Zinfandel

Ridge, Three Valleys, Sonoma

Grapes 65% Zinfandel, 20% Petite Sirah, 9% Carignane, 3% Mataro, 2% Alicante Bouchet,1% Grenache and a partridge in a pear tree.   Facts You know what I’ve always admired about Ridge? It’s that they manage to “do Zin” without making me feel like feeling I’ve just been molested by blackberries and alcohol. True story. The Ridge 3 Valleys in the only wine blended from multiple vineyards, rather than being sourced from one specific vineyard, in…

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Edmeades Late Harvest Zinfandel, Mendocino, California.

Grapes 100% Zinfandel   Facts I don’t feature dessert wines enough. It’s a shame really. The problem is that the majority of wine drinkers (at least the ones I encounter) just don’t understand dessert wines! I shouldn’t have to religiously state that “…dessert wines are generally meant to accompany (or even be served as) dessert…” but it seems that is continuously the case.Sure, you can’t get home from a long day at work and rip…

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Haraszthy Zinfandel, Amador County, California.

Grapes 93% Zinfandel, 7% Mourvedre   Facts The Haraszthy line of wines [pronounced: Hare-ass-tee] is part of the Bronco Wine Company portfolio. If Bronco doesn’t sound too familiar, maybe this one will: Fred Franzia. That’s right, Ol’ Fred Franzia, nephew of Ernest Gallo, and founder of the Charles Shaw brand, otherwise more affectionately known as “Two Buck Chuck.” Now, before you get ahead of yourself, Fred Franzia has no part in the winemaking for this…

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Passitivo Primitivo, Puglia, Italy.

Grapes 100% Primitivo (aka Zinfandel)   Facts First-things-first, I think the best idea that brands such as Layer Cake, ever did when marketing their own Primitivo was to put “AKA Zinfandel” on the front label. No-one knows what Primitivo is (at least the vast majority of consumers don’t), and as much resistance as I’m sure Italian winemakers have to it, it would behoove them to follow this example! This is the part where I usually…

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Four Vines Old Vine Cuvee Zinfandel, California

Grape Zinfandel, but there’s probably very small amounts of a few other grapes thrown in there, also… Facts Four Vines was established by a guy named Christian Tietje, who originally started out as a chef in Boston. In the 90’s he moved to San Francisco, with big dreams of becoming a winemaker (as you do). From there, he cut his teeth as cellar-master at Carneros Creek in Napa, and furthered his wine education under “Wine…

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Orin Swift “Saldo” Zinfandel 2009

Grape 80% Zinfandel, 9% Petite Sirah,  8% Syrah, 3% Grenache   Facts Anyone who knows me, knows that I’m a sucker for a good wine label; but this one is….well…minimalistic to say the least! I do have to say though, I am a fan. You won’t find this fact on the website, however I have it under good authority that Orin Swift were so stuck for ideas on the label for the Saldo, that they…

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Orin Swift The Prisoner 2009 Review

Grapes 51% Zinfandel, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Syrah, 7% Petite Sirah, 3% Charbono, 1% Grenache, 1% Malbec, and a Partridge in a Pear Tree.   Facts The label for The Prisoner was work of Spanish artist Francisco Goya. For the 2009 vintage, the debut tasting apparently took place at a prison location in San Francisco’s Presidio military base near the Golden Gate Bridge.

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Thinking of Opening a Winery in Napa? You Should Probably Read this First…Part 3 of 4

Following on from yesterdays post, the following is part 3 of 4 of a post made by a friend of mine, Lucas Meeker – Assistant Winemaker at Meeker Vineyards in Sonoma. The post originally appeared on professional Q&A website Quora.com. The question Lucas answered was: What are some Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of Owning a Napa Winery? My annotations throughout the article appear in the form of: [Notes like this], and as always I’ve…

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Wine Review of Cardinal Zin 2008

Grape 100% Zinfandel   Facts You might have seen the Cardinal Zin before with a different label. Cardinal Zin used to be a Bonny Doon project, but was acquired by Underdog Wine Merchants back in 2006.   In their own words; “Underdog Wine Merchants is the champion of the more interesting, albeit sometimes misunderstood or under-appreciated wines and wine styles. In a word…the “underdogs” of the wine world.” Underdog isn’t just a wine importer, they…

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Beef-and-Lamb Burgers with Cheddar and Caper Remoulade Paired with 7 Deadly Zins

I’m a big fan of meals that are easy, inexpensive and tasty; but who isn’t? This week I am featuring the Michael David Winery, and what better wine to pair with their Seven Deadly Zins than a burger? Recommended retail on the Seven Deadly Zins Zinfandel is around $14, making it VERY recession friendly. I selected a recipe for Beef-and-Lamb Burgers with Cheddar and Caper Remoulade, a fairly simple but extremely tasty recipe. I was…

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Blueberry-Glazed Ribs Paired with Ravenswood Vintner’s Blend Petite Sirah 2008

I’m going to cut to the chase, this was the best food and wine pairing I have put together yet! The other bonus was that it was also one of the easiest to put together. For this reason, I would like to issue a call to action: You need. to make. this recipe! The recipe for Blueberry-Glazed Ribs came from my usual source, Foodandwine.com. I’d love to think that Food and Wine were paying me…

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