2010 Zinfandel Turley Estate

The 2010 Zinfandel Turley Estate stands out for its exceptional inner perfume and sweetness. Hints of tar, licorice, menthol and black cherries all flesh out in this decidedly racy, exuberant Zinfandel. All the elements are superbly balanced from start to finish. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2025. This is a thrilling set of wines from Larry Turley, Ehren Jordan and Tegan Passalacqua. Tasting this wide a range of 2010 and 2011 Zinfandels and Petite Syrahs is like taking a master class in California terroir. The house style favors an expression of Zinfandel and Petite Syrah built on aromatic intensity and elegance, which Jordan credits to gentle extractions. At times, the wines come across as quite Burgundian in the way they express richness but not excess heaviness. Over the last few years, the wines have become a little more laid-back and less overtly ripe, which is a net positive given that the starting point for all of these wines is fruit of exceptional quality. The Petite Syrahs in particular are noteworthy because they are among the few wines that find the elegance Petite Syrah is capable of, while avoiding the massive tannins that are so typical elsewhere. The 2010s are strong across the board, although Turley did not bottle a few of their wines from sites that got scorched by the heat spikes, which includes the Highway 101 and Zampatti. The 2011s are more variable, as befits a vintage that had much less favorable conditions overall. Tel. (707) 963-0940

(15.3% alcohol; from vines planted in 1997): Saturated ruby. Complex, musky aromas of spicecake, pepper and violet, with hints of crushed rock, garrigue and leather. Creamy-sweet and large-scaled, with round flavors of dark cherry and chocolate complicated by a whiff of game. Conveys a bit of roasted heft without coming off as ponderous. Finishes with very soft, almost grenache-like tannins that really saturate the palate. Very sexy zinfandel.