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75-Year-Old Vine Zinfandel for the Ages
Everyone who tasted it remembered it. Many called it the 'wine of the decade.' Paul Draper's 1974 Ridge Zinfandel "Occidental" was a bottle for the ages, a deeply concentrated, high-toned beauty that matched a chiseled red fruit core, hints of tobacco and Claret-like lead pencil, with a fine, sumptuous finish that would have made the guys in Pauillac proud.
Still, the origins of the wine were somewhat of a mystery. At the time, no one knew much about the fog-shrouded ridges above Occidental, far less about an eccentric German viticulturist who was cultivating some of the most bizarre Zinfandel plants in California. The German winegrower's name never appeared on the Ridge front label. But thirty years later, every top-notch Zin-maker on the coast had heard of Robert Von Weidlich, and one -- Bill Knuttel -- had followed in Draper's indelible footprints.
When Knuttel first picked us up on market day in Occidental, where the farm chickens were roasting and the bearded octogenarian in Birkenstocks played the fiddle all morning long, he promised a trip back in time. Knuttel has been fashioning some of the more exotic old vine, single vineyard Zinfandels for the better part of a decade -- challenging Matt Cline for top honors on the bargain Zin honor roll -- but nothing in his storied resume spoke of time machines. A half hour later, we bumped our way out of town and sped up a small road to a hidden ridge where several acres of strange Zinfandel 'trees' somehow managed to flourish on rocky bedrock. That's when Knuttel -- as much a student of wine as cellar master non-pareil -- rolled back the clock 35 years to the 1974 Ridge Zinfandel "Occidental."
"I have a pretty good recollection for wine. Ten years back, I remember most. Twenty? I'm still in the game. But there are very few bottles where the olfactory and tactile memory never fades. '61 Petrus and Latour a Pomerol. '45 Clos des Lambray. But when it comes to Zinfandel, one memory never goes away. Draper's '74 "Occidental" was the purest expression of Von Weidlich!"
Our morning with Robert Von Weidlich was as unforgettable as Draper's classic. Now 70+ years of age, these head-trained vines remain in perfect health, continuing to put out a magnificent small berry crop, few vintages more beautifully sculpted than this lusciously sculpted 2008. Knuttel just smiled as we listened to the obsessive grape grower describe the planting of these small trees -- on original rootstock -- way back in 1937. Von Weidlich was no youngster, but his eyes darted, full of animation, rattling on about radical crop thinning and his rigid organic farming practices. By the time the German came up for air, two things were clear. First, Von Weidlich was at least a quarter out of his mind. Second, Bill Knuttel's grape contract for Von Weidlich Zinfandel is inked in gold.
The 2008 Ottimino "Von Weidlich" Zinfandel is deep purple in color. The aromatics here are anything but trivial, a gorgeous confection of wild blackberry, tobacco and Draper's classic Claret-like lead pencil. The attack is rich and generous, though beautifully restrained, at once opulent and chiseled -- and as always with this one-of-a-kind spot, built for the long haul.
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Tasting Notes
2008 Ottimino Vineyards Zinfandel Von Weidlich Vineyard Russian River Valley
"Deep purple in color. Complex aromas of wild blackberry, tobacco and Claret-like lead pencil. The attack is rich and generous, still beautifully restrained, at once black fruit opulent and chiseled. As always with this one-of-kind vineyard, don't be bashful about laying this one down. Drink now-2020."
-- WineAccess Travel Log
This vineyard has been source to Ottomino's best Zinfandels for years. The '08 is right up there, rich and sweet in briary berries, cola, mocha and pepper spice. The tannins are firm; the acidity is just right. A bit young and sweet in primary fruit, try aging it for a few years in the cellar.
91 points -- Wine Enthusiast
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