I have a long history with Ravenswood, when I was a sell side analyst, we had our monthly "dog 'n' pony" show and one time in 2000 we met with Ravenswood, one of the few publicly traded wineries. And after the presentation by their CEO and CFO, they opened up a case of their wares for us to try, mostly reds mind you, which suited me just fine. Needless to say, we picked up research coverage, but I was not the analyst in charge, yet I still maintained a fondness in my heart for Ravenswood, with their signature tagline "NO WIMPY WINES!" Well, eventually they were bought out, so the investment side worked well, but even afterwards, they have maintained and even expanded their great wines, moving from their own label to specialty single vineyard labels like the one I am trying tonight.
The 2008 Ravenswood Teldeschi Zinfandel comes from a great family vineyard run by the Teldeschi family and focusing on growing Zin, along with petite syrah and carignane, which are often blended with this wine. The wine expresses everything I expect in a great Zin, the nose is full of bright fruit, blackberry, cherry, black currant, along with a wonderful hint of cedar and tobacco. The color is an inky, dark purple that suggest the strength of the wine and the smoothness of the tannins. On the palate it's a simply delicious and vibrant explosion of fruit, followed by a long, smooth, dry finish that is so characteristic of the Zins of the Dry Creek Valley in the Sonoma Valley. So wonderful, it would pair well with a grilled steak, seared tuna with a wasabi glaze, or a simple Italian dish, like the sausage with onions and multi-colored peppers I am enjoying it with tonight! Keep in mind also, this is a young wine, and although I treated myself tonight, the remaining bottles will likely be cellared for at least a few years to mature.
Overall, this wine is a little expensive, with a usual price around $35, but I got a great deal on this for only $21, and for that price I rate this a solid 8.5 to 9.0! There are so many other great wines from Ravenswood I'd encourage you to try, from their basic everyday table reds for $8-9 to their exclusive single vineyard bottlings, they are all high quality, great wines that have never disappointed me! Cin Cin!
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