2007 Grgich Hills Estate Napa Valley Zinfandel

Happy Cellar Saturday!  It's that magical first Saturday of the month, where I peruse the cellar to find something to open that's at least a decade in the making.  Tonight I've opened a bottle that a friend gave me quite a few years ago, so it literally has been in my cellar for a while, the 2007 Grgich Hills Estate Napa Valley Zinfandel.  Normally, Zinfandel is not seen as particularly age-worthy, certainly not as much as a fine Cabernet, but since I've opened this bottle, it will be interesting to see how the wine has progressed over the past dozen years.

The wine is a bright garnet color in the glass, with a hint of auburn along the edges.  The nose is an interesting affair, with some earthy notes of leather, charcoal and spice interspersed with hints of floral aromas.  The taste is a rush of jammy ripe fruit, blackberry, cherry and plum, classic for a Zinfandel, that transition nicely to some flavors of smoke and tart cherry midpalate.  The tannins are somewhat mellow, leading to a rather soft, but very dry finish with a bit of peppery spice at the end.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, it's drinking nicely now, but I expect it would have been just as good a decade ago.  This wine would pair well with a variety of causal dinners, from pizza and tacos to barbecue.  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with a classic barbecue of slow cooked beef back ribs, finished off on the grill, with some Bourbon molasses baked beans and freshly made mustard potato salad.  Cheers!