2011 Turley Zinfandel Pesenti Vineyard

Organic vineyard planted in the 1920s (during Prohibition but you could get good prices for fruit at that time) on mainly limestone soil. 880 ft. TA 6.8 g/l. Head trained and dry farmed. West side of Paso Robles. 9-10 miles from the ocean. 12 in of rain a year. All in the winter. I absolutely loved this wine. Fabulously fruity nose. Spice and pepper and juicy and the alcohol doesn't show. That hint of orange too. Refined tannins, remarkably elegant and very persistent. Almost a Pinot nose with fragrant red fruit. Complex and so unexpectedly refined. I expected a bruiser and found elegance. Another Zin revelation. As Turley's own description says: 'The wines have a lightness and aromas unique to the site, with crushed-mineral and floral characteristics not normally seen in Zinfandel. (JH)

(16.3% alcohol; from an area with annual rainfall of barely 12 inches): Good bright red-ruby. Aromas of black cherry and crushed pepper show an almost exotic aspect. Offers compelling sweetness of black cherry and dark berry fruit allied with strong acidity and lifted by pepper and herb notes. Really tactile, sappy and penetrating right through to the pungent, very long finish. Classic young zinfandel for aging.

The 2011 Zinfandel Pesenti Vineyard is rich, round and harmonious. Layers of expressive red fruit flow effortlessly to the inviting finish. The 2011 still needs to fully come together, but everything looks good so far.