Bedrock Wine Co., Esola Vineyard Zinfandel, Amador County

I think Amador and think of a big, ripe brambly zin, but not at all with this Esola. Light to medium body, spicy, peppery, with soft tannins and brisk, refreshing acidity. Fully mature, nice with bbq chicken

2018 vintage

Love this expression of zin showing red fruits, pine and herbs. Light florals and spice in the nose. Nice refreshing acid and soft tannins. Did not stand up to the brown butter filet but liked the wine’s evolution over two days.

2018 vintage

Really enjoyed our second and last bottle. Not as brambly / berry as other Bedrock Zins, we found it had more floral, graphite, mineral, and peppery tones. I can see why another CT member found it disappointing with BBQ vs a Dolinsek, but it was most excellent with steak and a cheese course.

2018 vintage

Had this with pork bbq ribs. Pairing was just ok. Mainly black fruit, integrated tannins and savory. High quality but not as user friendly as the last bottle of this we had. Recent 2016 Dolensek I had with ribs spoiled me, it was great pairing and a very user friendly (fruity, juicy) bottle.

2018 vintage

Bright nose of magic marker, tree bark, cranberry, hints of sage, non-oak driven spice — crushed stones, cinnamon stick. The palate is bright and fresh with a fleshy-tinge, plenty of acidity throughout the palate. I liked this and the previous vintage quite a bit.

2018 vintage

PnP. Not a lot of aroma on the PnP. Alcohol will burn your nose with a deep sniffy-sniff. Bright. Juicy and then finish is grippy tannins on the tongue and cheeks and a bit of heat. Bit of raisin coming through, but more mixed fruit. Overall it was fine, my 3rd of 4. Will put the 4th bottle away for a while. Counterpoint- Had a 2019 bedrock old vine zin last week that we enjoyed a lot more (ovz was …

2018 vintage

Terrific zin tonight with homemade pizza (Paul Hollywood's recipe). This wine is more red fruited and mineral (like wines from volcanic regions) than I tend to associate with old vine zins. Very tasty, opened up considerably over the hour I had it in my glass. A very delightful wine. I will pay more attention to this vineyard and region. Thanks to Bedrock for the fun.

2018 vintage

A surprisingly acidic zin with medium-light density. Show characteristics of cherry, cranberry and violets. Crisp and taut, but on this night I was probably more in the mood for a more fruit-driven, powerful zinfandel.

2018 vintage

Quick decant. Nose of black raspberry and pine needles. Palate of black raspberry, blackberry, acidity, and hot asphalt. Big slap of oak dominates the finish, with chewy tannins, vanilla, lots of dried herbs, and a bit of coffee grounds.

2018 vintage

Oh wow - pretty much the notes like my last TN, but without the awkwardness. Drinking great, lots of acid and fruit. Blackberry focused, smooth tannins, long mineral finish. For me, this is the time to start consuming them.

2018 vintage

Nice easy drinking zin.

2018 vintage

Pale and almost pinot-like in color, this Zinfandel is lower alcohol with a fainter taste of raisins and prunes than a more jammy Zin. Not a ton of heat, but a bit of tannin on the finish. Very nice with southern Italian food.

2018 vintage

PnP. Raisiny purple fruit nose with thyme, camphor, and sawdust Blueberry and blackberry fruit on the palate displays a waxy texture, adding dates, dried apricot, and an aggressive herbal note. Supple tannins follow, adding black plum, black tea, black peppercorns, sage, and a coffee grounds finale.

2018 vintage

2 hour decant Black cherry, some black fruit, brample, mouth drying tannins, some bitternes, miinimal fruit and flavor at this point. Just a wall of tannins and not very enjoyable at this point. Note to self do not open any more of these for a while. Counterpoint - we really enjoyed the 2018 and 2019 ridge lytton springs we had recently. 12/3 update: had the 2nd half of a previous bottle (that had 2 glasses pulled via coravin on 9/18/22). …

2018 vintage

Quick note: paleish robe—more dark ruby than purple. Pretty, high-toned on the nose, red fruits and a hint of granitic spice, just a bit of bramble. The palate is ripe, juicy, but more of a wild berry, cherry fruit, as opposed to plummy; fine-grained tannins, and a brightness and bit of salty character to the mid-palate. Fresh and lively on the finish. Very good with pulled pork and sides from Rodney Scott’s BBQ in Charleston.

2018 vintage

Brambly and peppery. Not my favorite of Bedrock, but tasty!

2018 vintage

Medium-light ruby-purple. Wow – from the PnP, there is a big bramble and floral nose. Initial taste is very layered and complex – to the point where I can’t break it down. This wine needs to decant for a bit. Decanted for about 3 hours. Wild blackberry, black cherries, violets, and spices on the nose. A pure and clean expression of zin dances on the tongue. Medium light palate with uplifting acidity. Bramble, black cherry, and oak spices on the …

2018 vintage

Concur with the comment about decanting. Drinking well.

2018 vintage

One of the more open ‘18 Bedrock reds with a soaring black cherry nose. But it’s darker and more structured in the mouth than any of the surrounding vintages, with prominent tannin on the finish. No crime opening one now but will improve from here I imagine.

2018 vintage

Nose shows lots of black raspberry and cedar, with a bit of black cherry hiding behind it. Raspberry layers on the palate with cherry notes. Powdery tannins leading into a firm oak finish with dark earth, dry raspberry, clay, and spearmint flowing along with nice length.

2018 vintage

Intense red fruit with great bramble and earth

2018 vintage

Incredible Zin. Day two the earth tones really come out.

2018 vintage

Concentrated, fruity, juicy, and flavorful, including hints of savoriness. Quite well balanced for California Zinfandel as well. Technically excellent. On the flip side, this is mostly about fruit, and though sense of place is very good, on account of bouquet and flavor, not terroir, the wine lacked the earth and mineral elements that other Bedrock wines deliver.

2018 vintage

Wish I had decanted for 45 min as it opened up nicely in the glass. Plenty of fruit and fine tannins. Will save the next bottle for 2025 or so.

2018 vintage

Floral and with some elegance. Got a tad too soft after two hours of decanting though. Drink up over the next few years.

2018 vintage

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Bedrock Wine Co., Esola Vineyard Zinfandel, Amador County

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