Northern Californian Zinfandel Paradise/Steele Wines

I moved to northern California about 20 years ago.At that time I loved red wines and had many favorites.Shortly after moving here, I had my first Zinfandel.I have not looked back,since opening that bottle.I love the wines and the stories that come with them.I have loved Jed Steele's wines for many years,and I'm very excited to open these bottles today.We have three Zinfandels,so we better get started. We will open first,the Steele Zinfandel 2010 Dupratt Vineyard. We will check out the tasting notes and a little history. Even in a good year, picking the DuPratt Vineyard is never easy. A mountain vineyard with hilly terrain gives some vines more sun. By its nature Zinfandel ripens unevenly and each cluster has raisins, ripe berries and under-ripe berries. Choosing when to harvest takes skill, intuition and sometimes, good luck. Our answer to this is a test pick in which we harvest two rows, which run the length of the vineyard. If we get what we feel are adequate sugars after a day of soaking on the skins, we then harvest the remainder of the vineyard. Even so we keep the upper (riper) part of this vineyard separate from the lower portion.Mendocino Ridge is known for great wines,and a tough time making them. This tiny 5.5 acre plot of 80 year old vines has always produced wines of spectacular quality. The long season enjoyed by grapes grown in the Mendocino Ridge appellation does allow full ripeness and consistent quality year in and year out. Aging for 16 months in a special mix of Taransaud French Oak barrels is the other key to the great flavors and drinking pleasure that is a hallmark of the DuPratt Zinfandel. The long season and elevation makes wines that are rich, elegant and complex. They are more like fine Claret than typical old vine Zinfandel from California.This is the oldest of the three Zinfandels we will taste today. I like to drinks these wines young,but the fruit is still great in this wine,and we will need a very complex dish to go with it.I picked the Korean Ribs from Gary Chu's Chinese . Now what I want to do is suggest a few dishes for these wines.So let's move on to our other 2 wines and get back to the food shortly.Our second Zinfandel is the 2012 Catfish Vineyard Zinfandel from Steele wines. The vineyard is located on the Bell Hill bench of Lake County just south of Kelseyville. Catfish Vineyard, planted in 1901, is head pruned and stands on its own roots. Steele Wines purchased the vineyard in 2000 and we have been working to rehabilitate the old vines since that time. Catfish Vineyard Zinfandel, is actually a field blend of a number of varieties, including small amounts of carignan, alicante bouschet, cabernet sauvignon , petite sirah, and cinsault. Having more than one variety assured the old-time vintners that they would have some grapes to harvest regardless of the spring frosts or autumn storms.Steele has made this wine for many years,and it always sells very quickly.You will love turning your friends on to these wines,and this wine will be requested over and over.One of the best Zinfandels made,end of discussion.BUT,we do have another Zinfandel,and this is the 2013 Pacini Vineyard. The Pacini Family planted this vineyard circa 1940 on the western foothills of the Mayacamas Mountains in Mendocino County. This beautiful old vineyard is head-pruned as are most Zinfandel vineyards of the era. Steele Wines purchased the vineyard in 1998 from the Pacini Family. Since then we have been refurbishing the vineyard and replacing vines in the positions where the old vines have died. The location of the vineyard prevents us from irrigating or frost protecting due to the limited water supply. This provides for the intense flavors and aromas in this low yielding Zinfandel. when the vines are very old they produce far less but most Zinfandel lovers will tell you that's part of the fun,is the age of the vines,and the unique wines that are produced. Steele wines keeps the temperatures on their fermentations moderate to develop the color and flavors inherent in this wine. They age the Pacini Vineyard Zinfandel in American oak barrels for 12 months. The nose is full of ripe cherry and blueberry with undertones of toasted hazelnut and vanilla. The palate is full of ripe wild berries, spice, and cherry cola, with dusty cocoa and light tannin on the finish. The wine has great structure, and is well balanced. The structure in these wines is why I think they are perfect for Asian food !The sauces are a great match for the deep,lingering finish on these wines.The Catfish has a coffee background note that just keeps me pouring another intriguing taste of this wine.The Dupratt is best paired with a cheery or Orange sauce,and I picked Spicy Orange Chicken,and it works very well. I went "Bridge" with the Pacini Zinfandel,and paired it with the Duck and Spicy sauce.I knew I was in for a feast when I opened these wines,but I have passion for this cuisine and also for the Zinfandels from Steele Wines.There is still work to be done...would you care to join me?Kindly bring three glasses over when you sit down.I will follow this new feature with a few Steele features from the past.I'm ready for more food and wine,pardon me!Cheers!