If you are visiting us for the first time, Welcome! The Wine Spies feature one exceptional wine each day – and we only bring you wines that we ourselves seek out and love. Always, the wines are great. Sometimes greater than great, as is the case with today’s wine from Adobe Road Winery.

SUPER SONOMA WINERY ALERT!: Some of the best wines in the world are made right here in Sonoma County. We frequently feature great Sonoma wines so be sure to check back every Tuesday, when we always feature one great Sonoma County winery.

SAVINGS ALERT!: Today’s wine is 25% off of regular retail price, but clever Operatives will also enjoy Free Ground Shipping on 6 or more bottles, when they enter Coupon Code: SUPERSONOMA at checkout

SUPERIOR WINE ALERT!: Today’s multi medal winning wine is a superb and delicious Zinfandel, in the Classic California Style

LIBRARY WINE ALERT!: We were lucky to get our hands on the last few cases of this wine, before the winery runs out completely. Today’s allocation is extremely limited, so please act early.

Mission Codename: The Zin? A sure win!

Operative: Agent Red

Objective: Raid the secret archives of Adobe Road and secure all of their remaining 2003 Zinfandel

Mission Status: Accomplished!

Current Winery: Adobe Road

Wine Subject: 2003 Zinfandel

Winemaker: Franc Dusak

Backgrounder: Operatives have been requesting, no demanding Adobe Road’s 2003 Zinfandel. Now that we have featured Adobe Road here on three past occasions, we sent Agent Red to secure all remaining cases of today’s superb Zinfandel. Please note: _Very few cases are available today. When we run out, you will find another great Adobe Road wine available for the balance of the day. Act fast, for we already have a few cases pre-sold.

Wine Spies Tasting Profile:

Look – Deep garnet with perfect clarity and color that holds its concentrated nature right out to the edges of the wine. This wine has a tight and shimmery surface with very wide-spaced skinny legs that crawl down the glass

Smell – A deep inhalation delivers a deep rush of layered fruits of juicy raspberry, blackberry, and plum, with mild spice, cocoa and slight earthen muskiness

Feel – At the very outset the wine is round and supple, but then tightens up, coating the mouth with great medium tannins that dry and make you want to smack your lips

Taste – DELICIOUS and bold without being over-the-top, with layers of berry jam, ripe plum, cherry and mild spice

Finish – Beautiful layers of flavor taper slowly, leaving behind a slight dryness and tart-sweetness that make you rush for your next sip

Conclusion – This is a fantastic wine! You know what a big Adobe Road fan I am, but I really should have listen to my assets all along and secured this wine much earlier. I was lucky to get my hands on any, as the winery no longer has any available to anyone else. Today, this is the LAST place you’ll ever find this wine! This wine shows great balance, hovering between big and refined. Its flavors and aromas are really big, but they never dominate your senses. The mouth-feel is superior, and unique, inviting you to try the wine in small sips and large gulps for different sensations.

Mission Report:

(republished from Agent Red’s first encounter with Adobe Road Wines)

I love my missions to France. The wine, the climate and the food all seem to agree with me.

On a recent mission to the French village of Anjou in the Loire Valley (the region in France best known for Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc wines), I was tipped off by a local asset that winery owner and racing legend Kevin Buckler was staying in a hotel neighboring my own.

He was in France for his annual appearance at the world famous auto race, 24 Hours of Le Mans. Kevin and his team drive the incredible Porsche GT3. Kevin is a world-class driver, and he and his team have racked up wins at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona (2002) and the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans (2002), an overall win at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona (2003), and the title of Porsche World Cup Champion in 2002.

Kevin’s winery, Adobe Road, had been under light surveillance for a few months already and Central Command was preparing to send an Agent to investigate – but I got my own once-in-a-lifetime chance to meet Kevin in his racing element, and Central Command approved my impromptu mission and I extended my stay in France.

I am enough of a Porsche fan to have my own sights set on a 2008 Cayman S. Since I had the brochure with me on my travels I used it as a prop, taking it with me to the hotel restaurant where Kevin and his team were having dinner. Having made friends with the Maître ’D earlier (I buttered him up with a bottle of Patrick Bodouin Anjou Villages Cabernet Franc ), I was seated next to their table.

I sat down and positioned the Cayman brochure so that it would be seen by Kevin or his crew. Then I ordered a bottle of great wine and waited. They took the bait and one of the guys at the table leaned over and said to me, “Hey, Buddy. That’s a nice car, but why not spring for a real Porsche and get a GT3?”

Now, I knew that the monster GT3 was their car, but I replied, “I leave that car to the professionals. It’s better suited to the racetrack, if you ask me.”

That opened up a great conversation about Porsches and about wine that went late into the night. Kevin waxed poetic about both and I enjoyed his passion on these two great subjects. As the evening was ending, Kevin’s crew chief invited me to visit pit row for a brief tour of their on-track operations. I jumped at the chance and enjoyed every second of it. At the end of the tour, I asked if I could ride along during a check-ride… and was nearly laughed off the track.

Once the crew chief wiped the tears from his eyes, he became very serious. He quickly escorted me away from the pit row, handed me a few bottles of Adobe Road wine, and pushed me toward the security exit. Oh, well. At least I tried. And, at least I walked away with an arm full of Kevin’s excellent wine.

Wine Spies Vineyard Check:

A spy photo, taken from the edge of today’s vineyard can be seenhere.

The location the Rolex 24 at Daytona at the Daytona Speedway can be seen in this satellite photo.