2006 Zinfandel, Napa Valley 

Winemaking

From low yields of less than 3 tons per acre, this old vine zinfandel was hand picked, sorted meticulously, cold soaked for 3 days before being fermented for 10 days with the maximum temperature of 86 degrees. The malolactic fermentation took place in the barrel. The wine was racked 3 times before being bottled in December of 2007. 

Tasting Notes

While many of our reds are rich, serious, attention grabbers, once in a while we need something just fun to go with a variety of foods.  Such is our 2006 Napa Valley Zinfandel.  It is all about yummy, juicy fruit and not about oak this and tannin that.  Still, nobody would say this is wimpy as we just do not know how to make anything wimpy.  Some of you who had our 1999 zinfandel, which was all from Chiles Valley can relate to this wine a little bit.  While the acid level is lower than the 1999 zinfandel, so is the alcohol level.  The wine’s color is deep red-black and shows rich notes of red berries and chocolate right out of the bottle. It’s a tight zinfandel at this point, so aeration is definitely recommended. Decanting allows the secondary aromatic notes to emerge, including cassis, blackberry, and an intriguing, cabernet-like aroma of tobacco leaf. Soft but firm acidity and integrated oak frame a palate redolent of summer berries and sweet peppers.   It begs for anything with a red sauce, from pizza to pasta to barbeque.   If it were in a can, you might say that it’s “less filling, tastes great”…