Rolling the Dice on 1990s California Zinfandels

There's a well-known old saying that goes something like: There are no great wines, just great bottles of wine.

That is so true, especially when dealing with aged wines. And especially dealing with wines that are not traditionally cellared for long periods of time, like California Zinfandel.

Sure there are some known to age well (Turley, Ridge and Ravenswood come to mind), but Zinfandels are usually fun, early-drinking, juicy wines. What happens when they have 25 or so years of cellar time?

Well, in some cases, nothing good happens. But some bottles can really shine, as a recent tasting of California Zinfandels from the 1990s demonstrated.

These wines were all curated by a good wine-collecting buddy of mine who bought them from various sources over the years and kept them in good cellar conditions. But aging wine isn't an exact science, and some of the wines showed serious flaws - mostly volatile acidity, which can happen when aging higher alcohol wines for this long.

We all expected a few of the wines to be undrinkable, and we were right. But I'm not sure I expected some of the wines to pop out of the glass with life and wow me. A few sure did. Below are my notes of the aged Zins I tasted.

If you've tasted any good aged Zins recently, I'd love to hear about them in the comments. Cheers!

1992 Boeger Winery Zinfandel Walker Vineyard - USA, California, Sierra Foothills, El Dorado

This one is sported some stewed tomatoes on the nose with mint, leaves, hints of brambly red fruit. Light tannins, showing some heat, moderate acidity. Red cherries still there, with notes of coffee grounds, oak and leather. Actually a lot better on the palate than I was expecting. (86 pts.)

1990 Storybrook Zinfandel Estate Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley
Pepper and plums on the nose. Fresh, zesty, dusty tannins. Seems to show quite a bit of life left here with red plums and raspberries, and notes of pepper, soy and leaves. Impressive complexity on this refined, aged wine. (88 pts.)

1993 Greenwood Ridge Vineyards Zinfandel Scherrer Vineyards - USA, California, Sonoma County, Alexander Valley
A more muted nose with sweet cherries and coffee. Plum cake dominates the palate with soft tannins and medium acidity. Raisined, but showing some cool wild herb notes underneath. (83 pts.)

1991 The Terraces Zinfandel - USA, California, Napa Valley
Leafy aromas in a good way (like all kinds of forest floors) mixed with bell pepper, black pepper, on top of tangy red currants. Zippy, dusty and spicy on the palate with light tannins and crisp acidity. This is a really cool and fresh wine, and the red fruit is still going, while the earthy, savory, spicy notes take front seat. One of the better wines of the evening. (90 pts.)

1991 Storybrook Zinfandel Estate Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley
Tired but wild on the nose with strawberries, tomato leaf and a massive amount of paprika. Sour, tart and crazy on the palate with volatile acidity. The amount of insane paprika and cumin flavors cannot be overstated. (FLAWED)

1992 Storybrook Zinfandel Estate Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley
What a world of difference from the 1991! Shows lively strawberries and raspberries and red licorice on the nose. Plush, still going on the palate with dusty tannins and juicy raspberry and cherry fruit. Integrated notes of gamey meat, soy, black pepper glaze. This one is a lot of fun. (89 pts.)

1994 Storybrook Zinfandel Estate Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley
Yikes, this is a Sherried, Madeirized wreck. In a feat of palate masochism, I made myself taste it after realizing how messed up it was on the nose, just to have another point of reference in the wine fault memory. The wine was not pleasant in any way. (FLAWED)

1992 Ravenswood Zinfandel Dickerson - USA, California, Napa Valley Pretty yet bold on the nose with strawberries, plum cake, pepper, oak and cedar. Juicy on the palate with a rich texture but nuance and integration from age. Yummy strawberries and wild berries on the palate with complex elements of menthol, charcoal, leather, wild herbs. Wow, this is balance, delicious, has aged well. Just really good stuff. My wine of the night easily.  (91 pts.)

1993 Ravenswood Zinfandel Los Chamizal - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley
Cherry pie on the nose with cola, herbs, pepper. Really ripe, juicy, dark and roasted, but it’s put together well and still lively. Juicy and dark but some black pepper, bell pepper and cocoa notes. Delicious stuff! (89 pts.) 

1993 Ravenswood Zinfandel Grandpère - USA, California, Sierra Foothills, Amador County
This wine was a bit weird, dusty, with volatile acidity throwing things out of whack. Sour cherries and tart raspberries with dusty, earthy, sooty notes. Ah well. I was hoping this was still pumping. (FLAWED)