Zinfandel

Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with black cherries, slight bramble, char and slight spice.  Medium bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, this is nicely balanced with good acidity.  Flavors of  black cherries, with spice and char.  Good finish.  This is drinking well but will age nicely over the next ten years.  It is excellent on its own and will work well with many foods. It went very well with vegetarian Indian food (moderately spicy).

Another great vintage for this wine.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black cherries, raspberries, slight bramble, warm earth, and pepper.  Medium to full bodied.  Light to medium tannins.  Great texture.  Great balance.  On the palate, this is young but already delicious.  Flavors of black and red raspberries, black cherries and char.  Lively.  Long finish.  It is drinking great now but should go another ten to fifteen years although it may likely be more "claret" in style.  Drink on its own or with grilled meats, fowl or veggies.  

This is a blend of 81% Zinfandel, 10% Petite Sirah, and 9% Carignane.  A middle of the road style of Napa Zinfandel.  Deep ruby in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, slight raspberries, bramble, gravel and spice.  Medium bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this drinks easy.  Some depth.  Flavors of black cherries, cherries, slight cranberries and spice.  Good acidity.  Nice finish.  This is nice on its own and will work well with foods off the grill.  Drink over the next five years.  

This is a blend of 87% Zinfandel, 10% Petite Sirah, 2% Carignane, 1% Alicante Bouschet from vines averaging 75 years old.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is nice with black cherries, brambles, gravel and spice.  Medium to full bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this is a middle of the road Zin.  Not a monster, but not a claret either.  It has depth and some complexity.  Flavors of black cherries, slight cherries, spice and slight bramble.  Long finish.  This is great on its own and would be great with a burger off the grill.  Drink over the next five to seven years.  

Cline makes some great value wines and this is one of them.  Garnet in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has cherries, raspberries, briar patch, and black pepper.  Medium bodied.  Slight tannins.  Good balance.  On the palate, this is a bit short of jammy but in that direction.  Flavors of Cherries, Black cherries, and Raspberries.  Good finish.  This is more than an easy drinker, but it does go down smoothly.  Nice on its own, this will work great with a lot of foods.  A nice choice with ribs or a burger off the grill.  

This is a blend of 86% Zinfandel with 14% other varietals from the Russian River Valley in Sonoma.  Of course, it is Mike Officer and Carlisle's home vineyard.  Purple in color with some ruby hues, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is energetic with black raspberries, black cherries, bramble, black pepper and spice (cloves?).  Medium bodied.  Light tannins.  Great balance.  On the palate, this is young but really opens with an hour or two air.  Plenty of depth.  Flavors of black raspberries, black cherries, char and spice.  Juicy.  Long finish.  This is delicious on its own and will work

Whitehall Lane Winery has a focus on red wines, more Cabernet driven wines. This 2019 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Zinfandel offers notes of blackberry, blueberry, black cherry, boysenberry, and huckleberry. The fruit is fully structured by moderate to mature tannins, the use of judicious oak, and a mild acidity. There are back notes of vanilla, sandalwood, and light campfire. This is definitely a food friendly red wine to pair with a various dishes, but it’s also a wine that makes you remember how good Napa wines can be when they’re treated with restraint.

This is Carlisle's basic Zin. Unfortunately, they don't offer this in large allocations or I would buy even more. It is a fantastic value for a quality Zinfandel. It is a blend of 47% Sonoma Valley Zinfandel, Old Hill Ranch, 20% Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel, Teldeschi Ranch, 20% Sonoma Valley Zinfandel, Pagani Ranch, 10% Dry Creek Valley Petite Sirah, Mounts Ranch, and 3% Sonoma Valley Alicante Bouschet, Pagani Ranch. Purple in color with some ruby hues, mostly opaque and bright. The nose is strong with bramble, red raspberries, some black cherries, char and spice. Full bodied.

Since the early 1990s, Paraduxx has created blended red wine to show off the Napa Valley. A bit larger and more macerated than previous vintages, it is still nonetheless an enjoyable, solid wine. The tannins are a little more aggressive here with the fruit being both expressive but still subdued. The more noticeable element is the oak; an 18-month program of both French and Hungarian, with 40% of the barrels being brand new. The composition is 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, then diminishing proportions of Zinfandel, Malbec, Merlot, Syrah and Petit Sirah, in that order.

Deep ruby in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose is nice with black cherries, cherries, bramble and a bit of orange zest(?).  Medium bodied.  Light tannins.  Good acidity.  On the palate, this is still young but drinking well.  Black cherries, cherries and char.  Long finish.  This is great on its own and would work well with grilled meats.  It worked nicely too with Hummus and veggies.  Drink over the next seven to ten years.