Tasting some great wines with winemaker Brandon deLeuze
two aerospace engineers Norman deLeuz and Gino Zepponi along with Normans wife Rosa Lee decided to make wine together. Combining their last name and a quality control term of zero defects they came up with the name ZD. Before they owned land they worked out of a small farm building where they had to repair everything themselves, not too hard a task for two engineers luckily. Money was further stretched by buying inexpensive whiskey barrels, the first two vintages being American oak from Jim Beam. This 1969 vintage of Pinot Noir and Riesling would produce fewer than 300 cases, a small amount that further shrank when their library stock was later destroyed when a businessman set fire to a wine storage area to cover up embezzlement! Success was never a guarantee as the first 20 banks refused to give the winery a loan. Later after an unsuccessful $3,000 well water search, a property in Rutherford became available where the winery remains today. Wine lovers could taste the commit to quality, and thankfully zero defects, and came out in large crowds on the weekends in the early 90’s to enjoy their $5 tastings. If only we could go back to those prices! Today the winery creates some of the best Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon of Napa Valley, with the majority of grapes coming from their Estate Rutherford and Carneros CCOF, California Certified Organic Farmers, vineyards.
The 2017 ZD Chardonnay is full of ripe fruit flavors of golden apple, guava and pineapple, with sourcing from cool growing regions of Santa Barbara, Monterey and Carneros. Despite its richer texture the wine does not go through malolactic fermentation, helping retain a refreshing tart apple acidity. This is helpful to balance the round sumptuous power the wine gets from undergoing barrel fermentation. 10 months aging in American oak adds creamy vanilla and cinnamon spice aromas to the wine. ZD Chardonnay, as amazing as it is, can get stuck under the large shadow Rombauer Chardonnay casts in the American marketplace. If you’re a Chardonnay lover and have never tasted this ZD wine, do yourself a favor and grab a bottle!
The ZD Carneros Pinot Noir has always reminded me of an excellent wine for the holidays as it has enough complexity to appeal to a crowd of people with different palates. The 17 vintage is intensely aromatic with orange peel citrus and light bodied with enough crunchy red fruits to remain true to varietal form while still packing power and not tasting thin. The 17 Founders Reserve Pinot Noir is sourced from the ZD organic Carneros Estate vineyard and serves as a tribute to founder Norman deLeuz who passed away from lymphoma in 2007. Fruit quality is rich and denser than the Carneros Pinot, with red plum, black cherry, cedar spice and high quality honoring well the memory of Norman’s passion. The 2016 ZD Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has a small amount, (12%) of Petit Verdot addition along with 22 months aging in American oak. Expect some juicy richness from this addition. The 15 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is a combination of Napa Valleys Rutherford, Oak Knoll and Coombsville sub regions. Aging is extensive here with 34 months in American oak providing clove, tobacco and vanilla to combine with black cherry fruit and black currant aromas. A perfect pairing for a Cab and slab.
We tasted the Abacus XX for a grand finale, which was first available in consumers 1999. This is a non vintage wine that combines the 1992-2017 vintages of Reserve Cabernet. The wine is silky smooth as its bottle is jet black. Viscous and mouth coating this solera styled blend is fed vintages of Reserve Cabernet as it begins to age each year to keep a youthful freshness and vibrancy in the developing Abacus. A small percentage of the solera blend is bottled each year, around 15% or less, ensuring there will be new Abacus to come year after year. The heavy medallion that comes with each bottle signifies the first and last vintages used in the blend. 2019 was the 50th anniversary for ZD and I promised Brandon I would write about the history and wines of this great winery. While I might be a little late for their first 50 years, I’ll be the first to congratulate them on their next 50 years. I have no doubt the wines then will be just as amazing.
Scott Billeci, ZD Regional Sales Manager
