California, 1999

The Rest of the Story

Kent Rosenblum makes a wide variety of wines. Are his Zinfandels his best? To get an idea, we scattered ten of his wines, four Zins and six others, throughout a large, blind tasting. Here's how they were ranked, with the highest listed last.

Ranking The Rosenblums
Recommended

10th—Chardonnay, Edna Valley,  '98,  $19
  9th —Chardonnay, Edna Valley,  '96,  $24
  8th —Chardonnay, Edna Valley,  '97,  $23

Highly Recommended

7th —Merlot, Lone Oak Vineyard, Russian River Valley,  '97,  $18
6th —Merlot, Lone Oak Vineyard, Russian River Valley,  '96,  $21
5th —Zinfandel, Continents Vineyard, Contra Costa County,  '97,  $16
4th —Zinfandel, Reserve, Pato Vineyard, Contra Costa County,  '95,  $18

Excellent

3rd —Cabernet Sauvignon, Yountville Vineyards, Napa Valley, '94, $20
2nd —Zinfandel, Richard Saurer Vineyard, Paso Robles, '96, $17

Superb

1st —Zinfandel, Late-Harvest Dessert Wine, California, '95, $15 (375 ml.)

Conclusion

Kent's Zinfandels won four of the five top spots, ranging from HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to SUPERB. King of Zinfandel??? Sounds right to me.

Credits
Research Assistance—Judith Lorentz

About the Writer

Fred McMillin, a veteran wine writer, has taught wine history for 30 years on three continents. In 1995, the Academy of Wine Communications honored Fred with one of only 22 Certificates of Commendation awarded to American wine writers. For information about the wine courses he teaches every month at either San Francisco State University or San Francisco City College (Fort Mason Division), please fax him at (415) 567-4468.

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