What can one say about Ridge Vineyards that hasn’t already been written? Their library of single vineyard Zinfandels is seemingly inexhaustible, with new selections added or subtracted each year. Early on in this millennium, one such designate was Caboose, a late-harvest pick from their justly famed Nervo Station Vineyard in Alexander Valley.
Flash-forward to 2007, and The Caboose is being bottled by another stellar Zin producer, Starry Night Winery (the sample I tasted at ZAP did not disappoint). Last night, the Ginkgo Girl and I explored the nuances of writing directly in a second language vs. the arduous constraints of mentally composing in one’s primary fluency before translating onto the page. Certainly, numerous icons of 20th Century literature—Stoppard, Conrad, Nabokov—have all shown themselves unparalleled masters of English linguistics, acquired subsequent to their original Slavic tongue.
As we deconstructed her latest essay, I uncorked my ATP bottle of the 2002 Zinfandel, Caboose from Ridge and poured her a glass in the Starry Night imprinted stemware we acquired at their Christmas tasting. I hope Skip can forgive the unintentional syllogism.
I am aware just how you feel. Great post.