Mission Codename The buzz is back
Every time a Beekeeper wine hits our lips it’s like the heavens open up and that Sinead O’Conner tune starts echoing through HQ.
“nothing compares…NOTHING compares, to youuuuu”
After much begging, negotiating, and chanting daily affirmations we made it happen AGAIN. Beekeeper SECRET STONES is back!
As expected this one brings a stack of big scores - 95/96/97 points and if you do a little digging you’ll find plenty of social reviews saying things like “BEST ZINFANDEL EVER!”. Jeb Dunnuck called the 2016 Secret Stones “straight-up thrilling stuff,” and Connoisseur’s Guide called the 2017 “a wine of enormous depth and detail.”
Equally thrilling - our price! Nearly HALF OFF.
But with this being our 6th Beekeeper offer, the secret is out, and inventory is already moving fast and running low, like a dwarf three-toed jerboa.
We started offering these wines last year, and truly, nothing has compared in the Zin realm. They’re one-of-a-kind, boasting mega huge scores across vintages, and held in a pantheon of the highest quality alongside the likes of Turley, Bedrock and Carlisle.
Clay Mauritson and Ian Blackburn teamed up with one simple mission: “…craft beautiful vineyard expressions from premier vineyard sites and reintroduce the quality wine audience to Zinfandel…Our wines are crafted with all the attention to detail of an ultra-premium Cabernet; premier vineyards, low yields, careful hand selection of fruit, artisan winemaking, quality-focused, not quantity and the expensive use of time in quality French Oak barrels.”
It’s 85% Zin with a balance of Petite Sirah to bolster that powerful undercurrent of ripe, stacked fruit. Wine Advocate writes “it sashays out of the glass with flamboyant notes of baked black cherries, mulberries, plum preserves and raspberry pie with nuances of fragrant earth, exotic spices and potpourri.” Sashays?! It goes straight Gangham Style on your tongue with all manner of hypnotic, pulsing, stacked layers of fruit and complexity. Not a wine for the meek or mild mannered, that’s for sure!
Almost guaranteed to sell out. We got our bottles. Did you??
97 Points – Purely Domestic Wine Report
“The nose is a firm and savory tapenade with soaked cherries and camphor showing underlying espresso and mocha. The palate entry is exceptionally open and supple with textured blackberry and dark stone fruits in the core delivering mouth-coating density and sense of purity.”
96 Points – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
“Deep garnet-purple in color, it sashays out of the glass with flamboyant notes of baked black cherries, mulberries, plum preserves, and raspberry pie with nuances of fragrant earth, exotic spices, and potpourri. The full-bodied palate is decadently fruited with rich black and red fruit preserves and tons of spices, framed by soft tannins and great tension, finishing long, layered and minerally. Beautiful Zin! 175 cases were made. Drink 2020-2030.”
95 Points – Jeb Dunnuck
“Rocking levels of plums, cedary spice, licorice, and brambly herbs emerge from the 2017 Zinfandel Secret Stones, which includes a splash of Petite Sirah and spent 18 months in just 20% new French oak. Possessing medium to full body, ultra-fine tannins, terrific mid-palate depth, and a seamless, silky mouthfeel, it’s an awesome Zinfandel, especially noteworthy given that 2017 was incredibly challenging for this variety. Drink 2020-2030.”
What the Winery Says
2017 'Secret Stones' Rockpile Zinfandel
- Winemakers
- Clay Mauritson, Ian Blackburn, Emma Kudritzki
- Varietals
- 85% Zinfandel, 15% Petite Sirah
- Vintage
- 2017
- Appellation
- Rockpile AVA, Sonoma County
- Vineyard
- Madrone Spring Vineyard
- Alcohol
- 14.8%
- Total acidity
- 6.3 g/L
- pH
- 3.74
- Aging
- 15 months
- Barrels
- 25% new French oak
- Production
- 7 barrels made