There are 152 cases of the 2005 Zinfandel Jackass Hill Vineyard made from 106-year-old, head-pruned, dry-farmed vineyards planted on one of the steepest slopes in Sonoma. Full-bodied, it shows creme de cassis notes intermixed with incense and aromas that recall a hippie den from the late 1960s or early 1970s. Spicy, peppery, licorice notes are also present along with herbs, roasted meats, and fresh game. This is an amazing wine – dense, full-bodied, idiosyncratic, and individualistic. This wine can last for decades but, for my taste, it is best drunk in its first 6-8 years of life.

The 1993 Zinfandel Jackass Vineyard displays an opaque ruby/purple color, a huge, dramatic, fragrant nose of Asian spices, black and red fruits, minerals, and oak. It possesses great richness, full body, a velvety-textured, rich, inner-core of fruit, and a long, heady finish that lasts more than a minute. Not a light, innocuous Zinfandel (the alcohol is 15.3%), it is dry, pure, and amazingly well-balanced. Drink it over the next 8-10 years. The up and coming Martinelli Vineyards is a name to follow. Their two 1993 Zinfandels, of which there are 400 cases of the Jackass Vineyard and 375 cases of the Jackass Hill, are sensational wines by any standard of measurement. Both wines were bottled unfined and unfiltered. This plot of vines was planted by the current owner's grandfather, Giuseppe Martinelli, and named Jackass Hill by his family because "only a jackass would plant vines on such an impossibly steep 45 degree slope."

More of this wine may be available at a higher price.

The 2006 Zinfandel Jackass Vineyard (a mere 15.5% alcohol!) reveals notes of smoked game, roasted meats, herbs, kirsch, strawberries, and sweet currants. An animalistic/gamey character only adds to the wine’s complexity and multiple dimensions. It should be consumed over the next 5-7 years.

A big, ripe, Amarone-like bouquet emerges from the dark ruby/purple-colored 2001 Zinfandel Duarte Vineyard. Full-bodied, rich, and chewy, with loads of briery black cherry, raspberry, and currant fruit, it remains the reference point for what Zinfandel can achieve in Contra Costa. A sweet spot in the mid-palate (because of the high glycerin) results in a hypothetical blend of California Zinfandel and Italian Amarone. Enjoy it over the next 5-7 years.