Swan, Joseph
Russian River Valley, California
Mancini Ranch
Zinfandel
2012
$18.99
12.9%
Crystal clear, ruby to magenta with more watermelon red to pink at the rims, immaculately shiny surface. Hard candy nose like Jolly Ranchers, green apple, strawberry, red cherry, at first vanilla fudge and whipped cream dominant, at times prune and pine waft through, as does a touch of witch hazel, about as openly knit of a nose as the grape can produce. Light-bodied, much more tannic than might be expected, really clamps down through the finish. Needs a decant or patience in the glass as it does not show much upon opening. Orange peel, leather, earth and menthol provide a steady rudder. At first the oaky vanilla, caramel and toast is surprisingly oppressive but eventually moderates. Here it shows more of a concentrated dried fruit nature in the cherry, blackberry, black raisin to fig flavors. Split personality, the flavors not aligned with the weight and structure. Smooth drinker if you can ignore this.
88 points