2010 Klinker Brick Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel

Happy Independence Day!  Of course being the traditionalist that I am, the Fourth of July means barbecue, and specifically ribs and what wine goes better with barbecue than a nice Zinfandel, and of course you know I'm convinced that the best Zins come from Lodi!  Hence tonight I am enjoying a bottle of 2010 Klinker Brick Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel.

The wine has a nice deep ruby color and the nose is pure Zinfandel with notes of black cherry, anise and cocoa powder.  The taste is lovely, with some light floral notes amid rich ripe cherry and plum on the outset, transitioning into some nice licorice and baking spice midpalate.  The finish is very smooth and dry, as the soft tannins lend plenty of depth and character to the long, dry finish.  A perfect wine for the holiday!

Overall I would rate this one a solid 8, as it's a nice Lodi Zin at a great price, I picked up this bottle at World Market for only $15!  And of course tonight I am pairing it with great American eats, some barbecued St. Louis spareribs, homemade strawberry coleslaw, red potato salad with dill and corn muffins fresh from the oven.  The richness of this wine pairs well with salads while the anise flavor is the perfect accent to a rich barbecue sauce.  I can't wait to start eating!

2008 Coppola Alicante Bouschet

So tonight I am trying a new wine I picked up yesterday at World Market from Francis Coppola.  Now I'm a big fan of his black label Claret, as it's a lovely everyday wine for a very modest price, so when I saw his diamond label on a bright magenta background I had to investigate!  This wine was the Alicante Bouschet, which apparently is a grape that has been cultivated since the 1860s, but was made popular during prohibition, since the grapes are red fleshed, which makes them much more robust in blending, creating darker colored wines from traditionally lighter grapes.  The thick skins also make it much more resistant to rot during transport from California to the east coast during prohibition.  And all this, made it a target for Mr. Coppola, who had fond memories of wines his family made from this grape during the period, so they located some and decided to make this wine.

The wine has a wonderful, deep ruby color that is almost an inky purple at the center.  The nose is full of jammy fruit, plums, blackberries, currant, with a hint of almost maple syrup.  The taste is very fruit forward, but not really as sweet as I was expecting.  The flavors of ripe red fruit quickly transition to spice, anise and mint midpalate, and then the bright tannins take control for a tight, dry finish.

Overall, I am thrilled with this wine, not so much because it's a stellar grape or exceptional vintage, but for what it can be paired with!  This wine is a perfect compliment to barbecue, and prior to discovering it, I was fairly limited to nice Zinfandels when it came to wine and barbecue, but this opens up a wonderful second option!  And it paid off, since tonight I am pairing this with a wonderful slow roasted, barbecued beef brisket, garlic mashed potatoes, grilled white, yellow and orange carrots and corn muffins!  All those flavors, and this wine stands up like a champ!  I would rate this one a solid 8, maybe an 8.5, since it's a rare wine that pairs with something traditionally more difficult, but it was also a great value at only $10!  So pick up the pink label and enjoy some today!

2007 Ravenswood Dickerson Napa Valley Zinfandel

Well, kids are back in school and football is on TV all afternoon on Sundays, so that can mean only one thing, summer is on its way out and fall is coming into its own.  So as a celebration of the last gasp of summer, today I decide to have a little barbecue, and what could possibly go better with barbecue than a lovely zinfandel?

So with my lovely meal, I've cracked open a bottle of 2007 Ravenswood Dickerson Napa Valley Zinfandel, since the rich fruit flavor and smokiness of a good zin really pairs well with barbecue of all kinds!  Now this wine is part of a series of wonderful single-vineyard zinfandels that Ravenswood produces, including the Pickberry, Teldeschi and Barricia zinfandels.  And of course you know I'm a big fan of just about anything Ravenswood does!

This wine has a lovely ruby color in the glass, lighter around the edges and deeper toward the center.  The nose is a lovely combination of leather, limestone, oak and just a hint of ripe berries.  The taste is very fruit forward and characteristically jammy, but not is a super sweet grape jam sort of way.  It has lovely fruit that doesn't make you think you just drank kool-aid, instead this wine seems to be showing a lot of respect to the ripe fruit.  The fruit gives way to some wonderful minerality and spice midpalate, with hints of gravel and baking spice.  In the end, the delicate tannins provide for a long, smooth, supple finish that makes you want to take your time with this wine.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's really one of the nicest zins I've had in quite a while!  I bought just one bottle of this a couple years ago, on clearance sale at Meijer of all places, so the price was a real bargain at under $16, and now I wish I'd bought more!  And what sort of end of summer barbecue am I enjoying this with?  Glad you asked, a lovely rack of slow cooked barbecued spare ribs, along with some grilled corn, baked beans, corn muffins and broccoli salad, everything you need for a summer meal out in the yard!