Parducci Wine Cellars

Coro Mendocino is a wine that any winery bonded in Mendocino County is eligible to make. They just have to follow the rules. First, Zinfandel must comprise between 40% and 70% of the blend, and no other grape can account for a great share than Zin. Second, most of the rest of the wine must come from a list of so-called “heritage” grapes with a long history in Mendocino (Syrah, Petite Sirah, Carignane, Sangiovese, Grenache, Dolcetto, Charbono, Barbera, Primitivo); there’s also a “free play” allotment of up to 10% that can come from any grape currently grown in the county (such as Pinot Noir and Pinotage). Finally, the wine must be aged in barrel at least a year, aged in bottle at least a year, and be in balance as defined by alcohol, pH, and total acidity.

Parducci Winery has gone through an amazing multi-year transformation that has the winery winning back old fans and creating new ones. A rare constant has been winemaker Bob Swain’s smooth, powerful Coros. The 2004 is front-loaded with ripe red and black fruit, but that doesn’t mean the back end exposes the oak the wine was aged in. Instead the oak tannins seem to spread into the wine as the wine spreads across your palate, giving it more structure as the moments pass. Then the aftertaste lifts off into an elegant ascent. It’s a mystery to me why Parducci made less than 60 cases of this (perhaps the transformation still has a way to go), but I recommend starting here if you are new to the whole Coro program.

Reviewed August 7, 2007 by Thom Elkjer.