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2012 Ottimino Vineyards Zinfandel Rancho Bello Vineyard Russian River Valley 750 ml
- Curated by unrivaled experts
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- Temperature controlled shipping options
- Get credited back if a wine fails to impress
2012 Ottimino Zinfandel
… and 89-year-old Albert Bello
By now, many of you know the story of Bill Knuttel and his stellar Ottimino Zinfandels. For two decades, Knuttel had been one of the most celebrated Zin-makers on the coast, fashioning rich, juicy, Zinfandels in the spirit of Joel Peterson at Ravenswood and Paul Draper at Ridge Vineyards.
Still, despite a small cult following in Sonoma, when Wall Street’s storm clouds settled over Sonoma Valley, Knuttel found himself caught in the recessionary crosshairs. Between his head winemaking job at Dry Creek and his consultancies, Knuttel no longer had the bandwidth for coast-to-coast sales calls.
After a tip from Matt Cline in 2010, Knuttel contacted WineAccess to see if we might be able to keep his frequent-flyer miles to a minimum. Quickly, we came to an agreement: Bill would slice price tags nearly in half, and WineAccess would keep Knuttel from spending another sleepless night at a Marriott Courtyard.
Over the last five years, we’ve treated the membership to a steady diet of luscious Ottimino Zinfandels that would go on to garner a whopping 128 5-star ratings. From Biglieri to Ottimino Estate and the old Von Weidlich Vineyard above Occidental, we proposed every single-vineyard Ottimino Zinfandel … except one. The Rancho Bello Zinfandel — a plush, juicy Zin drawn from a tiny vineyard farmed by 89-year-old Albert Bello — had always been off limits.
Until today.
In 1988, Albert Bello planted just 4,000 head-trained vines using single-clone budwood obtained from a Zinfandel parcel in Alexander Valley. As was the case all over Sonoma Valley, 2012 proved to be a miracle harvest for Bello. A sunny, dry spring made for a copious yet unusually even fruit set. Drought conditions prevailed over the summer months, yet temperatures rarely got out of the mid-80s. Due to the deep root structure, Bello’s vines shrugged off the hydric stress, skating right through August without any sign of desiccation. Harvest took place on October 9th. Sugars were PERFECT at 24.5 Brix.
True to his winemaking calling card, Knuttel employed Claret-like cellar protocol. After a two-day cold soak — extracting deep ruby color — the juice was left on the skins for 20 days of extended maceration. After alcoholic fermentation was completed, the wine was racked into François Frères barrels, where it would undergo malolactic fermentation. The wine was racked every three months to soften tannins, and bottled after a 20-month stay in barrel — without fining and with minimal filtration.
Brilliant ruby in hue. Gorgeous aromas of black cherry, black raspberry, and pomegranate, dusted with white pepper and cinnamon. Rich, juicy, and polished on the attack, filled with a mouthwatering mix of dark cherry and raspberry bramble, finishing with superb length and persistence. Drink now for its primary-fruit hedonism or, like all of Knuttel’s single-vineyard Zins, lay this one down for up to a decade.
$38 on release. Just $19 this morning — as WineAccess continues to keep Bill Knuttel away from airports and Marriott Courtyards.