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Zinfandel 'Pato Vineyard'

Zinfandel 'Pato Vineyard' Wine Details
Price: $30.00 per bottle

Description: Rich Pato’s Oakley vineyard crop levels in 2003 were down almost 20% from the previous year. Extra color, richness and intensity in the wine is the result. There’s an exotic element of spiciness in the wine as well. Our Pato Zinfandel addresses all there is to love about this uniquely California variety -- flavor, drinkability and satisfaction. The fruit, harvested at an average 25% sugar, was fermented for almost 30 days before being transferred to 60-gallon French oak barrels for 14 months of aging, free of intervention or manipulation. It was racked three times for natural clarification, then bottled with no fining or filtration. We want to preserve everything the vineyard puts into these 108 year old vines.

Varietal Definition
Zinfandel:
Zinfandel is a variety of red grape planted in over 10 percent of California wine vineyards. DNA fingerprinting revealed that it is genetically equivalent to the Croatian grape Crljenak Kaštelanski, and also the Primitivo variety traditionally grown in the 'heel' of Italy. It is typically made into a robust red wine. Its taste depends on the ripeness of the grapes from which it is made. Red berry fruits like raspberry predominate in wines from cooler areas such as the Napa Valley, whereas blackberry, anise and pepper notes are more common in wines made in warmer areas such as Sonoma County. Many Zinfandels come from head pruned ‘Old Vines’. ‘Old Vine’ is generally understood to mean a vine that is more than 50 years old and that produces less than three tons per acre. ‘Head Pruning’ is an old European style of pruning that trains the vine into the shape of a goblet. It requires no wires or other complex trellis systems. Head pruning spreads the fruit uniformly along the vine and allows light penetration.In the USA a semi-sweet Rosé (blush-style) wine called ‘White Zinfandel’ has achieved widespread popularity. In fact, this popularity has so outstripped all other forms that many fans think there is actually a grape called “White Zinfandel” (there isn’t)!


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