Ravenswood Under Constellation I've generally loved the RW "single-vineyard" Zins, and have enjoyed many bottles of the Sonoma, Napa, and the Vintner's Blend. With regards to the VB, I've been hard-pressed to find a better US$7 Zin. It cooks well, and one can drink it while the food progresses. That said, I have been disappointed, of late, with even some of the single- vineyard offerings, and this goes back to before the Constellation buyout. I did a wine dinner with Joel Petterson in May, and found that a few SV offerings were better, than some just three years back. Mr Petterson stated that his was an autonomus role, and that Constellation Brands had little input into the wine making. I don't know how much of this was truth, ego, or spin, but I'd say that he was getting back on track with RW. This might well be a function of having more cash-on-hand for acquisition of better grapes, or indicate that he could get back to concentrating on winemaking, leaving the business of investment banker satisfaction to a corporate office, or, that there was just better Zin material, with which to work. As I have been a fan (mostly in the the "5 years ago" vien), I'll continue to monitor the situation. Just some observations, Hunt
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