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Phipps Family Cellars Zinfandel Sonoma County Ranches 2012 750ml

size
750ml
country
United States
region
California
appellation
Sonoma Valley
subappellation
Dry Creek Valley
WE
88
WE
88
Rated 88 by Wine Enthusiast
Coconut, chocolate and coffee make for sweet and savory companions in this mushy, grippy and satisfying wine. Big on power and concentration, it has an underlay of brown sugar.
Image of bottle
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Phipps Family Cellars Zinfandel Sonoma County Ranches 2012 750ml

SKU 776732
Out of Stock
More Details
barrel

Vintage: 2012

2012 has, so far been a positive year for wineries around the world. While it may be a little too early to speak of the wines being made in the northern hemisphere, European and North American wineries have already begun reporting that their harvesting season has been generally very good, and are predicting to continue with the kind of successes they saw in 2011. However, 2012 has been something of a late year for France, due to unpredictable weather throughout the summer, and the grapes were ripening considerably later than they did in 2011 (which was, admittedly, an exceptionally early year). French wineries are claiming, though, that this could well turn out to be advantageous, as the slow ripening will allow the resulting wines to express more flavour and features of the terroir they are grown in. The southern hemisphere has seen ideal climatic conditions in most of the key wine producing countries, and Australia and New Zealand particularly had a superb year, in particular with the Bordeaux varietal grapes that grow there and which love the humidity these countries received plenty of. Also enjoying a fantastic year for weather were wineries across Argentina and Chile, with the Mendoza region claiming that 2012 will be one of their best vintages of the past decade. Similar claims are being made across the Chilean wine regions, where Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon had an especially good year. These two grape varietals also produced characterful wines on the coastal regions of South Africa this year.
green grapes

Varietal: Zinfandel

One of the more popular grape varietals to come primarily out of the New World in recent decades has been the Zinfandel, a thin-skinned grape which thrives in warm climates and produces wines which carry a wide range of flavors Indeed, Zinfandel grapes are highly varied depending on the climate and time of harvesting, displaying everything from sweet berries to spicy anise when harvested young, and producing excellent dessert wine when the grapes are left to over-ripen in the sun. Zinfandel varietal grapes are renowned for being one of the species which is highly capable of showing off the best features of the terroir they are grown on. This is partly due to those thin skins, and the light tannins they provide, allowing all sorts of other features and influences to shine through in the fermented juices. However, these grapes are quite delicate and not so easy to grow successfully, being highly sensitive to rot or from drying out when the weather is too hot.
barrel

Region: California

Since the 18th century, California has been a hugely important and influential wine region, acting as a trailblazer for other New World wine regions and utilizing an important blend of traditional and contemporary practices, methods and techniques relating to their wine production. Split into four key areas – the North Coast, the Central Coast, the South Coast and the Central Valley – Californian wineries make the most of their ideal climate and rich variety of terrains in order to produce a fascinating range of wines made with a long list of different fine grape varietals. Today, the state has almost half a million acres under vine, and is one of the world's largest wine exporters, with Californian wines being drunk and enjoyed all across the globe.
fields

Country: United States

Of all the New World wine countries, perhaps the one which has demonstrated the most flair for producing high quality wines - using a combination of traditional and forward-thinking contemporary methods - has been the United States of America. For the past couple of centuries, the United States has set about transforming much of its suitable land into vast vineyards, capable of supporting a wide variety of world-class grape varietals which thrive on both the Atlantic and the Pacific coastlines. Of course, we immediately think of sun-drenched California in regards to American wines, with its enormous vineyards responsible for the New World's finest examples of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot based wines, but many other states have taken to viticulture in a big way, with impressive results. Oregon, Washington State and New York have all developed sophisticated and technologically advanced wine cultures of their own, and the output of U.S wineries is increasing each year as more and more people are converted to their produce.
bottle and glass

Appellation: Sonoma Valley

Often referred to as the 'birthplace of Californian wines', the beautiful and expansive Sonoma Valley has long been seen as something of a vibrant and beating heart within the American wine industry. The 'valley of the moon', as it is affectionately known, benefits enormously from the blazing Californian sunshine it receives throughout the long, hot and dry summers, and exceptionally warm autumns in which the vast array of grape varietals found there ripen. Sonoma Valley is most famous for big, full-bodied and flavorful red wine grapes, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as many excellent white wine grapes. Due to the volcanic soils of the region, fed by thermal springs packed full of minerals, the soil is wonderfully fertile and capable of supporting a wide variety of grape species.