First produced in 1991, Shooting Star wines are true to terroir and a great value. These offerings are more reminiscent of specific appellations and uncommon varietals and are fermented in stainless steel or aged in oak for a shorter period of time to be enjoyed while young.
All the fruit is hand harvested and quickly delivered to the winery. The grapes are de-stemmed and gently crushed in tanks for fermentation. Following fermentation, we pressed and racked the individual vineyard lots to American and French oak barrels for 8 months. Based on our stylistic approach to Shooting Star wines, this Zin is lighter and fruitier than our Old-Vine Steele Zinfandels. Spice, tobacco, and cocoa are also characteristics of this bottling. We used approximately 80% neutral barrels and 20% new barrels to capture as much of the aroma and flavor of the grape as possible.
Food Pairing
Try our Shooting Star Zinfandel with pasta in marinara sauce, calzones, grilled meat, or lasagna. The Shooting Star Zinfandel is also a delicious wine with BBQ.
Vineyards
This bottling of Zinfandel is from one of our favorite Lake County Zinfandel vineyards. The Duncan-Shine vineyard contains some of the oldest plantings of Zinfandel in all of Lake County going back to the late 1800s. However, the block we source our fruit from was planted in 1980. The Duncan-Shine vineyard produces a Zinfandel that shows both the fresh juicy fruit and the more ripe character of the variety.
At Shannon Ridge, we live in harmony with Mother Nature. The vineyards feed the sheep, the sheep feed the vines; the lamb feeds the people, and people drink the wine and wear wool.
We are dedicated to creating a family of wines that consumers love at top-quality and affordable prices. We are passionate about preserving our land, not only for great vineyard sites but for the wild creatures which share our property. Our sustainability practices integrate a flock of sheep that clean the vineyards, remove the excess canopy, and reduce the need for chemicals while providing natural fertilizer.
“We grow incredible mountain fruit at a great value for our customers. You can’t find this level of quality at an everyday drinking price.”
Clay grew up on a farm in Healdsburg in Sonoma County. He began his career as a vineyard manager in St. Helena, traveling the wine regions of California and managing the company’s vineyards. A short time later he started his own vineyard management company, growing grapes for some of the top wineries and fruit companies in Northern California.
Owner and visionary leader of Shannon Ridge Family of Wines, Clay Shannon has transformed his ranch into one of the agricultural icons of California’s North Coast, and in doing so is changing the face and substance of grape-growing in the USA.
In 1995, Clay discovered a magnificent piece of property in the hills overlooking Clear Lake in Lake County, thirty-five miles north of Napa’s famed vineyards. He quickly set out to develop vineyards, Clay’s vision was simple: “We wanted to grow the best fruit in the world,” says Clay, “but we wanted to do it in a way that made us happy living there.”
“Sustainability wasn’t some philosophical concept; it is the way we live our lives.”
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NV, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WI
Hi everyone – I’m happy to be reviewing the Shooting Star Lake County 2020 Zinfandel. I’m a big fan of Zins, so I’m always game to try a new label.
I received the bottle on Friday and opened it Saturday, along with another Zinfandel for comparison (my last bottle of InZINerator).
On pop and pour, the Shooting Star Zinfandel was clean, clear and a beautiful garnet color. Very little color on the cork. The nose was muted initially, but I picked up dark cherries, cola, and some herbal/vegetal notes. My spouse was getting strawberries/red fruit, and my daughter noted blackberry.
On the palate, I was still getting cola, and we detected some licorice, as well as some heat from the alcohol on the long finish. I’d say medium tannins – almost chewy – but not overwhelming. My daughter thought the Shooting Star Zinfandel was a more earthy example of a Zinfandel; not as fruit forward as the Inzinerator.
Our initial food pairing was Manchego and Cheddar cheeses. I thought the Cheddar was a better pairing, softening the heat from the alcohol on the wine’s finish.
Later, I paired with some local carryout lasagna, which matched it quite well – this is definitely a wine that goes great with red sauce. We had wine left for the next day and this time paired it with barbecue brisket and pork. I didn’t think the wine worked as well with the bbq and I didn’t detect much change in the nose or flavor profiles from the day before.
This is a good everyday drinker that pairs wonderfully with red sauce based pasta. At this favorable price point, it’s a great value when you just want to pull out a bottle for a weeknight dinner. Thanks to Alice and Casemates for another great opportunity to try a new wine!
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2020 Shooting Star Zinfandel - $30 = 20.00%
Jed Steele’s Shooting Star 2020 Lake County Zinfandel
Thanks to Casemates, I have been enjoying more Lake County wines. I know and enjoy Zins. My knowledge is lacking of this Jed Steele character, which is apparently the selling point of this wine-more on that later. Okay, I admit I have an unopened bottle of Steele wine from my mystery case, and in the comments that Shannon Co purchased his name/winery/vineyards/idk?
The bottle is substantial with a synthetic cork—Google suggests previous vintages had screw tops—with Jed Steele’s Shooting Star printed on it. Minimal staining. There is the bare minimum of information about the juice inside: 13.9 alc, 2020, Lake County, Zinfandel. That is it. However, they devote a lot of words to explain that Techumseh was born under a shooting star and Jed’s middle name is Techumseh and therefore the label was named. (Random coincidental fact: my birthday falls on the annual Leonid meteor shower; seen or unseen, I was surely born under a shooting star in the Ohio River Valley–Techumseh’s Shawnee territory.)
I pop and pour half into a split bottle to send to my parents. I pour the tiniest bit to sample and have KC-style ribs warming up. First whiff is alcohol and deep blue fruits. Not much more, but intensely fruity. On the first sip I tasted blackberry, unsweetened cocoa (this made the “chalky” tannins seem like someone had sprinkled a dash of dutch processed powder in there). I swore a detected a hint of violets. The ribs really muted the fruits and the dusty, coca, earthy came through. Still the finish was blue fruit to me. Corked it and waited for the better-half tomorrow.
My parents “liked” the wine (this is their way of saying it was okay.) They said it was fruity, did not need food, but was improved with it. My dad detected the bitter cocoa and found it detracting. They felt it was blue-fruit based, but did include cherry. No herbs or flowers.
Day two, serious ratting: Color is a bit lighter than I anticipated. Darker ruby/lighter purple. Fruits have calmed down a lot, and integrate more with the earthy/spicy notes. It smells more balanced. I smell a dusty, empty, spice cupboard. Like a well-worn leather seat on Saville row after a banker just left after smoking a fine cigar. Is it the leather, the tobacco, his cologne, the centuries of smells? I don’t know?! I am describing this like some hundred-dollar thought-provoking bottle—it is not—but I truly cannot describe the deeper notes that accentuate the jammy blue fruits. There is spice, dust, earth, but which specifics are beyond me. Annie concurred with the assessments adding that she detected strawberry and cinnamon, definitely found the chalky tannins. There is a medium finish that is pleasant and refreshing. We paired with creste pasta arrabiata and truffle ravioli (takeout!) and it was wasted on the ravioli, but sang with the arrabiata. It stood up to the heat and flavors, with the last sip tasting as vibrant as the first. We recommend this wine with food.
Knowing the general casemates MSRP for Shannon wines compared with the quality of the juice, we figured this would be 9-13 as offered per case. We think it is a decent $10 bottle. Better than the stores, but I think we agree every wine that graces this site should clear that hurdle. Thanks to Casemates for the opportunity!
TL;DR Dark fruits galore day one. Day two it harmonizes with more zinfandel spicy qualities, and is best with food.
Businessman rant incoming: I did the ratting without googling. When I went to search about it, there is very little. I cannot remember a winery doing less to sell a wine than this one. In fact, they could not have expected this wine to end up anywhere but discount sites with the effort in marketing what is inside.
If you go to https://shannonfamilyofwines.com/ there is no Shooting Star instantly clickable from their main site. So, you would assume to click on Steele, right? After all, “Steele” appears 4x on the bottle/cork and “Shooting Star” 3x. So you click on Steele, and realize that is a different label. Wait, there is a 2020 Steele Zin Cuvee? Let’s check that one out. Wow, they describe the three vineyards they source it from, they give taste descriptors, ya know, a little something for the effort.
Scroll to the bottom of the page and they have more of their labels listed, but still not Shooting Star. So you have to click “View All” to even find out they have that label. Poor.
When you finally get to it, all it says is: “The Duncan-Shine vineyard contains some of the oldest plantings of Zinfandel in all of Lake County going back to the late 1800s.” HOLD UP. Is this a single-vineyard Zin? OLD VINES? And you never mentioned any of this on the label? I guess this vineyard isn’t that great as none made it to the Cuvee, so then why advertise it hidden behind so many clicks? They spent all the time on the back of the bottle when they could have sold it.
Which brings me to my medicorebot question:
Do you buy wine solely because of the winemaker’s name?
-Yes
-Yes, but only because I know them through casemates
@KNmeh7 Was perusing the Shannon Ridge website myself. Seems they now own/bottle 15 or so different labels/brands and there is very little info provided about any of their wines.
This was a reverse wine snob offering 5/22, didn’t have much to say but here you go:
The 2020 Steele Shooting Star Zinfandel opens with very pleasing aromas of brambly dark fruit plus nice touches of spice, licorice, vanilla and cola. It’s a great start.
The wine tastes silky smooth and is very easy to drink with continued touches of spice throughout. With plenty of ripe fruit and good acidity, this is a great all around Zin. It’s just a pleasure to drink. It ends dry and long.
Price was $71.99/6-pack
Ok so not only did I peruse the producer website today, I perused the local wine shop. Lo and behold today’s offering is on the shelf. $11.99 regular price. So I bought a bottle. Won’t be buying another. Pretty simple, not much to it. My lovely bride said “no flavor at all”
Just wanted to pop in and say that–even though I have have absolutely nothing to do with this wine–that the messaging about sustainability and careful intent with the Shannon operation isn’t just marketing fluff. They’re the real deal.
I’ve been working with fruit from their High Valley estate for the past two vintages and have been super impressed. The fruit itself is great, but the farming and decisions being made there reflect values that honor the land as well as the history and tradition of our industry in the North Coast.
I normally don’t reach over into Lake County for fruit, because it’s just a bit too far away. We went all the way to High Valley for a variety that’s harder for us to find at home in Dry Creek/northern Sonoma County, and I’m very glad I did. Another winemaker I’m close with who has worked with some of the fruit there feels the same way. I’m hoping I can find my way into another block or two on that ranch in the coming years as well.
So, for what it’s worth from a small scale winemaker like me, they mean what they say about sustainability and values and, moreover, the fruit is great. Reading over this before I hit enter, it sounds like I’m a shill–but really I’m just stoked on the fruit and how they operate.
@kaolis@lucasmeeker echoing kaolis,
it’s great when we get respected winemakers well known to the group here commenting. But I’ll lament there are still too few producers of those making offers here chatting with us, and that’s sad.
@lucasmeeker Some of my fondest wine memories are from the early '90’s at Meeker, when you had the teepee out in front of the small lab that doubled as a tasting room. Or more accurately, drinking room, because no one ever left there sober. Or with white teeth.
@DanOR@lucasmeeker@kaolis@rjquillin good to hear from you Lucas! for the record, i check with Meeker quarterly and they haven’t had any wine for me!! will keep trying.
2020 Shooting Star Zinfandel, Lake County
Tasting Notes
Food Pairing
Vineyards
Specs
What’s Included
6-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
$276.00/Case for 12x 2020 Shooting Star Zinfandel, Lake County at Shannon Ridge
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NV, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WI
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Mar 27 - Tuesday, Mar 28
2020 Shooting Star Zinfandel
6 bottles for $74.99 $12.50/bottle + $1.33/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $119.99 $10/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
Hi everyone – I’m happy to be reviewing the Shooting Star Lake County 2020 Zinfandel. I’m a big fan of Zins, so I’m always game to try a new label.
I received the bottle on Friday and opened it Saturday, along with another Zinfandel for comparison (my last bottle of InZINerator).
On pop and pour, the Shooting Star Zinfandel was clean, clear and a beautiful garnet color. Very little color on the cork. The nose was muted initially, but I picked up dark cherries, cola, and some herbal/vegetal notes. My spouse was getting strawberries/red fruit, and my daughter noted blackberry.
On the palate, I was still getting cola, and we detected some licorice, as well as some heat from the alcohol on the long finish. I’d say medium tannins – almost chewy – but not overwhelming. My daughter thought the Shooting Star Zinfandel was a more earthy example of a Zinfandel; not as fruit forward as the Inzinerator.
Our initial food pairing was Manchego and Cheddar cheeses. I thought the Cheddar was a better pairing, softening the heat from the alcohol on the wine’s finish.
Later, I paired with some local carryout lasagna, which matched it quite well – this is definitely a wine that goes great with red sauce. We had wine left for the next day and this time paired it with barbecue brisket and pork. I didn’t think the wine worked as well with the bbq and I didn’t detect much change in the nose or flavor profiles from the day before.
This is a good everyday drinker that pairs wonderfully with red sauce based pasta. At this favorable price point, it’s a great value when you just want to pull out a bottle for a weeknight dinner. Thanks to Alice and Casemates for another great opportunity to try a new wine!
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2020 Shooting Star Zinfandel - $30 = 20.00%
Jed Steele’s Shooting Star 2020 Lake County Zinfandel
Thanks to Casemates, I have been enjoying more Lake County wines. I know and enjoy Zins. My knowledge is lacking of this Jed Steele character, which is apparently the selling point of this wine-more on that later. Okay, I admit I have an unopened bottle of Steele wine from my mystery case, and in the comments that Shannon Co purchased his name/winery/vineyards/idk?
The bottle is substantial with a synthetic cork—Google suggests previous vintages had screw tops—with Jed Steele’s Shooting Star printed on it. Minimal staining. There is the bare minimum of information about the juice inside: 13.9 alc, 2020, Lake County, Zinfandel. That is it. However, they devote a lot of words to explain that Techumseh was born under a shooting star and Jed’s middle name is Techumseh and therefore the label was named. (Random coincidental fact: my birthday falls on the annual Leonid meteor shower; seen or unseen, I was surely born under a shooting star in the Ohio River Valley–Techumseh’s Shawnee territory.)
I pop and pour half into a split bottle to send to my parents. I pour the tiniest bit to sample and have KC-style ribs warming up. First whiff is alcohol and deep blue fruits. Not much more, but intensely fruity. On the first sip I tasted blackberry, unsweetened cocoa (this made the “chalky” tannins seem like someone had sprinkled a dash of dutch processed powder in there). I swore a detected a hint of violets. The ribs really muted the fruits and the dusty, coca, earthy came through. Still the finish was blue fruit to me. Corked it and waited for the better-half tomorrow.
My parents “liked” the wine (this is their way of saying it was okay.) They said it was fruity, did not need food, but was improved with it. My dad detected the bitter cocoa and found it detracting. They felt it was blue-fruit based, but did include cherry. No herbs or flowers.
Day two, serious ratting: Color is a bit lighter than I anticipated. Darker ruby/lighter purple. Fruits have calmed down a lot, and integrate more with the earthy/spicy notes. It smells more balanced. I smell a dusty, empty, spice cupboard. Like a well-worn leather seat on Saville row after a banker just left after smoking a fine cigar. Is it the leather, the tobacco, his cologne, the centuries of smells? I don’t know?! I am describing this like some hundred-dollar thought-provoking bottle—it is not—but I truly cannot describe the deeper notes that accentuate the jammy blue fruits. There is spice, dust, earth, but which specifics are beyond me. Annie concurred with the assessments adding that she detected strawberry and cinnamon, definitely found the chalky tannins. There is a medium finish that is pleasant and refreshing. We paired with creste pasta arrabiata and truffle ravioli (takeout!) and it was wasted on the ravioli, but sang with the arrabiata. It stood up to the heat and flavors, with the last sip tasting as vibrant as the first. We recommend this wine with food.
Knowing the general casemates MSRP for Shannon wines compared with the quality of the juice, we figured this would be 9-13 as offered per case. We think it is a decent $10 bottle. Better than the stores, but I think we agree every wine that graces this site should clear that hurdle. Thanks to Casemates for the opportunity!
TL;DR Dark fruits galore day one. Day two it harmonizes with more zinfandel spicy qualities, and is best with food.
Businessman rant incoming: I did the ratting without googling. When I went to search about it, there is very little. I cannot remember a winery doing less to sell a wine than this one. In fact, they could not have expected this wine to end up anywhere but discount sites with the effort in marketing what is inside.
If you go to https://shannonfamilyofwines.com/ there is no Shooting Star instantly clickable from their main site. So, you would assume to click on Steele, right? After all, “Steele” appears 4x on the bottle/cork and “Shooting Star” 3x. So you click on Steele, and realize that is a different label. Wait, there is a 2020 Steele Zin Cuvee? Let’s check that one out. Wow, they describe the three vineyards they source it from, they give taste descriptors, ya know, a little something for the effort.
Scroll to the bottom of the page and they have more of their labels listed, but still not Shooting Star. So you have to click “View All” to even find out they have that label. Poor.
When you finally get to it, all it says is: “The Duncan-Shine vineyard contains some of the oldest plantings of Zinfandel in all of Lake County going back to the late 1800s.” HOLD UP. Is this a single-vineyard Zin? OLD VINES? And you never mentioned any of this on the label? I guess this vineyard isn’t that great as none made it to the Cuvee, so then why advertise it hidden behind so many clicks? They spent all the time on the back of the bottle when they could have sold it.
Which brings me to my medicorebot question:
Do you buy wine solely because of the winemaker’s name?
-Yes
-Yes, but only because I know them through casemates
-Sometimes
-No
-Don’t machines make the wine?
@KNmeh7 Was perusing the Shannon Ridge website myself. Seems they now own/bottle 15 or so different labels/brands and there is very little info provided about any of their wines.
This was a reverse wine snob offering 5/22, didn’t have much to say but here you go:
The 2020 Steele Shooting Star Zinfandel opens with very pleasing aromas of brambly dark fruit plus nice touches of spice, licorice, vanilla and cola. It’s a great start.
The wine tastes silky smooth and is very easy to drink with continued touches of spice throughout. With plenty of ripe fruit and good acidity, this is a great all around Zin. It’s just a pleasure to drink. It ends dry and long.
Price was $71.99/6-pack
fwiw
Can I assume this was produced after the sale, and that this vintage was not produced by Jed Steele?
@drgonzo99 back label above states produced and bottled by Shannon Family Of Wines
Ok so not only did I peruse the producer website today, I perused the local wine shop. Lo and behold today’s offering is on the shelf. $11.99 regular price. So I bought a bottle. Won’t be buying another. Pretty simple, not much to it. My lovely bride said “no flavor at all”
fwiw
@kaolis We’ve learned a valuable lesson today. Wine always tastes better when it’s free!
@hscottk @kaolis
Lol a very true statement
Just wanted to pop in and say that–even though I have have absolutely nothing to do with this wine–that the messaging about sustainability and careful intent with the Shannon operation isn’t just marketing fluff. They’re the real deal.
I’ve been working with fruit from their High Valley estate for the past two vintages and have been super impressed. The fruit itself is great, but the farming and decisions being made there reflect values that honor the land as well as the history and tradition of our industry in the North Coast.
I normally don’t reach over into Lake County for fruit, because it’s just a bit too far away. We went all the way to High Valley for a variety that’s harder for us to find at home in Dry Creek/northern Sonoma County, and I’m very glad I did. Another winemaker I’m close with who has worked with some of the fruit there feels the same way. I’m hoping I can find my way into another block or two on that ranch in the coming years as well.
So, for what it’s worth from a small scale winemaker like me, they mean what they say about sustainability and values and, moreover, the fruit is great. Reading over this before I hit enter, it sounds like I’m a shill–but really I’m just stoked on the fruit and how they operate.
@lucasmeeker Not a shill at all, good info and appreciate the input.
@kaolis @lucasmeeker echoing kaolis,
it’s great when we get respected winemakers well known to the group here commenting. But I’ll lament there are still too few producers of those making offers here chatting with us, and that’s sad.
@lucasmeeker Some of my fondest wine memories are from the early '90’s at Meeker, when you had the teepee out in front of the small lab that doubled as a tasting room. Or more accurately, drinking room, because no one ever left there sober. Or with white teeth.
@DanOR @lucasmeeker @kaolis @rjquillin good to hear from you Lucas! for the record, i check with Meeker quarterly and they haven’t had any wine for me!! will keep trying.
need more everyday drinkers
/giphy neon-logical-doll
