Asylum Zinfandel from Luna Vineyards 4-Pack
$49.99 $92.00 46% off List Price
2014 Asylum Zinfandel, Lodi, California
This wine also made the rounds at the recent NoVA gathering. Raspberry and cassis upfront with bramble and spice on the back end. Fairly tannic for a Zin which contributes to the medium+ finish. Good value at the wine.woot price.
Just enough space to write Arkham below the Zin. Or to draw the Joker, Scarecrow, Bane and Harley Quinn.
[grape]
I had the opportunity to taste this wine at the recent NoVA/DC get together (last weekend).
We served the wine effectively as a pop-and-pour - not much time between opening and pouring. The wine had a dusty/earthy nose, along with some alcohol heat. (At 14.6% ABV, that is to be expected.) I found the nose to be a pleasant change from so many zins.
On the palate, there was red fruit (currants, raspberry, maybe a hint of red plum skins), lots of earthiness, and a decent finish. Round mouth feel. Tannins along the edges, but not overwhelmingly drying.
At the current price point (about $12.50/bottle), I think this is a good value. I would gladly add this to my weeknight wine repertoire.
Thank you, Luna Vineyards and WCC, for allowing me to taste this! I enjoyed it!
[grape]
Someone brought a bottle to the NoVa gathering last weekend, and I had the chance to taste.
My first impressions were of a little bit of alcohol on the nose, and spicy green pepper. I was a bit surprised by the nose. While there was red berry and not a lot of stone fruit on the entry, it wasn’t really on the nose. Dusty tannins, but not a long finish.
Really, if I hadn’t been told it was a Zin, I would have said Cab Franc!
We were sharing among a crowd, starting a tasting, so I wasn’t able to leave it in my glass and come back to it later. I’d be interested in seeing where it went after a bit of a decant. Not something I normally associate with a Zin.
Overall, it was a nice start to the night. The QPR looks reasonable and I think it would make a good mid-week wine with dinner.
[grape]
I, too, was at the NoVA/DC gathering this past weekend and tasted this wine. I’m afraid that my experience was not as positive as cjsiege and wkdpanda’s. 
Perhaps it was the vessel from which it was being tasted, I don’t know. Perhaps, I got one of the first pours and it needed more time to open up a bit. ddeuddeg and I drink a lot of zinfandels and this wine did not have the nose of a zin. I got a very strange earthy funk on the nose. Very much like that of Carneros–not what I expect from/on a zin. The palate was non-descript. YMMV. Obviously!
BTW, cute that WD and company decided to actually offer a Zinfandel on National Zinfandel Day!
You think he really ~planned~ that out? 
[grape]
As with the few posts above, I also got to taste this one at the NoVA/DC tasting. My notes were lost (oh wait…I didn’t take any notes…oops ) so this is just a quick commentary from me.
My nose and palate are not as refined as they used to be…not that they ever were to begin with, but I second the comments about it not being your typical Zin. The nose certainly had those brambly, green peppery notes that I link to Cab Franc. It was a little off-putting at first, but sipping from the glass the wine had a decent flavor profile. Being freshly opened, the tannic bite was right there in your face. So this could do with some decanting or aging.
[grape]
Having the wonderful fortune of being part of the latest NoVA/DC gathering, I had the chance to try this.
My biggest impression of this Zin was that it was nothing like a Zin. Perhaps it needed more bottle time or more air time, but to call this a Zin may be a sin. It wasn’t bad, mind you. I actually found it to be perfectly drinkable, especially at this price point. Quite tannic, but with good fruit character - dark fruits. If you’re really picky on your Zinfandels, this may not be the wine for you. But if you’re into new experiences and seeing how varied a varietal can be, give this a try.
Who has time to say “Zinfandel” anymore? Nobody, that’s who. That’s why the good doctors at the Asylum (I presume the patients didn’t make this wine) market this as a Zin.
This wine has a lot of tannins and a nice citric, lime acidity to it. I get plum and strawberry flavors, and mineral. A lot of mineral. The back end is very clean; almost too clean. There’s practically no residual flavors.
I’d recommend aerating this or decanting it to get it to open up and really get the fruit flavors out. And I recommend drinking it with food, unless you’re looking for a really clean-drinking session wine. Is session wine a thing? It is now.
The back label recommends pairing with pork chops, pasta, rib eye and chocolate. That seems like kind of a heavy dinner, but who am I to argue with a wine label?
Overall I enjoyed this wine. There’s not a lot of complexity to it, but the things it does offer are tasty.