BV Coastal Estates Zinfandel, California 06

Tasting Notes:
Our Zinfandel offers a delicious jumble of berries, including black cherry, blackberry and raspberry, in the full aromas and zesty flavors. A dash of peppery spice mingles with toasty oak nuances to add complexity. The flavors are persistent right through the lingering finish. Smooth and approachable, this wine tastes great with Italian or bistro fare, especially hearty minestrone, spicy sausage pizza, pasta, grilled meats and poultry, or whatever excites your taste buds.

After gently destemming the grapes, the juice and skins (must) were fermented at 80 to 85° to develop the rich, fruity flavors. Malolactic fermentation softened and rounded the acidity. A year of aging in American oak barrels matured flavors and wove warm oak spice nuances through the deep, dark fruit flavors.

Vineyard Notes:
Zinfandel grapes love sunny days to develop their spicy flavors, yet need cool breezes to keep their acids high enough for zesty balance. The grapes for this wine were grown in central Monterey County within California’s Central Coast appellation. Here, midway down the 150-mile-long Salinas Valley, there’s just enough (but not too much) Pacific Ocean wind from the Monterey Bay to temper the afternoon sun. Zinfandel is often called California’s own grape because for many years its origin was a mystery. Now DNA research has revealed that it probably came from Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast. Still, there’s no question that a natural synergy exists between California’s sunny foothills and Zinfandel!

Production Notes:
California

Winemaker Notes:
Grape growers who “stayed on their toes” and gave meticulous attention to their vines during the 2006 growing season were able to harvest outstanding quality grapes. The vintage had a split personality: first unseasonably late, heavy spring rains and then a challenging heat wave in early July. Fortunately, the extremes morphed into temperate, ideal conditions during ripening and harvest, resulting in fully-mature, balanced grapes.