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Wine Details
Price:
$34.00 per bottle
Description:
Our California Caudalies is a unique blend of Zinfandel and Petite Sirah. Combining these two bold wines produces deep flavors and colors balanced by complex structures. Aromas and flavors of ripe, red fruits and spice lead into a bold and lingering finish. A rich blend like nothing you have had before.
Silver Medal - 2009 San Francisco Int'l Wine Competition
Silver Medal - 2009 LA Int'l Wine & Spirits Competition
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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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Petite Sirah:
Petite Sirah is the same as the French variety known as Durif, a cross of Peloursin, with the true Syrah. A French nurseryman, Dr. François Durif, propagated the grape trying for resistance to powdery mildew and named it after himself, in the 1870s. Petite Sirah has long been an important blending grape, prized primarily for its deep color and fairly intense tannin. It is the variety most often chosen to blend into Zinfandel for added color, complexity, body, and to tone down the tendency of Zins toward "jammy" fruit.
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Meritage:
In 1988, a group of American vintners formed ‘The Meritage Association’ to identify handcrafted wines blended from the traditional "noble" Bordeaux varietals. Most American wines are labeled after the grape variety that comprises at least 75% of that wine. A label with "Cabernet Sauvignon" indicates that the wine is comprised of 75% or more of the grape variety Cabernet Sauvignon. Many winemakers, however, believed the varietal requirement did not necessarily result in the highest quality wine from their vineyards. "Meritage" was coined to identify wines that represent the highest form of the winemaker's art, blending, and to distinguish these wines from the more generic moniker "red table wine." "Meritage," pronounced like "heritage," was selected from more than 6,000 entries in an international contest to name the new wine category. “Meritage” is an invented word that combines "merit" and "heritage" --reflecting the spirit of members of ‘The Meritage Association’. A red “Meritage” is made from a blend of two or more of the following varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot, St. Macaire, Gros Verdot, and Carmenere. A white “Meritage” is made from a blend of two or more of the following varieties: Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and Sauvignon Vert. No single variety may make up more than 90 percent of the blend.
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