What pairs best with Memorial Day, 4th of July or summer grilling? For me, the answer is Zinfandel. Although the grape allegedly originated in Croatia, Zinfandel thrives better in California than any place else, period. For that reason, Zinfandel is a purely American creation. If I had to choose only one Zinfandel to serve, it would have to be Gamba. A perennial customer favorite and proving to be top contenders on California’s Zinfandel scene, Gus Gamba’s old vine Zinfandels are gaining world-wide acclaim.
Fashioned from an organically farmed vineyard planted in 1900, the ancient vines have relied on winter rains as their sole source of irrigation for over 95 years. Yielding just 1.5 tons per acre of strikingly intense, concentrated, pristinely focused fruit, the 2017 Estate Vineyard Old Vine Zinfandel exhibits all the qualities that one could hope for in Old Vine Zinfandel. At $49.99 it’s simply stunning. We had tasted the 2017 when it was first bottled earlier this year and again recently with owner Gus Gamba, and it’s developed into one of his best ever.
GAMBA VINEYARDS & WINERY
2017 GAMBA ESTATE VINEYARD
OLD VINE ZINFANDEL
RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY
$49.99
Winery Notes: “The exciting 2017 Gamba Estate Old Vine Zinfandel is brilliant, with bright ruby hues that beckon in the bowl oft he glass. The aroma offers raspberries, dried herbs, vanilla and intense rainier cherry aromas. Medium to full in body, as the wine breathes, the palate bursts with fresh red and blue berries, stone fruit, nectarine and ripe cherry that evolve into delicious holiday spices and notes of sandalwood. The mouthfeel is polished and bright, with mild, mouth-watering tannins, making for a complex wine that is focused and enjoyable from beginning to end. The finish is lengthy, with waves of gushing bright fruit and a pleasant lifting acidity that echoes with toasty oak.”
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Customers that enjoy the Gamba Estate Old Vine Zinfandel, may also enjoy these two outstanding Gamba wines…
GAMBA VINEYARDS & WINERY
2016 ZINFANDEL
FAMILY RANCHES
$45.0
Winery Notes: “… a bold, well structured wine with an aromatic nose of ripe berries, brown spice, and black licorice. The color is a beautiful and vibrant dark crimson. The wine is deftly balanced, with flavors that burst on the palate, offering well defined dark cherry, raspberry and blueberry that give way to dark chocolate, spicy pepper and a hint of nutty oak. The frame is firm yet round without harsh edges, with an appealing, weighty, yet buoyant mid palate, and a refreshing lift on the lengthy, enjoyable, toasty finish.”
GAMBA VINEYARDS & WINERY
2016 STARR ROAD RANCH
OLD VINE ZINFANDEL
$49.99
Winery Notes: “The 2017 Gamba Starr Road Old Vine Zinfandel is in a word, opulent…The aroma offers exquisite Luxardo cherries, cocoa, raspberries and subtle cedar…. Dark black fruits, candied nectarine, freshly baked pie crust and an ethereal note of sweet oak fill the palate, surrounded by a backdrop of lifting and zesty acidity to frame the wine. The texture is silky, seamless and balanced, with soft leathery, yet polished tannins. Focused and uncompromising, this artistic, and hedonistic expression of Old Vine Zinfandel will leave you satisfied and reaching for the next sip…”
