Spring is a very good time to taste wine. Heck, any time is a very good time to taste wine, but since it’s spring, that’s the best time right now. Feelings may change as summer looms into view, but we can take the chance.
And some recent comments, with no particular order to the listings, though ZD Wines, which happens to be first, is a long-time favorite and one of the most stylish of California wineries. Founded in 1969 by the Zepponi and de Leuze families, the winery was the first to use "Carneros" as a designation for its grapes, 12 years before the area, which includes land in both Napa and Sonoma counties, received the designation as an appellation. ZD has been making Pinot Noir from the region every year since 1969.
The 2007 is a lovely wine, showing the delicacy for which the Pinot Grape is famous, though it will improve with another year in the bottle. It offers notes of cherry and red plum, with a long, fruity, gentle finish and retails in the $40 range.
Winemaker Chris Pisani also made an ‘07 Chardonnay that benefits from a long, cool growing season, and its California designation shows fruit from both Napa and Sonoma in Carneros, and also Monterey and Santa Barbara counties. Pisani uses American oak and his wines do not go through malolactic fermentation, keeping the fruit flavors forward. It retails for about $35.
Deep Purple – A Lodi-based winery with surprisingly tasty Zinfandel and a psychedelic label, the 2007 is the first I’ve seen to be recommended to accompany lamburgers. It’s a splendid pasta wine, in the $10 range, with a most attractive label. Very tasty version of a favorite grape.
Vini – The word following "Veni, vidi, vici," Julius Caesar’s famous phrase meaning "I saw, I came, I conquered," is Vini, at least in the minds of Bulgarian winemakers from Boyar Estates, who have put it on a label for Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon of the 2006 vintage, described in the Roman numerals, MMVI , to continue the Latin theme on a wine from the Thracian Valley. It’s a fairly decent Merlot, at a handy price point of around $10, though the wine feels heavy and thick on the palate and it lacks finesse. Two other ‘06 imports from Bulgaria, whites from from Targovishte, are Sauvignon Blanc and Traminer at $8 and $10, respectively. Both fell far short of excellence.
Sebeka – An excellent value at $10 is a red blend from South Africa, with 58 percent Shiraz and 42 percent Pinotage, a South African grape similar to the Cabernet family (Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet Franc). The 2007 shows lots of fruit, tending to the blackberry, and is a fine wine with beef.
Veramonte – A good Chilean producer with its 2005 Primus, a blend of Merlot (51 percent), Cabernet Sauvignon (32) and Carmenere (17), the latter a grape reported in Chilean legend to have originated in Bordeaux where it once was used in the great wines of the region. This particular wine, however, is big and rich, a superior value in the $20 range, with spicy notes and a backbone that indicates it will age well for several years.
Rosemount – A well-regarded Australian winery, Rosemount offers good value in the $10 range, with wines that show nice finesse, good fruit and a charming finish. The Pinot Grigio, aged in stainless steel to keep it light and flavorful, has good acidity and is a pleasant, straw-colored aperitif wine for sipping in the late afternoon while watching the sunset. The Shiraz is, of course, heavier and with a feeling of spice and rich dark fruit, to enjoy with dinner.
-Joe
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