2012 Outpost Zinfandel
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Tasting notes
The 2012 Zinfandel is rich and bombastic to the core. Black fruit, new leather, menthol, licorice and herbs meld together in an intense, powerful wine. There isn't a whole lot of subtlety, rather the Zinfandel is a wine built to provide immediate pleasure. There is certainly plenty of that here.
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Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
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The 2012 Zinfandel is 100% Zinfandel (1,000 cases) aged 16 months in two-thirds used French oak and one-third new oak. It boasts a dense ruby/purple color along with peppery, meaty notes intermixed with loads of raspberry and black cherry fruit. Full-bodied with no hard edges, this beauty should drink well for 5-8 years.
Bright medium red. Precise aromas of red berries and mint. Darker on the palate, with firm acidity giving sharp definition to the flavors of black raspberry, dark chocolate and brushy herbs. With its building tannins, this zinfandel is more firmly structured than the 2011.
The 2012 Zinfandel comes across as much more polished and less of a brute than the 2011, which is a positive, given the wildness Zinfandel can show at times. Layers of blue/black fruit, mint, violet and orange peel all add complexity. The 2012 is a model of grace, elegance and finesse, qualities rarely seen in Zinfandel, but that are very much present here. Once again, the Outpost Zinfandel is a wine of Howell Mountain and Outpost first and foremost.