LCBO Sale Wine of the Week: October 27

Ravenswood 2014 Vintners Blend Old Vine Zinfadel (California, USA)

Sale $16.95, Regular $18.95
Discount (until Nov. 6): $2.00
LCBO #359257 | 750 mL bottle

Tastes like: Plum with sweet and peppery spice, ripe blackberries, vanilla and some floral hues. Well balanced and refreshing.
Pairs with: Sturdy meats, barbecue, pizza, ratatouille, parmigiana.
Good for: Changing things up. If you haven’t had a (good) Zin for a while, give this one a try.
Alcohol: 13.6%
Drink: Now.

Why we're drinking this
Ravenswood’s Zinfandels have been popular LCBO products for as long as I can remember, but I never liked them much. The hot and overblown Zin style of yesteryear — all jammy and semi-sweet — was cloying and pretty much like drinking Port. But this vintage is a different beast, and demonstrates how pretty Zin can be when the alcohol is tempered and the oak toned down. This is quite a refreshing drink, still very much Zinfandel in all its juicy fruit and spicy glory, but perhaps some of these kudos are also due to the 17% Petite Syrah and 3% “mixed black” grapes in the blend. Still, a nice one from Ranvenswood.

Tasting note
Pretty perfumed and floral aromas, black fruit and plum, with a little sweet oak spice and vanilla. Quite inviting. Flavours of black fruit and blackberries, a hint of tobacco and sweet oak, and just a little raspberry jamminess. Surprise, there’s a nice balancing acidity here, and some light but present tannins (hello, Petite Syrah). This balances out the ripe fruit and lend a breezy feel. Quite a pretty wine. Drinkable and enjoyable on its own or with red meats or saucy-savoury pork or chicken. Veal or eggplant parmigiana would be ideal.

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