Spell Zinfandel

Spell

Zinfandel - 2006

Amador County, California

The daughter of Spelletich Cellars owners branched out and made a wonderful and unique zin, and I am not just talking about the psychadelic label (although it is pretty cool in a world of blah labels, 10 points for style).

Let me begin by saying this wine might be the biggest fruit bomb ever to pass my lips. It doesn't drink like the zins I am used to, it's an explosion of super ripe fruit and berries with a knockout alcohol content (16.5% who wants to get tore up?), but there is no alcohol burn or lingering astringent taste. No way, the explosion of fruit covers just about everything. Medium oaky, nary a tannin, and a bit of spice in the mid-palate makes this one yummy wine.

I would say this bottle of delicious is parked midway between a pinot and a cab as far as body, and would provide an excellent stepping stone into zins or a step up from pinots for novice red drinkers or peole who like silky fruit heavy wines.

This wine is hard to come by, my bar has it, so does Zambrano's, but I haven't come accross it in the store. Direct from the winery one of my regulars found it for $16.99 a bottle, which is a downright steal (she thought so too and bought a case after trying it the first time).

I highly recommend!

Deerfield Zinfandel

Deerfield

Zinfandel - 2005

Buchignani Garcia Vineyard

Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, California

Deerfield usually does it right and they succeeded again with their old vine zin. According to the bottle the vines are upward of 70 years old, and it's a single vineyard too, both very excellent signs that the contents are delicious.

This is a nicely balanced zin. The nose is a fruity-spicy mix with a hint of wood. On the tongue the licorice, chocolate, fruit and pepper are perfectly balanced and each sip reveals a different facet depending on the part of the palate it hits. It opens nicely over a few hours and has a velvety finish with a soft lingering acidity.

I like it. We have it at $120 a bottle, I don't $120 like it, a good option if you can grab it at a lower price, I would say I $50 like it.