Wild Child: Deliciously Defying Expectations
2009 Dashe Zinfandel "Les Enfants Terribles" McFadden Farm
California Zinfandel... Though You'd Never Guess It:
Vibrant, Gulpable, Fresh
It's Zin that's has more to do with Beaujolais than what you're thinking of.
Think FRESH Zinfandel.
If Zinfandel has come to be viewed as something that exemplifies the power, alcohol and general intensity that comes to mind with many California wines, then Michael and Anne Dashe’s Les Enfants Terribles from McFadden Farm is indeed the rebel child that its name suggests.
Les Enfants Terribles pushes - or perhaps wonderfully redefines? - the boundaries of Zinfandel, delivering lively, perfumed red fruits buoyed along the way with a fresh current of acids carrying spice and mineral notes.
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Forget all your sweating over palate-fatigue or your legitimate fear that a typical Zin may well overwhelm even your Sriracha-spiced short rib sauce; Les Enfants Terribles is exactly what you need. A chill on the Dashe is perfect, the wine's juicy, vibrant berries and plums refreshingly bursting on your palate.
The secret, if there is one, is that the wine was made to please the winemaker, not the market. Michael Dashe recently said in an interview: “One of the nice things about being around for a while is that you can make a wine for yourself - make a wine that you think would be a great wine to drink."
In essence, Dashe has made a Zin into something reminiscent of Lapierre’s Morgon: something pure, light and - above all - gulpable. For Dashe, this meant working with native yeasts, semi-carbonic fermentation, low sulfur and large wooden barrels. We applaud not only Michael and Anne Dashe’s effort, but also their success.
This is flat-out lovely wine.
Beyond winemaking, the McFadden farm is located at high altitudes in Potter Valley, an environment that helps deliver the invigoratingly bright and tart fruits along with vibrant acids and souped-up minerality. In fact, Dashe first became interested in McFadden farm for the nervy Riesling that it was capable of making. Imagine that verve and mineral infused into Zinfandel, and you have a clearer picture of Les Enfants Terribles.
Dashe also credits his interest in searching out obscure vineyards and making restrained wines to his decade of work under Ridge Vineyard's Paul Draper. The structure and subtlety that Draper made famous are very much present in Dashe’s wines, but Dashe also delivers an unabashed deliciousness that makes Les Enfants Terribles downright fun to drink.
There’s no shame in pairing this with grilled cheese burgers, and it excels with skirt steak with chimichurri sauce so while it made Asimov's list of top picks for Thanksgiving this year, we strongly encourage you to grab at least a few more to enjoy throughout the year. This wine will only be getting better.
To place your order, please email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits
"Les Enfants Terribles" McFadden Farm
Net / No Further Discount
In Stock!