This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I will receive a percentage of that purchase at no extra cost to you. I received the product in exchange for an honest review.
Recently, I had the opportunity to review Sterling Vineyards’ 2016 Calistoga Zinfandel ($40).
Sterling Vineyards’ Calistoga Vineyard is located at the northern tip of Napa Valley. According to the website, “The area experiences strong diurnal temperature swings, with very hot days and nights cooled by fog from the Russian River Valley that funnels through the Chalk Hill gap. The diversity of BV Ranch #12 vineyard along with its warm mesoclimate and lean, well-drained soils, produces dark, deeply flavored fruit with beautiful fruit character, spice and tannin.”
The wine itself is created from the Zinfandel grapes grown during the 2016 season. There was no frost and no heat spikes – and it was pretty rainy. “The ripening season enjoyed cooler than average daytime highs with plenty of sunshine so fruit had lengthy hangtime and developed very good color and flavor concentration. The region’s typical area cold nights enabled the fruit to maintain excellent acidity.”
Our Tasting Notes
When poured, the wine was a rust color mixed in with ruby cherry color. This is notable for a wine that’s only 4 years old. On tasting, it has a cherry base and has a young and fresh nose despite its rust color. The flavor is very misty, and it smells like the California coast and redwood forest. It’s a very smooth, very easy drinking wine for a robust varietal. The wine is all sour cherries and is simple and straightforward. It’s a good Italian night wine. Other notes were red pepper and paprika.
This is a wine to go with your lasagna, your spaghetti dinners, your chicken parmesan. Stirling Vineyards Calistoga Zinfandel’s webpage also notes that there is a vanilla stamp and notes of sage and black olives. I did not pick up on those, but that doesn’t mean they weren’t there. With sage and black olives, I might even suggest this would be the wine you’d want to pull out for enchiladas or on Christmas Eve to pair with tamale depending on the filling.
