All in all, it's just another Rock in the Wall

I hadn’t originally meant to review two zinfandels in a row, but hey, when someone hands me a free bottle of wine, I don’t say no. Here is the story: last week Tim attended a fancy reception for an East Bay green business group he is a part of and brought home a bottle of 2008 Rock Wall Sonoma County Zinfandel as a party favor. Being a fan of anything local – did I mention Rock Wall makes and bottles all their wine in Alameda, CA? – I said yes please. I was only too happy to indulge in this freebie.

We didn’t open it until a few days later and for one reason or another, I wasn’t expecting much. I won’t say that I had low expectations, but rather I just didn’t have any expectations at all. I was pleasantly surprised. I should have known, I mean it had all the right ingredients – it was a zin (my favorite) from Sonoma County (my childhood home and zin capital of California) and the label billed the wine as “fruit forward” (the kind of zin I love most). After doing some sleuthing, I realized that wine-making vet Kent Rosenblum is a consulting wine-maker for Rock Wall Wine Co., and it all started making sense.

Having learned my lesson from last time, I made sure to decant the wine. My mistake this time, however, was pairing it with some spicy turkey tacos. It’s not that the wine didn’t stand up to the spiciness of the meal, but I just felt like the food was overpowering the wine and not allowing me to really taste it properly. After a palate cleanser and a small wait, I was able to taste the wine by itself and I liked that better.

Upon first sniff, I got a very powerful nose with a strong blackberry/boysenberry jamminess. I also detected some hints of sweet spice – cinnamon perhaps? – and some savory notes that reminded me of Manzanita. Staying true to the nose, the first sip was indeed very fruity, although not the fruit bomb I was expecting. It wasn’t overly sweet or jammy, but rather rich in fruit with light spice on the finish. The mouth-feel was also light with virtually no tannins. With every sip I just kept thinking: this is a nice, approachable wine that probably doesn’t need to be cellared for too terribly long before drinking. I think I mentioned that this was a 2008, so this particular bottle didn’t really get any rest at all.

Overall I’d say it was a good, solid, everyday, drinkable wine. It was well-balanced and tasty, and interesting but not pretentious. This is the kind of wine you bring to a party and everyone loves it. Especially if that party is in the East Bay.

Amy Award: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
Spendy scale: $25
Best bet: A weekday dinner or as a light afternoon glass