ON THE NOSE:
The first aromas emanating from this Zin are garbagey and burnt; burnt like hickory wood. I also smell smashed bearded-irises. This wine hits the nose like mothballs, yes stinky, but with a certain sweetness around it. This Zin also has a green-pepper element, like a Virginia Cabernet Franc. This is very peppery and spicy vino. Slowly it loses that garbage aroma in favor of sweetness, and eventually the garbage smell is completely gone, replaced by burnt raspberry. If you want to avoid any stinky nose (which we didn’t find objectionable, by the way) we recommend letting this wine breathe for at least one hour before even bringing it to your nose.
ON THE PALATE:
Klinker Brick Zinfandel has a very spicy attack with relatively contained acidity and a light- to medium-bodied mouthfeel; a little surprsing for a Zinfandel, which we normally expect to possess a more rounded mouthfeel. The color, too, was much lighter than expected. The spice fills the mouth and ends up on the lips. This wine is quite different, and that’s a good thing. Throughout the evening Darcey likes this Zin better than I do, but it’s not that I think it’s bad, just a little off. After the palate gets used to it, however, and after the liquid breathes for two hours, I grow accustomed to it and like it more and more. There is heavy burnt raspberry here; this is extremely concentrated secondary fruit, like making homemade jam and cooking it until just the point of burnt. The fruit is Mulberry primarily, but with blackberry as well, those real big wild ones.
Again I want to say that if you don’t want that extra spiciness and funk wait three hours before beginning to consume this wine – your experience will be quite different than if you did not do this. If you like old-world funk too, however, then by all means drink it earlier than that, as we did. Actually we found it really interesting to taste how much this wine changed, what came to the fore, and what settled into the background. This is what makes this wine appealing to us. The pepper, however, is really too rough on the back of the throat, though there is a nice vanilla on the finish, as well as all that tasty secondary fruit.
All in all this Zinfandel is a decent effort, but not without drawbacks. Taken on its own it rates an 87+, which isn’t bad, and a fair rating, but if you figure in the price for a decent-quality Zin it could be considered a quasi bargain. We enjoyed the evening with Klinker Brick, and we might even buy it again, given its price! It is different, but let that be a notion that gets you to try it as opposed to staying away.
(Click here for an explanation of our ratings ...)
Our Rating: 87+
Would we drink it again? 
Yes.
Would we buy it again?
Probably ... we feel that we would buy Klinker Brick again enough to warrant the thumbs-up.
Winemaker's notes
The grapes for our Klinker Brick “Old Vine” Zinfandel come from several different vineyards within the Lodi Appellation, depending upon the highest quality of fruit produced each year, and has included several vineyards in the Mokelumne and in the Clements Hills region.
These vineyards are generally head-trained and dry farmed, yielding an average of 2.0 to 3.5 ton per acre. Some of the oldest vineyards have yields as small as .25 ton per acre. While there are significant limitations in the quantity of grapes produced, the quality of fruit is exceptional.
The 2005 vintage was exceptionally generous in many ways. The yields were up a bit from 2004 but more importantly, the weather was nearly perfect for growing exceptional fruit, extending the “hang-time” for the grapes to remain on the vine. Some of our vineyard blocks were harvested during the latter part of October and the quality of the fruit produced was superb, rich in color and flavor profiles. In 2005, we harvested grapes from eleven different vineyard blocks, ranging in age from 35 to 110 years old. Yields were close to three tons per acre with the exception some of the very old vineyards whose miserly yields was less than one ton per acre.
Our Klinker Brick 2005 Old Vine Zinfandel may be the very best we have produced to date with full, juicy flavors of cherries and plums coupled with the perfect balance of oak and spice. There is a nuance of mint and clove on the nose and a lingering, elegant finish. This wine was aged in American oak for 15 months
Steve and Lori Felten, fifth generation grape growers in the Lodi region, continue the tradition of cultivating “Old Vine” Zinfandel vineyards that their ancestors planted in the early 1900’s.
With roots in Germany, Russia and later the Dakotas, the family settled in Lodi, first producing watermelons. Recognizing that the soil and climate were ideal for growing grapes, they began to plant varieties that included Zinfandel, Tokay, Carignane, and Alicante. For over one hundred years, the family has cultivated the land with the aim of producing top quality fruit. Zinfandel was one of the first grape varieties to be planted in the Lodi appellation, although it had also been established in other parts of the California.
Grapes were originally packed in boxes for shipment to the East Coast and Canada for the purpose of home winemaking. In the early days of production, nearly all of the Zinfandel grapes were shipped with the exception of grapes that were used for making wine at home.
By the mid 1930’s, grapes were sold primarily to cooperatives and larger, private wineries with a small portion of the production shipped east.
Historically, the vineyards were irrigated by flood or ditch irrigation and the inability to regulate the amount of water applied resulted in larger yields of marginal quality. In the late 1980’s, drip irrigation was introduced, providing the ability to control the amount of water applied to each vine. This resulted in the ability to control the vigor of the vine, healthier fruit and ultimately, lower yields. With the introduction of more sophisticated vineyard practices, including shoot thinning, leaf pulling, color thinning and the removal of a second crop, the ability to produce the grapes of exceptional quality was realized.
About the Lodi Region
Mention the name of the wine region just south of Sacramento known as Lodi and some people might not know what you’re talking about. Even savvier wine lovers who’ve heard of the appellation may still associate it with producing inexpensive but sometimes unremarkable table wines for major labels. But Lodi and its wines deserve a closer look. These days the region has begun to get the attention of wine critics and enthusiasts as growing numbers of independent wineries continue to produce some excellent – and affordable – wines.
The Lodi appellation is noted for its sandy soil and Mediterranean climate, which some say doesn’t engender well the creation of reds which demand a bitter, tannin aspect, such as Cabs or Cote Roties. However, Lodi is still the leading producer over all other California wine districts of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Zinfandel.
Today there are more than a hundred “Lodi” labeled brands on the market and of the 50 wineries that exist there, almost half of them are still owned and operated by the same families who were there in the late 1800’s. The region’s major players include Robert Mondavi Woodbridge and Sutter Home, but it is also home to several well respected boutique wineries such as Lucas Winery, Spenker Vineyards, and Peirano Estates.
With more than 90,000 acres of winegrapes, the region yields approximately 600,000 tons of grapes valued at $300+ million annually. This figure accounts for 18% of California's total winegrape production - more than Napa and Sonoma Counties combined.
If you go, be sure to visit the Lodi Wine & Visitor Center, which hosts a wine bar with an extensive selection of local wines, as well as interactive exhibits and learning activities. There are several charming lodging options in the area, most notably the 1902 converted Victorian home which is now the Wine and Roses Hotel. Located on five acres of land planted with herb and flower gardens under towering trees, this site is a favorite for conferences, weddings, and romantic getaways.
